26 reasons to be proud to an Indian.

26^th January is the day our “constitution” was created and it is on this day that we should remember that we are a great democratic country and revisit our own personal “constitution” of life.A “constitution” is a tool that helps us lay down what we feel we stand for, it helps uphold our values, beliefs, rights and freedom. Each child has a right and it is the right of every child to have a happy, stress free, safe and nurtured childhood. To nurture children, we adults need to be free of stress, feel safe, be happy with ourselves, and feel nurtured. And definitely do three things with your children on Republic Day.

1. Watch the republic day parade on television with your child and family; if possible go and experience the live one in Delhi.
2. Talk to children about Dr B. R.  Ambedkar the father and architect of our constitution.
3. Introduce your child to the person who wrote our constitution too. The original constitution of India was hand written by Prem Behari Narain Raizada, in his impeccable calligraphy.
4. Also mention about the artwork lavished in our original constitution is that of the most eminent painter Nandalal Bose.

How about making your own family constitution this Republic day? Maybe write it in calligraphy and have your children do the artwork and frame it and hang it for all to see. Your family constitution can be the rules and rights that you want for each family member. Try it, it can be fun.

And here are 26 reasons to be proud to be an Indian-

1.     India has never invaded any country in it's last 10000 years of history.

2.     India is one of the most ancient surviving civilizations. 

3.     India is the world's fifth largest economy. 

4.     India is the world's largest democracy. 

5.     India is the seventh largest country in the world. 

6.     India is one of the world's top ten industrial powers. 

7.      India has the world's largest film industry - bollywood - which produces about 1000 movies each year. 

8.      India has the third largest university system. 

9.     The fourth largest rail network is in india.

10.  India has the second most arable land. 

11.  The number system was invented in india. Zero was invented by Aryabhatta. 

12.  The world's first university was established in Takshila (India) in 700 bc, where more than 10,500 students from all over the world studied more than 60 subjects.

13.   The University of Nalanda built in the fourth century bc was one of the greatest achievements of ancient India in the field of education. 

14.  Ayurveda, discovered in India, is the earliest form of medicine known to humans. Charaka, the father of medicine consolidated Ayurveda 2,500 years ago. Today Ayurveda is fast gaining its rightful place in our civilization. 

15.  The art of navigation was developed in the river Sindh 6,000 years ago.the very word navigation is derived from the sanskrit word Navgatih. The word Navy is also derived from sanskrit Nou. 

16.  Bhaskaracharya in the fifth century calculated the time taken by the earth to orbit the sun hundreds of years before astronomer Smart, to be 365.258756484 days. 

17.  The value of "pi" was first calculated by Budhayana before Pythagoras.he discovered this in the sixth century long before European mathematicians. 

18.  Algebra, Trigonometry and Calculus came from India.

19.  Quadratic equations were made by Sridharacharya in the 11th century. The largest numbers the Greeks and the Romans used were 106 whereas Hindus used numbers as big as 1,053,91 0 to the power of 53 with specific names as early as 5,000 bc during the vedic period. Even today, the largest used number is tera 1,012,910 to the power of 12. 

20.  According to the gemological institute of America, up until 1896, India was the only source of diamonds in the world. 

21.  USA based IEEE has proved that the pioneer of wireless communication was Prof. Jagdeesh Bose and not Marconi. 

22.  The earliest reservoir and dam for irrigation was built in Saurashtra. 

23.  Chess (shataranj or ashtapada) was invented in India. 

24.  Sushruta is the father of surgery 2,000 years ago. He and health scientists of his time conducted complicated surgeries like caesareans, cataract, joining artificial limb, fractures, urinary stones removal, plastic surgery, and even brain surgery. Usage of anesthesia was well-known in ancient India, over 125 surgical equipment were used. Deep knowledge of anatomy, physiology, etiology, embryology, digestion, metabolism, genetics and immunity is also found in many ancient texts.

