[Shenjall]

Procter & Gamble
Yep. my dd came home from school with some free samples of Always pads and Head and Shoulders shampoo. They also came with some lovely booklets though. Help me! I'm sooo conflicted! I would have loved to have these booklets when I was a preteen. They are not cheesy and full of info (my only complaint was the diagram of an intact penis labeled as "uncircumcised" but thats another story) and how great would it have been to have my own pads ready for when I started my first period. (as opposed to my mother having my sisters boyfriend go buy some for me and making me thank him - ugh sooo ambarrassing)
But, I'm really uncomfortable with corp's in our schools. Aaack!
anyone else confused/ conflicted with this?

 

[applejuice]

ITA!

I do not know what is happening in Canada, but here in California, after 1978 when the electorate passed Proposition 13 which severely cut property tax levying and therefore funding for the public schools, the school districts began to allow corporations to advertise in the schools.

When I graduated in 1972, there were no Coca-cola machines or TacoBell, Subway, or PizzaHut franchises in the school lunchrooms, but now there were!

I do not know why the schools did this since there is still Federal Funding for the breakfast and lunch programs.

I also know that the Dairy Council and Meat Producers fund the nutritional instruction in the schools.

 

[Shenjall]

I dont know what to do. I want to call the school and ask wth are they doing but on the other hand, these booklets are great! My mom sucked at "the talk"; I learned it all at school. If these things can help kids get the right info..
AAAAAh! But where will it end? I dont know, what to do, what to do....

 

[Stacie]

Taco Bell and Pizza Hut in the school??? wow. I must really live in the sticks!

We don't have those. We have water machines, soda and the usual nabs.

School lunches are still school lunches. Have much more variety than when I went to the school (my kids are in the same school system I graduated from). Now they are offered a choice of foods including salads or nachos. But no resturants. I find that totally amazing. I guess our school isn't big enough. The high school graduated 150 kids last week.

They, of cource, get the usual pads, toothpastes (which I toss because of the flouride), keep the tooth brushes though, shampoo. Kool-aid has come home. (have that hidden in the cubbord).

what really blows me away is the "sex-ed", but that is another rant!

 

[InfoisPower]

Shenjall let her take one of her pads apart, describe what makes them and how they're made (all those PCB's and plastic -sweats like mad) and then take her on a virtual trip to order/make some Gladrags or Many Moons pads.
Explain how every time she uses these she's saving $$ (as women still pay GST/PST on them even tho they earn statistically less). Make it an exercise to figure how much it would cost per year to use 'sposies VS reusable. It's rather startling...considering too that they've decreased the amount of pads they sell per package.

:

 

[EFmom]

The fact that you (and I) didn't get decent sex ed as kids is really a different issue from the corporate presence in the classroom.

There is good age appropriate material out there these days. Visit your local public library or book store and you should be able to find lots of material that your child's school could have provided without all the advertising. But it is easier and cheaper for them to have the company program rather than putting together something non-commercial.

If I were in your shoes, I'd keep the booklets since they seem useful in and of themselves, but I would talk to my dd about the corporations marketing to kids. In my first grader's school, Pizza Hut sponsors this reading program where if the kids read 8 books a month, they get a free personal pizza. Our child reads more books than that in a week, and she was miffed at me that she was one of the few kids in her class whose parents didn't sign off on the form for a pizza.

I'm always getting her to look for marketing aimed at kids to see it for what it is worth. So, we made a little math lesson about how much the "free" pizza would end up costing us, assuming we took her in, and we bought food and drinks for the rest of the family. She could see that it isn't free after all. She will now point stuff out to me that is inappropriate marketing to children.

 

[Mamid]

Instead works wonders compared to pads or tampons!

 

[TiredX2]

Quote:

Instead works wonders compared to pads or tampons!

But the Diva Cup is even better!

PLUS the fact that it is not disposable.

 

[shantimama]

What to do? Maybe start by writing to P&G and tell them that while most of the information in their booklet as accurate and helpful, they should be using the terms "intact" and "circumsized" when they are describing penises. Since more and more boys are growing up intact, P&G should be using correct terminology. An intact penis is normal, a circumsized one is not, even if common.

Sounds like you have two good opportunities hre - one to discuss the content of the booklets, another to discuss advertising with your child. I like the idea of taking a pad apart and discussing what is in them and the effect that can have on a woman's reproductive organs. Introduce her to the alternatives - cloth pads, sponges, cups.

 

[Sarah]

Holycamoly... says this homeschooling mom... the corporate thing is HUGE isn't it? My mom told me about a first grade math class which was given little boxes of mini M&Ms to do counting excercises... I guess they just keep it coming.

Anyway- that whole politics aside, as a genital integrity activist who also happens to live near the P&G World HQ- I would be REALLY interested in seeing what they show in their pamphlet. Is there a way that you could *pretty please* get me a copy of this pamphlet- if not the whole thing- the page? A scan, a xerox... ? email, snail mail?

