Should our children be naked on the beach? ( from the author of ‘Say “NO” to Bottom Games’ )

SHOULD OUR CHILDREN BE NAKED ON THE BEACH? 

This morning I had a conversation with an old friend who has a small child after he
had read Say “NO” To Bottom-Games and he made comments like:

“Isn’t it a bit odd that we teach the child “I don’t show my bottom when I’m playing”,
and then let them play on the beach naked? How does that work? What about their
need to play freely? ”

I think this is a very valid question.

My immediate response is how sad it would be if little children were to loose the
wonderful experience of innocently playing naked at the beach.

My more considered response is more of a question:

“If we as adults hold an awareness of what we are teaching children about body safety, then can we
include this as we attend to them in these situations?”

I would hope this was possible.

There are a few ideas that could work to under-pin an adult’s attention to a child
playing in these situations such as:

A:

A young child as we know communicates through actions and sounds.

Some children love being naked and others find this vulnerable state uncomfortable.  You could pay attention to your child’s cues
and watch how they communicate their feelings about being naked in this situation today.

If they are attempting to express their discomfort you could find they behave in ways such as:

* Pulling at their clothes trying to stretch them so they are more covered.

*  Being more clingy to you and not wanting to go far from where they feel safe.

*  Being more uncooperative or even demanding for what seems like no reason.

*  Attempting to cover themselves up with clothes or towels.

*  Being less active than usual.

If a child is feeling vulnerable it may not be about anything obvious but it could be exacerbated by them becoming naked. Imagine if we are feeling vulnerable and then had our clothes taken off us as well!!

Notice your child’s cues, and offer to cover them and see if it helps, it’s likely they will soon let you know and it may not last long before they have the confidence to skip about freely again.

 B:

Notice how you are feeling about your child’s needs for nakedness. Perhaps be aware of whose decision it is that your child be naked…is it yours or theirs? Keep watchful of each situation and re-connect with the ideas suggested in Say “NO” To Bottom-Games about listening and respecting your child’s development of being the ‘boss of their bodies’.

 C:

Set clear limits about when it’s time to put clothes back on.

Anya Godwin

Children’s Counsellor

Home and Family Counselling

View Anya’s profile  here