25.  The place value system, the decimal system was developed in India in 100 bc. When many cultures were only nomadic forest dwellers over 5,000 years ago, 

26.   India was one of the richest countries on earth until the British invasion in the early 17th century. 

Lets work together and bring up stronger, more confident and less stressed out children to once again become the best country in the world. HAPPY REPUBLIC DAY. 

5 senses test for checking preschools

Test the early childhood center you are choosing for your child…a unique new senses test for parents to ensure they are choosing a quality care kindergarten/daycare for their child.

It’s that time of the year as parents make a frantic rush to enroll kids in the ‘best’ preschool or daycare. Some make a mad rush to remove their kids from an ‘unsatisfying’ one and reenroll at another ‘best’ center. So are parents looking for? Is it ambience, price, furniture, air conditioning, proximity? Well, all these put together will only impact 20% of the child’s socio-emotional and over all development. So instead of only the 20% lets help you focus on the other 80%, use this ‘senses test’ and ‘taste’ the center with your senses and experience the other 80% which is teacher strength, curriculum, teaching-learning practices, experiences of the child, emotional and social development and stress free learning. After all your child uses all 5 senses to experience too.

The first test- Use your eyes- and look for ……

·         Check for Peeling paint on walls and furniture, it means that they are not bothered about safety of kids as kids can touch, scratch, and eat the paint.

·         Look for cobwebs. Cobwebs mean there are spiders and spiders would only build cobwebs if there were insects, so that means there are insects at that center which is a result of lack of cleanliness.

·         Look at the fingernails of all the staff. No long nails and chipped nail polish on the staff, all the staff, especially those that will serve food or look after the hygiene of your child. Chipped nail polish can go into your child’s food and harm your child and long, sharp nails can hurt, scratch the delicate skin of toddlers.

·         Check the mops, (bacteria breeding ground) mops tell you how they clean the vomit, urine, and potty from the floors. Well, many young toddlers are not yet toilet trained so if the center has carpets…god forbid. And if they are using the same mops to clean the floors, OMG! And yet another horror, many centers use the same floor mops to clean the tabletops. Ask, are the bais trained to wipe vomit, potty from floors with paper, then put disinfectant and wipe and then mop. The same mop will not be used for other work, and see separate cloths for tables etc.  

·         And look at flannel board displays, you should see ‘children’s voices’ even in the  displays. There should  be drawings, paintings, worksheets, and loads of photos of activities. It all points to a great learning experience immersed in the 8 intelligences.

The second test- Use your ears and hear……

·         The sounds at the center. Are they about furniture clanging, teachers shouting, and screaming instructions to ayahs. Children  giggling, talking, enjoying or singing should be the sounds you hear.

·         Are kids constantly crying? A good center ensures that crying kids get settled within a short span of time by consulting and coordinating with the family.

·         Can you hear adults constantly ‘shushing’ shhh…. a child or reprimanding them, ‘don’t run, walk in a line’.   When staff shout at any center, it means the atmosphere is extremely formal and teachers are not trained in positive ways to get appropriate behavior.

The third test- Use your touch and…..

·         Touch surfaces around the center, are you getting dust on your fingertips?  If yes, its  because it is not cleaned regularly.

·         Check how the staff touch the kids , is their grip very harsh? Or is it gentle?  

·         Check how the toilet staff takes care of the kids, especially how they wash when a child has to be cleaned after potty.  

·         Touch the edges of furniture, are they too sharp? Furniture should be  well rounded.

·         Now a touch test for your child- what kind of toys are there for your child to  touch? Will your child get a multisensory experience? Are there soft, hard, plastic, wood, toys. Toys to build, toys to play, puppets, and role-play toys. Toys to dance, toys to exercise with and toys to share?  

The fourth test- Use your tongue…voice. And…

·         Ask what the qualifications of the center staff are. How many of them are trained teachers. They should not only trained in how to teach but also how to handle children with different needs, temperaments, and personalities.

·         How many hours of training do they get regularly in a week. Every week they should get trained for 2-3  hours

·         Who trains them?  Do they have educationists on board?

