“Where Did I Come From?”: Watch And Play Sex Education Books, Tapes and Games

Since the dawn of time, parents have performed the profoundly awkward task of explaining “the birds and the bees” to their young’uns. I don’t care how cool and loose your relationship is with your sons and daughters, talking about “doing the nasty” with your kid is just never a comfortable conversation. So painful is this talk, that many parents choose to leave well enough alone and let the schools deliver the dirty news.  Or, in 1985, they maybe just popped one of these videos in the ol’ VCR and quietly left the room…

 

The title for the puberty videotape is great; however, to be more accurate it should be something like:  “Dear god, what the f**k is happening to my genitals?!?”

Here’s the full video… and remember – “Sex Education Can Be Fun!”

 

If you enjoyed that, the “What’s Happening To Me?” video can be found here.

Of course, you can always skip the books and videos and play a round of Dr. Ruth’s board game…

Actually, this one’s for adult sex education.  But that doesn’t make it any less awkward.

The back of the box explains: “couples move their pawn around the board, accumulating Arousal Points”.   Basically, the first couple to screw wins the game; everyone else dies a virgin.  For those interested, have a look at the instruction manual inside.

Of course, Dr. Ruth didn’t invent sex-ed gaming.  This from 1979…

 I’m not sure the intended market for this game.  When you open up the game board, you get the impression that it’s all a big joke…

I understand things were a bit off the hook during the Sexual Revolution, but this seems just a little too irreverent to be for school… although, I wouldn’t be surprised it wound up in a few classrooms.

If videotapes and games are not your bag, you can go the old fashioned route and hand your offspring an illustrated book:

Nothing explains the miracle of life better than Cocker Spaniels screwing.

 

My favorite vintage sex-ed book that I’ve come across is I Wonder, I Wonder, by Marguerite Kurth Frey (1967).  How can you not love a book with a chapter entitled “Daddy’s Sperm”….

Take note of how Daddy explains that his sperm are in a sack that hangs between his legs….”Scro-tum… that’s easy to say!”

I must admit, I was a little worried when Grandma came up with a pan of hot, soapy water.

Yes, there was no shortage of sex books for the kids back then…

Perusing through these old sex ed books, it does become apparent that the topic was being addressed at a much younger age in the 1960s-70s.  A lot of sex education books from this time period are obviously aimed at kids barely out of diapers; whereas 80s sex ed books go for the pre-teens.

Also, judging by the magazine covers from around 1970, there was obviously a push to get the word out about the Boomer’s favorite pastime…

 

Perhaps, when all is said and done, we should look to the Swedes for our sex education…

From the back cover: “Here is a simple, straightforward book on human sexual behavior, specially prepared by a staff of Swedish doctors and sociologists.”

Whether you choose board games or Swedish professionals to provide your sex education, it can’t be worse than those infamous school filmstrips of the 1950s and 60s.  I’ll leave you with George and his masturbation issues, and a casual locker room chat about tiny penises.  Enjoy.