A question for everyone, but teachers in particular: Is this an appropriate book for little kids?

[Stinky The Clown]

Sparkly teaches at an uberliberal school. This book was read aloud to one class. The book has a sweet, childish plot, heavy on farts. The notion was that it would reduce the natural tendency to joke endlessly when another kid farts (as they so often do). The teacher also encouraged the kids to make fart noises, again to desensitize them.

I am sure this can be seen as controversial. Personally, we both think it was a pretty good idea. What do you think?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

1. This is absolutely not appropriate.

Obviously this book is intended for an adults only audience.

Also- only for people who fart. My shit, for example, does not stink.

[Warpy]

2. I'd have LOVED this book

and if it's a teaching aid to decrease fart jokes in front of strangers and at Mommy's dinner parties, it's a great thing.

Kids love farts. Pretending they don't exist or that something about them is shameful is worse than telling kids there's a place for everything.

Edited to add my late uncle's favorite: http://simplythebest.net/sounds/WAV/WAV_files/humor_WAV_files/beans.wav

[immoderate]

28. EVERBODY loves farts...

Farts are always funny. They are god's way of telling us we can't be taken seriously.

--imm

[DJ13]

3. Yes, its appropr....RIP.... iate for chil.....RIP ....dren

Why do you ask?

[Mari333]

4. Oh hell yes. I had 3 sons. you better believe it.

:)

[FreeJoe]

5. We read all three books in the series to our kids.

[Blue_In_AK]

6. Kids love farts.

They think they're the funniest things ever. I don't see a problem.

[gratuitous]

9. And God loves farts

Let's face it: processing internal gas could have been done in any of a skabillion ways, but farts come out from the two biggest flaps of skin on the human body for maximum noise as they pass. Who would design such a system but a God who enjoys farts?

Try that argument on your fundy friends. Hee, hee, hee.

[mia]

7. Kids will love it.

Especially if they have a teacher who farts. The only problem I see is that they may contnue to make farting noises for awhile.

[Fire1]

8. From this teacher. Good book, good teacher. n/t

[icnorth]

10. Waddaya mean little kids???

Republican classic literature...right to the G.W.B. presidential library I say. The goat is lonely.

[SimonPhoenix]

11. The Dumb Bunnies is another good book for children

Hilarious book.

[LWolf]

12. It's fine. Why? nt

[HBravo]

13. To funny..............nt

[madinmaryland]

14. DUDE! You know the rules here. IBTL. NO BODILY FUNCTION THREADS.

If it gets locked here, then maybe it's no appropriate for six year olds!

:D

Yes, it's cute, but the fundies would raise hell about it. I'll ask my wife about this book, as she is in the HCPSS (HoCo) and she volunteered alot to read in class to the k/1/2 grades.

[Stinky The Clown]

15. That's the age group to whom the book was read today.

As I said, we think its perfect!

[NuttyFluffers]

16. humor will die a cruel death when people become desensitized to farts...

nah, who cares, they'll still be funny! what could this book hurt?

[farmout rightarm]

17. Sure, it's appropriate...and it reminds me of a really old but funny joke

An Englishman is visiting the USA and gets interviewed by a TV 'reporter'...

"What do you think so far, sir?", she asks

"You Americans are strange", he replies, "you boil your tea to make it hot and put ice in it to make it cold,
you add sugar to make it sweet and lemon to make it sour, and whenever somebody belches, he says
"pardon me" but whenever someone farts, everyone laughs!"


heh

[spanone]

18. farts are funny for life

[Cass]

19. Omg, my son absolutely LOVED that book! And we had the stuffed toy farting

Walter that he would squeeze for sound effects as we read the story. My son couldn't get enough of that book.

[Hekate]

23. How old was he? (I have a 5 y.o. grandson) nt

[Cass]

37. He was in the 6-8 yr old range. nt

[WinkyDink]

20. Minority opinion: No. Speaking of SCHOOL use here.

[Stinky The Clown]

22. Not looking to argue, but I'd like to hear your reasoning.

[Hekate]

21. Little boys can even make farting noises with a hand in their armpit. I'd have to see the book...

... but I see no harm in bring rude noises out of the ... ummm ... whatever. :eyes:

Hekate

[sohndrsmith]

24. One of my best friends was an English teacher at a top-notch private school,

and our children were similar in age, so we celebrated their birthdays with each other. On her son's 4th birthday (give or take a year), I gave him the book, "Everybody Poops" by Taro Gomi.

It felt like a bit of a risk... but not only did he love it, SHE loved it as well (and knew of it). All I could think of was my brother as a kid that age, and poop, bugs, dirt and anything with wheels, wings or loud noise were his universe, and my friend's son seemed to relate - big time.

Any book that sparks a child's interest to pick it up and read it. Any book that fosters a beginning relationship with books where they aren't seen as dull, a duty and objects of pure boredom is a good book (in my book). : )

Especially for children who have more trouble learning to read than their peers, perhaps, a book that helps them realize that books don't have to be intimidating will be a life-long positive if it succeeds.

My 5 year old daughter loved to hear me read Shakespeare's sonnets at bedtime - she didn't know they were supposed to be "over her head". She got the concepts of death, love and sorrow (at her own level). She still chooses interesting books to read as a young teen.

[zbdent]

25. Maybe it's so kids would understand the world around them?

link here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7603746

[annabanana]

26. It's perfect! Like the Stinky Cheese Man and Captain Underpants...

If you engage them, they will be dying to learn to read!

[Fumesucker]

27. I'm guessing you haven't watched a lot of recent kid's cartoons..

Farts seem to be very common on them these days, to the point they are a superpower on one cartoon I saw a while back.

[timeforpeace]

29. They'll never catch up to the kids in India and Japan without stuff like this.

[HuckleB]

30. It's dumb book, IMO, but, yes, it's appropriate.

There are much better and more funny books that cover this issue, but Walter got all the marketing money, unfortunately.

Still, it's just a dumb book. It's fine.

[noamnety]

31. I can't imagine that it would decrease fart jokes.

kids like to repeat things. I remember when my daughter learned the word shit, she loved to say it again and again and again for effect. Somehow I just picture a whole class doing fart sounds, then going home and doing them there, getting their classmates to do it in their classes, etc.

I'm not grasping the part of the theory where boys get desensitized to fart jokes, I guess. :)

[HuckleB]

32. Maybe it's a theory that if the adult is pushing the joke it must not be that funny.

[timeforpeace]

33. It is designed to help them with their post-fart self-esteem issues.

[Brickbat]

34. It's not inappropriate, but I never thought it was that good a book.

[ddeclue]

35. Only if the school lunch is brockley and beans that day!

:rofl:

[mrmpa]

36. If it gets them to read-it gets the ok from me

My 5th graders loved ghost stories. So once a week, I would read to them a few short stories from such books as "Nantucket Ghost Stories", California Ghost Stories", etc. I enjoyed them too. It wasn't in the curriculum, but it was a reward and fun.

[DefenseLawyer]

38. If we promise never to mention passing gas no one will ever do it again!

and the world will be a better place.

[HopeHoops]

39. Totally appropriate - so is "The Gas We Pass - The Story of Farts"

EVERYBODY FARTS! There's nothing "naughty" about it, but as Carlin said, "Face it, farts are funny". Making it something "dirty" is totally the wrong way to go about things.