·         Ask about the curriculum used by the center. Ask about the educational philosophy.  

·         What are their safety and security guidelines. Do they have a safety and emergencies docket, and a training based on it for all staff?

·         Do they have a fire safety drill?

·         What about good touch- bad touch?  Are children told about good touch bad touch? How?

·          How are children assessed? With a simple A,B,C grading or with a detailed observation   that will help you understand your child’s stage of development.

The fifth test…Use your nose and ….

·         Smell the center. Is it smelling of food, urine? Because  young children are sensitive to smells.  

·         Does it smell of strong bleach? Bad. As heavy chemicals are bad for kids.  

·         Does it smell of fresh wall paint? Bad for kids.  

·         Does it smell of pesticide? Bad for kids.  

·         Does it smell of the local gutter smell. Many centers do, which makes kids crankier.  Smells have a direct impact on kids learning and focus.  

·         How often do they service their air conditioners? As kids can fall sick with subserviced ones.  It should be done each month.

All of the above have an impact on your child’s  brain development as their brain development is mainly based on sensory stimulation. This can result in children becoming cranky, frustrated and thus impacting their social skills, emotional, language, and cognitive skills. So it makes great sense to ‘taste’ your child’s center with your senses to ensure the right nurturing and stimulation for your child especially in the crucial brain development years.

Choose well for your child after all the first 6 years are when 98% of the brain develops. 

Take a deep breath…

Vayu is one of the five elements of nature, so essential in our life, truly our life breath! But is Vayu really a part of our children’s lives today or are we giving them experiences that do not include this important element of nature?

Of all the five elements of nature, Vayu is everywhere in our homes and outside but rarely do we notice it or appreciate it! Maybe that is why we celebrate the festival of ‘Vayu’- Sankranti, kite flying, after all no kites can fly without Vayu and this festival reminds us that we need air in our lives to take us forward in life and to make it successful.

Our body needs Vayu or air because it has oxygen and oxygen is good for the brain! It keeps kids alert, attentive and active. So allow kids to take deep breaths after every activity. It helps break the monotony and gives a fresh burst of oxygen to the brain!

Vayu in our digestive system is not so good! So see that your kids avoid foods that cause gas! So too much of oily food or strong flavours are avoidable, keep food as natural as possible.

Yoga is an exercise form that helps make the best use of Vayu and ensures that air is taken in the right amounts and circulates in the entire body for its benefit. Take your kids outside early every morning and then take deep breaths, do yoga and see the difference in their health and over all disposition.

Keep a track of how much outdoor activity your child has in a day, because lack of outdoor activity means lack of fresh air and this can lead to all kinds of diseases and attention deficit issues. Ensure that kids have at least an hour of outdoor play (if not more!)  without fail everyday.

Are you keeping your child in air conditioned areas all the time? Then it is quite dangerous for the child’s growing immune system, so ensure that your child gets natural air environments, remember sweating is healthy!

A kite teaches us a lot about life and air, have you ever flown a kite? It is an exhilarating experience, the ability to make the kite catch the wind, then seeing the kite soar, keeping it away from all other kites and controlling its path with a small thread are all awesome skills that kids should learn. The concentration, planning and logic required in kite flying will help your child become a better learner and a better person in control of his/her decisions and plans. So it is safe to tell your kids- go fly a kite!

As one the most important elements of nature, Vayu also teaches us about parenting-

Vayu or air- What can this element cultivate in the personality of your child?

®  Air is everywhere. Everyone needs air. No one can see air

®  Air can soothe or air can become a storm and destroy

®  Similarly independence in children is like air.

®  Independence  can give them the ability to explore, gives them a zeal to venture

®  But too much independence can become a storm that destroys everything in its path. So be careful about it

How to gift your child vayu or air?

Give them  opportunities to feel the grass, play with sand, splash in water and hug a tree! When was the last time your child did this? These sensorial experiences connect directly with your child and help them become more grounded and confident. Let them  feel the wind with activities like football at the beach or kite flying, the different and varied experiences will definitely benefit them. !