Speaking of sex ed and circumcision- remember "Our Bodies Ourselves" ? The last edition I checked- the ONLY mention of MALE circumcision was to tell girls/women giving their children up for adoption that circumcision was one of the things they were entitled to do before giving up a baby boy!!

So, as far as investing in your own sex ed materials and hoping that they will treat that issue fairly- that book FLUNKS.

Love Sarah

 

[TiredX2]

Quote:

Speaking of sex ed and circumcision- remember "Our Bodies Ourselves" ? The last edition I checked- the ONLY mention of MALE circumcision was to tell girls/women giving their children up for adoption that circumcision was one of the things they were entitled to do before giving up a baby boy!!

uke

 

[fourgrtkidos]

Quote:

Originally Posted by InfoisPower Shenjall let her take one of her pads apart, describe what makes them and how they're made (all those PCB's and plastic -sweats like mad) and then take her on a virtual trip to order/make some Gladrags or Many Moons pads. Explain how every time she uses these she's saving $$ (as women still pay GST/PST on them even tho they earn statistically less). Make it an exercise to figure how much it would cost per year to use 'sposies VS reusable. It's rather startling...considering too that they've decreased the amount of pads they sell per package. :

You Go! SISTER!

 

[KoalaMama]

This is horrible! Yeah, it's great that they're giving kids good information (excluding the bad circumcision reference), but do we really need our kids being marketed to in the schools??? Where in Canada are you? Do you know if this is a provincial or federal program?

 

[Shenjall]

Thanks for the replies guys!
Another interesting fact that is her teacher did talk to the class about marketing and to ask yourself questions, etc. (things that we've already discussed at home) What are they doing?
Someone mentioned that there is other good info out there like the library, etc but what about the kids whose parents wont take them? I guess this is my biggest internal dilema. Sex and our bodies is a very open topic in our house. Thats no problem here, but, they do seem to be helpful for my dd friends who wont get *any* sort of talk at home or the wrong info. If they can help one girl get the right answers, is it really that bad? Part of me wants to say no, but then where does it all end?
I will definitely be writing P&G about the "uncirc" thing! I didnt even think of that, thanks!
I havent thought of offering her reusable pads ( I dont use them) but will mention it to her and let her decide. Hey, she can even help me sew them!
I'm in manitoba. The back of the booklet says "Ontario Physical and Health Education Association OPHEA)"
Sarah, I dont have a scanner but let me see what I can do (maybe dh can take it to work and photocopy it or something)
Thanks for all the things to think about!
Laura

 

[Mamid]

The scary thing is I found the info pac online about what they are teaching kids.

Sorry, am not going to subject my son to that. He'll be taught about sex by us first.

Anyway, the site is at here

 

[kimberlylibby]

My husband teaches 3rd grade... he constantly gets "free" offers of junk if he uses their propoganda/advertising.

For example, they had a whole pack of stuff on soil erosion with videos and posters and things..... sponsored by *DORITOS*. HUGE HUGE HUGE doritos ads on it all.... Gag.

And these huge posters on fitness with fitness packs for the kids, which were REALLY cool, except for the fact that they had big ole' Powerbar ads on them!

Gag.

Kimberly

 

[PikkuMyy]

I wrote a huge paper for my Education human relations class on advertising in schools. My teacher (an @sshole) gave me a D with an option to write it over because he felt that it didn't have to do with human relations (hello?!?!?!) and that it was "biased". What a schmuck. Anyway, I rewrote it out of principle because there was no WAY I was getting a D for all the hard work I did. Got a B.

I just finished reading Food Politics by Marion Nestle - all about politics related to....you guessed it....food! Particularly the food pyramids. Also addresses food in schools.

You should read No Logo by Naomi Klein for lots of info about branding, particularly related to children and schools.

I teach special ed right now but should I teach regular ed in the future I will be very particular about pointing out all branding to my students and discuss the implications thereof.

 

[TiredX2]

Thanks for the book recommendations.

 

[mealymama]

This is so grotesque!
I remember when Colgate/Palmolive reps came to my elementary school to teach us about oral hygeine. Also, at my school we were forced to do flouride rinses every week unless we had a dentist's note stating that we had an RX for a flouride rinse at home. The rinse we took in school came in these little cups from ACT. Isn't that nice?
Now schools are making their money off of vending machines... they sell candy and soda in the hallways of my former highschool, and there are fast food vendors and everything. I guess schools have to make their money, somehow. I mean, we do have missiles to pay for and all.

 

[Viola]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mamid Instead works wonders compared to pads or tampons!

I wore Instead, and it was like I was wearing nothing. I guess I just didn't get it seated right, and I ran through the box and they were expensive, so I just gave up on them.

Would the Diva Cup, Keeper or any of those work better than Instead?