The Amazing True Story of How Babies Are Made is a completely original and entertaining production created to deliver funny, frank and embarrassment-free sex education for children. The 21-minute glorious animation is comprised of 3 x 7-minute episodes, and available to purchase directly from amazingbabies.tv/usa and on digital platforms iTunes and Amazon.
Based on the best-selling book by Fiona Katauskas that brought a decidedly modern, “real talk” approach to sex education for children, The Amazing True Story of How Babies Are Made ditches the out-dated teachings in previous books and language around sexuality that is still in classrooms to this day.
For parents wanting help with THAT talk, The Amazing True Story of How Babies Are Made is also available as a full family resource kit that includes all three episodes of the series, a visual glossary of keywords with interactive audio, a fun multiple-choice quiz to help consolidate learning, and examples of curious questions that might come up along with suggested answers.
A modern Sydney mom, Fiona realized, as her two sons were growing up and starting to ask their own questions, that education around sexuality is too often clinical, dull and restrained. “When my oldest son asked where babies come from, I made my way to a large bookshop expecting to find shelves groaning with volumes on the subject. Instead, I found only two books. One was complicated and boring and the other was the same book my mother had read to me as a child – a book that was published in 1973!”
As a visual storyteller she decided that it was time for a fresh approach to sex education that is simple, inclusive, informative and entertaining. She opted to write an honest, inclusive and relevant book that didn’t gloss over facts. Proper terminology for body parts and what happens when babies are created is an important element of the book and the series. “Labelling things properly is empowering,” Fiona says.
Importantly, she wanted the book to be humorous. “‘Mom/Dad, how are babies made?’ can be five of the most terrifying words a parent can hear and I figured that a hefty dose of humour would help alleviate the embarrassment,” Fiona says.
I was able to interview Fiona to learn more.
What sets this series apart from other sex education options?
It takes a fresh, funny and inclusive approach to one of the oldest stories ever told- how babies are made. Using humour and a light-hearted approach to bust through the embarrassment barrier, the animation focuses on the joyousness and all-round amazingness of human reproduction.
While the sperm still meets the egg in the old fashioned way, we now have alternative reproductive technology (ART) too. In 2018, two percent of babies born in the United States were conceived using ART- three times more than in 1996. As technology rapidly improves, more babies will be made this way, whether to heterosexual or same-sex couples. Unlike other resources, the animation covers ART and takes care to do it in a factual and inclusive way.
About Fiona Katauskas
Fiona Katauskas is an award-winning cartoonist and illustrator as well as an author and television producer, based in Sydney. Her work has appeared in a wide range of books, anthologies, newspapers, online publications and exhibitions. Her book The Amazing True Story of How Babies Are Made (2016, ABC Books/Harper Collins) was shortlisted for the Children’s Book Council of Australia Awards and Australian Book Industry Awards
About CJZ
CJZ is Australia’s largest privately owned television production company and creates more original programming than any other independent production group in Australia and New Zealand. The company works across all genres with particular expertise in factual, entertainment, formats, comedy and drama. CJZ consistently delivers more than 20 original series to multiple networks per year. CJZ has won numerous awards, including the Rose d’or and an International Emmy. Its focus is on original ideas, creating some of Australia’s highest rating, longest running and most widely travelled franchises including Bondi Rescue, Gruen, Border Patrol and Go Back to Where You Came From.
www.cjz.com.au
It takes a fresh, funny and inclusive approach to one of the oldest stories ever told- how babies are made. Using humour and a light-hearted approach to bust through the embarrassment barrier, the animation focuses on the joyousness and all-round amazingness of human reproduction.
While the sperm still meets the egg in the old fashioned way, we now have alternative reproductive technology (ART) too. In 2018, two percent of babies born in the United States were conceived using ART- three times more than in 1996. As technology rapidly improves, more babies will be made this way, whether to heterosexual or same-sex couples. Unlike other resources, the animation covers ART and takes care to do it in a factual and inclusive way.
Why the animated approach?