So this January gift Vayu to your child.  

Who is watching if Santa is being good?

Every one loves Santa Claus, our generation loved him because he stood for hope, a caring grandfather and someone who is fair, after all he gives gifts only to kids who have been good throughout the year.   Well, he has a gold book and a black book and he watches children all year long and makes his entry in the gold book every time a child is good and a child gets a black book entry if they have been wicked or naughty.

But who is keeping track of whether Santa has been good? Did you know that Santa could be smelly? Santa can grope little boys and girls inappropriately? Santa can be a drunk or a drug addict? Santa could be having many contagious diseases?   Let’s be practical, the Santa Claus that your child encounters is a hired man/boy who is just wearing a suit, and trying his best to convince the kids he is Santa. How much do we know about these Santas that we so willingly ask our kids to go and hug, shake hands with, sit on their lap? In countries around the world there have been instances where ‘Santa’ has been arrested for drinking, touching kids inappropriately etc. so this means that there could be a pedophile lurking behind the beard and rosy cheeks? Isn’t it the perfect opportunity for them? As   parents are urging their kids to ‘go to’ the Santa, ‘go kiss’ the Santa, ‘go sit’ on his lap.

Well, sad as it may sound, it’s time to keep an eye on these new age Santas. Warn our kids and watch them carefully when kids are with Santa. But how would you be able to keep an eye on all the Santas that your kids encounter this year? There is the Santa in school, the Santa at the mall, the Santa at a child’s party, the Santa in your own housing society.

 Keep a watchful eye on all Santas with these pointers-

1.     Ask your child’s school/housing society/or friends, to have a safe parent or teacher dressed as Santa and not hire one from outside.

2.     Get the hired Santa suit laundered.

3.     Talk to this Santa about the dos and don’ts with the kids; ask them to only shake hands with the kids and not to take the kids on their laps.

4.     Not to kiss or get kissed.

5.     Always have at least two other safe adults monitoring Santa.

Warn your kids about Santa Claus without killing the myth and belief.

1.     Teach your kids to only shake hands with Santa

2.     If you are clicking a photo of your child with Santa, be vigilant about Santa’s ‘hands’.

3.     Please do not ask your child to hug or kiss Santa. The suits that they hire are hardly clean so let’s not pass unnecessary germs to our kids.

4.     Teach your child about good touch bad touch before meeting Santa, and talk to your child that even Santa cannot be allowed to give bad touch

Try to keep your child’s belief in Santa alive as long as possible but important that you also believe in safety of your child. Maintain a balance. Merry Christmas.

Why is it wrong to buy a colouring book for your 2- 3 year old…

One of the most common gifts that children get during the early years is a colouring book.  Children can be budding Hussains and Picassos and create drawings based on their fantasy and imagination but that would not impress adults as much as ‘how well you have coloured within the lines!’

So should we stop giving colouring activities to young children? No, we should but we should understand the stage and age in which colouring activities have relevance.

So lets understand the first 4 friends that help children write well, they are called Scribbling, Doodling,  Drawing, And Colouring. Let us meet Mr. Scribbling- ( please don’t look for any gender bias here!) he is a free bird, loves to just move around the paper and let the crayon or colouring pencil take charge. Loops, twirls, straight lines, curves, all excite Mr. Scribbling and make him happy. He is happy because this activity helps the child exercise the wrist and finger muscles and have fun. This activity also helps children explore with the movement of the writing implement without being tied down to ‘fitting into a shape’. Mr. Scribbling also nurtures children free expression and helps them love the feel of the crayon or colouring pencil on paper. Mr. Scribbling is most happy with very young children up to the age of 3 years.

