a CM2 teacher is worried

They are barely 10 years old and already they wear a critical look at their physique. At this age, one could imagine that their primary concerns are having the latest fashionable toy or organizing the best of birthday parties, to still be carefree, but no. Today, what seems to preoccupy them is rather the image they send back to others through their bodies. A primary school teacher recently made the bitter observation. On Twitter, on the occasion of the international day of women’s rights and equality between girls and boys on March 8, she expressed herself in a long thread.

In charge of a CM2 class, she sees “Her daughters” 10 years, as she calls them, wish for the news lose or gain a few pounds because they think they are fat or too thin. So much so that one of them is followed by a nutritionist “‘because of his complexes and his body which she finds too big’ (Which, objectively, he is not.)”reports the professor in her tweet.

“When I give a form to fill in for the discovery class on which you have to fill in your weight, I. asks me if it’s obligatory, ‘because she doesn’t like to write her weight, because she’s fat ‘. When we go to the swimming pool, they are the same people who look for the smallest corner of the locker room to hide when it’s time to change.”

They become their own judge

Their body. Some of them judge him on a daily basis, while others abhor him. It’s a reality, a real social problem, which is not new. In 2015, a study carried out by the British government, revealed that from the age of 7, little girls are complexed by their bodies and make negative judgments.

They are afraid of being judged, rejected or even harassed, so much so that they become “toughest of judges”. “It breaks my heart that they have already understood to such an extent that as girls, they will always be judged on their looks. And that they themselves are the harshest of judges”, says the teacher.

Contacted by us, she adds that “little girls understand very early that, as girls, they must, and above all else, be beautiful, pleasant to look at”. Once adolescence comes, these norms take on greater importance. “I think the Internet in general and social networks amplify something that was already relayed before by families, television, advertising and cinema. And since children have access to it early, and often alone, they build themselves with that “, she concludes.

How to react ?

So how to help them? The teacher who shared this tweet tries with her students to make them aware that the value of a person goes far beyond weight : “that it is certainly not their weight, the shape of their nose, the size of their thighs or their belly that makes them who they are. That it is by their thoughts, their actions, their words that they define themselves and act on the world”. It also does not let pass any sexist comments in the classroom or in the playground. “We are talking about feminismof gender stereotypes“she explains.

On the parents’ side, their eyes and their words are important. They can help their child by:

• making them develop their critical thinking, especially at the level of images and representations of bodies disseminated on social networks or in magazines. Take time with them to decipher what is seen and heard;
• making them gain confidence in their body ;
• Being vigilant about content to which their children have access;
• Avoiding weight comments ;
• And by being open to discussion.

Listen to what your child has to say and above all do not trivialize his concerns. This will allow you to understand what he is going through, but also to answer his questions and help him as much as possible to demystify certain beliefs or preconceived ideas about the representation of the body.

Since September 2021, Lisa has joined the Aufeminin team. Little by little she specialized in subjects related to parenthood. Curious and passionate about writing, she likes to tell …