Animation, with its visual creativity and imaginative sound design, is a wonderful way to engage children and makes everyone feel young at heart. It’s also great for telling a story that might make some parents feel a little awkward if they had to sit down and read it aloud from a book. With an animated series, children and their parents or carers can sit down on the sofa together and share the experience while letting the show do the work.
The animation also comes with added resources for parents to help make them feel comfortable and confident with any questions that might arise.
How can humor alleviate the embarrassment that sometimes surrounds "the talk?"
Using humor is a wonderful way to deal with a potentially embarrassing subject. It takes the pressure off a direct approach and allows everyone to relax. It’s also a terrific educative tool. When we laugh or are amused by something, we’re more open and engaged- and much more likely to remember the information.
In the case of human reproduction, humour also lets us all realise how joyous and magical a process it all is, and that’s a great focus for future conversations.
What are some other things parents can do to make it less embarrassing to talk about sex?
First, DON’T PANIC! Take a deep breath and remember that as adults, we have experiences and histories and personal perspectives on sex – a whole Pandora’s box full – that children DO NOT HAVE. Leave your baggage behind and come to the conversation understanding a child’s perspective.
If a child feels that the subject is too embarrassing for their parents and is a taboo topic, they’ll turn to the internet and I can guarantee you that if they type “s-e-x” into Google, they won’t be finding age-appropriate, educative material!
Secondly, remember that when a child asks how babies are made, they’re not asking about sex per se. They’re asking how they – or their siblings – came into the world and sexual intercourse is only part of that tale. The story of how babies are made is about our bodies, how they grow and change and how an embryo grows and becomes a tiny human. Sex is part of it, for sure, but not the only part of it.
The animation also comes with added resources for parents to help make them feel comfortable and confident with any questions that might arise.
How can humor alleviate the embarrassment that sometimes surrounds "the talk?"
Using humor is a wonderful way to deal with a potentially embarrassing subject. It takes the pressure off a direct approach and allows everyone to relax. It’s also a terrific educative tool. When we laugh or are amused by something, we’re more open and engaged- and much more likely to remember the information.
In the case of human reproduction, humour also lets us all realise how joyous and magical a process it all is, and that’s a great focus for future conversations.
What are some other things parents can do to make it less embarrassing to talk about sex?
First, DON’T PANIC! Take a deep breath and remember that as adults, we have experiences and histories and personal perspectives on sex – a whole Pandora’s box full – that children DO NOT HAVE. Leave your baggage behind and come to the conversation understanding a child’s perspective.
If a child feels that the subject is too embarrassing for their parents and is a taboo topic, they’ll turn to the internet and I can guarantee you that if they type “s-e-x” into Google, they won’t be finding age-appropriate, educative material!
Secondly, remember that when a child asks how babies are made, they’re not asking about sex per se. They’re asking how they – or their siblings – came into the world and sexual intercourse is only part of that tale. The story of how babies are made is about our bodies, how they grow and change and how an embryo grows and becomes a tiny human. Sex is part of it, for sure, but not the only part of it.
About Fiona Katauskas
Fiona Katauskas is an award-winning cartoonist and illustrator as well as an author and television producer, based in Sydney. Her work has appeared in a wide range of books, anthologies, newspapers, online publications and exhibitions. Her book The Amazing True Story of How Babies Are Made (2016, ABC Books/Harper Collins) was shortlisted for the Children’s Book Council of Australia Awards and Australian Book Industry Awards
About CJZ
CJZ is Australia’s largest privately owned television production company and creates more original programming than any other independent production group in Australia and New Zealand. The company works across all genres with particular expertise in factual, entertainment, formats, comedy and drama. CJZ consistently delivers more than 20 original series to multiple networks per year. CJZ has won numerous awards, including the Rose d’or and an International Emmy. Its focus is on original ideas, creating some of Australia’s highest rating, longest running and most widely travelled franchises including Bondi Rescue, Gruen, Border Patrol and Go Back to Where You Came From.
www.cjz.com.au
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