The second friend is Ms. Doodling and her forte is a repeat in forms and shapes. Ms. Doodling makes kids repeat the patterns in their scribbling. Common shapes that now emerge in children’s doodling are rounds and lines, you can see some repeat patterns emerging. Ms. Doodling is also happy that at this stage kids are able to talk about their doodles, though not in too much detail but will be able to name what they have made. But when they begin doodling they have no idea what they are going to doodle, after they doodle they start seeing pictures in their doodles and start talking about them.  Ms. Doodling also is most happy with very young children up to the age of 3 years.

The third friend is Mr. Drawing and he is the master of imagination, thinking, creating. He helps children think and plan what to draw and paint before they begin the drawing. Their drawings now look like representations of the real world. Size and proportion may not be correct and they may end up drawing all over the page. Simple details may be missing from their drawings like fingers or nose or ears. Mr. Drawing does not like restricting children during drawing, he wants kids to have the freedom to draw what they want, how they want and with whatever colour they want. So don’t reprimand or correct children if they draw a red sun or green sea.

The fourth friend is Ms. Colouring and she is actually the first cousin of Mr. Writing, she lays the foundation of form, structure, and focus. She wants children to colour a picture within a form outline given. She says it helps kids control their hand movements to fit within a given area or line and this will help them in future to write the letters within a given area (lines in a sheet). She advices adults to give colouring activities before giving writing to children and to start with smaller, simpler shapes before giving them big shapes and pictures. She says that 3-sided crayons and 3 sided colour pencils are the best implements to use for colouring activities and that magic colouring or colouring with paintbrush is not recommended. We asked her why and she said, paintbrush is to paint a picture, silly, not to colour a picture! Ms. Colouring also says that when children are given colouring activities after having given enough opportunities to scribble, doodle and draw then they are not frustrated and are able to now fall into a controlled colouring activity. But she also warns, that is children are given colouring activities all the time and not given the freedom to express with drawings then it can lead to frustration and children will end up scribbling instead of colouring (naturally as they have not enough experience of scribbling so they will scribble at any given opportunity).

So we asked the 4 friends for their final advice for all adults on when to guide children and when not to, and this is what they had to say-

1.     Mr. Scribbling said ‘Do not guide’- let kids choose when they want to scribble, with what they want to scribble and if they  start scribbling on walls and tables just gently put a paper or slate in front of them and remember they are scribbling for fun not to create master pieces!

2.     Ms. Doodling said ‘Do not guide’- kids love me and now doodle a round and say it is an apple or the sun, they draw a line and say it is my mummy, don’t try to correct them as it is a stage of seeing forms and pictures within different shapes. Just let them doodle.

3.     Mr. Drawing said ‘Do not guide’- fantasy and imagination are with me and so when kids draw don’t correct them or guide them. Let them imagine, let them create, if you allow them to imagine then they will be able to colour.  And if you want to know about their drawings then say, “Tell me about your drawing” instead of saying “What have you drawn?”  

4.     Ms. Colouring said ‘Do guide’ - my stage is important for children to understand how to control their hand movements and limit their lines and scribbles to a given form. If children have enjoyed Mr. Drawing before me then they will be able to colour well, if not then….and if children are able to colour well then they will be able to write within lines. And yes children will need guidance as they colour, guide them gently by saying, ‘the apple does not like it when you colour outside the line’. And here is a secret, if kids are able to eat on their own without spilling from their bowl or plate then they are able to colour well within the picture lines. That is why in the Montessori method self-help skills are given importance before writing skills.

Now that you have met the famous four I hope you will be able to decide when to give activities like drawing and colouring to young children. My next blog is on the other stages of writing…

Reach out to our youth before we lose them

 Podar Institute of Education conducted this survey with young boys and girls in the age range of 20 years to 25 years.  India, today, is called a youthful country as we have more youth today and they are looking for a future. The purpose of the survey was to find out, is our youth healthy, happy? Do they have a vision in life? Do they know the difference between right and wrong? Are they resilient?

