How to explain to my eight year old about 2 men marrying!!!!?

Question

We are attending my hubbys Brothers wedding how do i explain this to our child... serious anwers please............

Answer 1

only explain if he asks... just explain that they love each other (like presumably mummy and daddy do) and they want to show the world... he doesn't need to know about the sex side unless he already knows about male/female sex... be honest, don't sugar coat it...

Answer 2

Say as little as possible and only if your child asks you. You can explain that some people are different than others, but you don't need to elaborate. Frankly, I might opt to leave the eight year old with a sitter, as children become bored and restless enough at a traditional wedding (man/woman), let alone something like this. Opt for a sitter and that might solve A LOT of problems.

Answer 3

Explain YOUR beliefs to your child. I KNOW how I would handle this situation, but so what? Those are MY beliefs. How can I possibly tell you how to handle this situation when your beliefs may be quite different than mine? What I HATE about what is going on in our nation is that we are all being forced to have the same beliefs or we are SUPPOSED to hate each other. I think it is ok to disagree but still love. That is how I would handle the situation with my 8 year old. I would explain that loving someone sometimes means being there for them even if you don't agree with all of their choices in life. I am a married heterosexual male with two children. I am also a Christian. Yes I would take my children to the wedding. Yes I would talk to them ahead of time because not doing so would be unfair to them. Surely everyone else attending will know it is two men before they show up. I am not afraid to share MY beliefs with my children. At the core of my beliefs is love. Not just for those who do as I believe, but love for all. I refuse to be caught up in this whole battle of what is "normal" or "right". Instead I focus on being comfortable with who I am and seeking to love others. If my children can grasp that I will die a happy man. No matter what life choices they make in terms of sexual identity. You have a wonderful opportunity to teach a valuable lesson in acceptance and love.

Answer 4

Some of the answers show a very adult approach to the matter.

But we're talking about an eight your old child here.

Suppose the Politically Correct thing is done and the child is told 'When two people love eachother - and sometimes they're both men or both women......' etc etc - then maybe the child will take it all ok.

Until they go back to school and they happen to mention what you've told them quite innocently to other children.

Children are cruel (by nature) and they will tease eachother about something like this. So the eight year old gets teased about his uncle and then gets confused because you've told him/her that it's ok.

Homosexuality is about sexuality, and eight year olds are not ready to take on board such concepts. Best left 'till later when they know what to keep under their hat.

Answer 5

In my opinion it is best not to discuss things unless a child specifically asks. If your eight year old does ask then simply explain that most of the time it's men and women that love each other but sometimes men can fall in love with men and women can fall in love with women. There should be no need to mention sex at this point unless your child once again specifically asks. If they do, keep this as brief and to the point as possible. There should be no need to go into any great detail to a child of this age.

Answer 6

You need 'Jenny Lives With Eric and Martin'. It's a black and white picture book with photographs which shows a little girl who lives with her father and his partner doing chores at the weekend. They mend a bicycle, go to the laundrette etc. they run into a neighbour who angrily tells eric and Martin that they have no right to walk the streets because they are gay. Then Eric and Martin explain to Jenny why some people might be angry and that this is because of ignorance.

You can use this book to help to explain to your daughter that people can fall in love with each other whether they fall in love with someone of their own sex like your husbands brother has, or whether they fall in love with someone of the opposite sex. Explain that people get married when they love each other and want to be together forever. There is nothing more to say. If you don't make a big deal out of it, she should see it how it is, perfectly normal.

Answer 7

If she's eight does she not already have some form of understanding of homosexual men? Just explain simply about homosexuality, that there are some men who prefer to spend time with other men rather than women, and that they love each other as much as a man and a woman would, so they decide to spend their lives together the same as another married couple would. Just keep it straight and honest, and don't complicate it!

*EDIT* Not sure why I assumed you had a daughter, sorry!

Answer 8

If it's your bother-in-law's wedding I'm assuming that he's been to family functions with his partner so that your 8 year old already knows that a relationship exists between these two men. Like anyone else in a long term relationship they want to get married and let the world know they are committed to each other. Explain it the same way you would if he were getting married to a girl...they love each other and are building a life together. Believe it or not kids are actually much more accepting of these things than us adults who seem to have to over analyze everything.

Enjoy the wedding

Answer 9

Just explain to him that his uncle and the other man are in love like mommy and daddy and that they want to spend the rest of there lives together and drop it at that.. he may have questions later but he will see how happy that they are together and that there is nothing wrong with two people that really care for each other having a celebration of there life together. he has always seen them together up til now and did not seem to bother him so why should this.
It is just the older people in the world that have the problem about who should be together and who shouldn't and weather it should be legally done or not..
don't worry. 8 year olds don't need a whole lot of explaining to if you tell them right the first time.. don't worry ..
enjoy the wedding your son will too. and congrats to the new couple

Answer 10

ha ha ha ha ha.... I share your problem. With my French instructor. She's kinda quite, except she's in her Nineteen Forties, and she or he's a instructor, and that i'm in simple terms 17. Yeah, i have been in a position to cover those concepts for a lengthy time period now. She's courting a guy besides, so as that ruins my opportunities. at present although, i have been centred on females my age. I did once make a shaggy dog tale that i ought to fairly be with an old woman than a lady my age, yet that changed into only a shaggy dog tale and that i did not extremely advise it. regrettably, I actual have not had a lot success with females. i ought to ultimately be getting an excellent danger although quite quickly. not sensible yet although. probably not. that's probably going to finally end up a twin of all the different ones. yet inspite of. besides, so yeah i ought to enable bypass of the instructor and attempt someone your age. in case you won't be able to look to enable bypass with him, i ought to propose seeing a psychologist or something like that. So yeah, attempt to distance your self from him emotionally as a lot as conceivable. that's not something. in basic terms recuperate from it already. that's thoroughly unrealistic.

Answer 11

Do you need to tackle the whole homosexual thing, or just the part about them being married?

Tell him that people get married because they want to show everyone that they want to commit to spending the rest of their lives together because they are in love. Your brother fell in love with another man, so they are committing to each other.

If he's eight, he's in school; he has an idea of what being gay means. Before explaining anything to him, you should sit him down and ask what he already knows. You might be surprised to find that no explanation is needed, or that what you need to explain are gaps in his existing knowledge.