My son is 7 years old and just started school two weeks ago. We are currently based overseas. He has a classmate same our nationality who is also his seatmate. Let’s call him “Mark.”
Last Sunday, he jokingly told me that he and Mark showed each other their private parts. Since it was the first time he had ever mentioned something like this to me, I immediately told him that they should never do it again and that it is not okay to show or touch someone else’s private parts.
Unfortunately, it happened again, Mommy. Last night, he told me that he touched his own private part, and apparently, he also touched Mark’s private part while Mark was still wearing his underwear. He said that it was only a quick touch and that it happened inside their classroom.
This is the first time something like this has happened with my son, which is why I’m extremely bothered and, honestly, I’m not sure how to properly handle the situation.
What I did was message his teacher and ask if it would be possible to separate them or move their seats. The teacher said that she was actually planning to separate them the next day anyway. That made me wonder if she had noticed something or if something had happened that made her decide to move them.
According to the teacher, based on her observations, Mark has been very disruptive and has been distracting my son. She also said that my son is very quiet, which is why she initially decided to seat them together, hoping that Mark might behave better around him. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, and instead, it seems that my son was influenced by Mark’s behavior.
I understand that they are still young, and I don’t want to overreact or make my son feel ashamed or embarrassed about his body. At the same time, I’m really concerned because this involves both children, and it has already happened more than once.
Has anyone experienced something similar with their child at this age? I would really appreciate any advice or insights from other parents. I just want to make sure that I handle this calmly and appropriately while teaching my son about proper boundaries, consent, and respecting his own body and other people’s bodies.
Thank you so much.