This work examines preschool teachers’ attitudes and experiences with implementing sex education in kindergartens, as well as explores how young children understand gender and reproduction. Two separate samples were studied: 52 preschool teachers and 19 children aged 3 to 6 years. Preschool teachers completed a questionnaire about their attitudes toward sex education, their self-assessed knowledge, willingness to address sex education topics, and their current practices. Most agreed that understanding gender and sexuality is important for preschool children and that sex education should be introduced in early childhood. While many rated their knowledge of individual topics as high, the majority felt inadequately trained to implement sex education in kindergartens. Teachers felt least willing to discuss topics such as sexual behavior (e.g., childhood masturbation), technical terms (e.g., correct names for genitals), and families with same-sex parents. A higher level of education was associated with a greater willingness to address sex education topics and more frequent inclusion of sex education content in practice. Children participated in semi-structured interviews about gender identification, differences between boys and girls, how babies are made, and pregnancy. All children were able to identify their own gender and the researcher’s gender, although many struggled to define the term gender. They were aware of gender stereotypes, although they often found it easier to accept that gender stereotypes do not apply to some girls than to accept the same for boys. Their understanding of baby development and pregnancy was basic, most often linking reproduction to the mother’s belly. This work highlights that sex education topics are rarely addressed in preschools, even though educators consider them important. Educators emphasize the need for targeted training and guidelines to cover these topics with young children.
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