The survey was conducted with 700 young boys and girls, to keep the figures exact we took 350 boys and 350 girls, age range was mixed between 20 years to 25 years. The results were heartening and disappointing, as we can see that there is hope for our youth and our youth have ideas but a lack of leadership, a mentor and this can lead our youth astray. This is especially important today with so many youngsters falling into bad company and incorrect philosophies. Its time we mull over the results of this study and work towards giving our youth, leaders that they can emulate, family that can support and not criticize, and parents that can understand and not expect.

The survey was done as an individual interview for those who did not want to fill survey form. It was started in first week August and we completed it around 10^th November, we went to public places that are frequented by youth like malls, coffee shops and even railway stations. Our students of Podar Institute of Education conducted the survey and then the results were compiled by our core team. (no we cannot name the students who did the survey or the people who compiled the results)

We want this survey to highlight to parents, that they need to bridge the generation gap between themselves and their young boys and girls so that our youth find it easy to take advice or find solutions to their problems by approaching safe adults rather than finding online help or falling prey to drugs etc.

Our country presently has the highest number of youth and we need to take care of this human resource as they are going to build future families, take care of children, and make decisions for our country. If they are going to be depressed or have broken marriages then the emotional intelligence of our youth will be diminished and lead to bigger problems for the growth and development of our country.

Relationships

How many relationships have you had till date?

	NONE	JUST 1	MORE THAN 1	MORE THAN 5
BOYS	18%	21%	30%	69%
GIRLS	32%	23%	28%	17%

Is it an open or secret relationship?

	OPEN	SECRET
BOYS	43%	57%
GIRLS	28%	72%

Do your parents know about it?

	YES	NO
BOYS	34%	66%
GIRLS	23%	77%

Why are you in the relationship?

	FOR FUN	BECAUSE MY FRIENDS ARE	FOR SEX	BECAUSE I LIKE HER/HIM
BOYS	21%	28%	28%	23%
GIRLS	13%	32%	12%	43%

Career

Have you decided your future career?

	YES	NO
BOYS	32%	68%
GIRLS	46%	54%

Why have you not decided?

	WANT TO ENJOY LIFE	PARENTS WILL DECIDE	WAITING FOR FRIENDS TO DECIDE	AM CONFUSED
BOYS	25%	23%	22%	30%
GIRLS	12%	45%	34%	9%

What is the reason for your choice of career?

	I LOVE IT	MY PARENTS WANT ME TO	HAVEN’T THOUGHT ABOUT IT	IT IS A STATUS SYMBOL
BOYS	23%	13%	38%	26%
GIRLS	34%	45%	12%	9%

Emotional health

Do you think you are happy?

	YES	NO	SOMETIMES
BOYS	42%	28%	30%
GIRLS	32%	48%	20%

Do you feel depressed?

	YES	NO	SOMETIMES
BOYS	32%	40%	28%
GIRLS	43%	35%	22%

How often are you depressed?

	ONCE A MONTH	ONCE A WEEK	EVERY DAY
BOYS	39%%	38%	23%
GIRLS	32%	38%	30%

Have you done anything about it?

	WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT IT	YES	NO	NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT IT
BOYS	22%	12%	42%	24%
GIRLS	28%	8%	32%	32%

Do your parents know about it?

	YES	NO
BOYS	12%	88%
GIRLS	14%	86%

Have you ever contemplated suicide?

	YES	NO
BOYS	68%	32%
GIRLS	72%	28%

Have you ever attempted suicide?

	YES	NO
BOYS	38%	62%
GIRLS	41%	59%

Have you sought therapy after such thoughts/actions?

	YES	NO	YES BUT DID NOT FOLLOW THROUGH
BOYS	18%	60%	22%
GIRLS	12%	54%	34%

Knowledge and experimentation with sex

Do you know about sex?

	YES	NO	MAYBE
BOYS	74%	18%	8%
GIRLS	51%	28%	21%

How did you learn about it?

	FRIENDS	BOOKS	PORN SITES/VIDEOS	PARENTS
BOYS	27%	22%	43%	8%
GIRLS	8%	38%	52%	2%

Have you had sex?

	YES	NO
BOYS	78%	22%
GIRLS	71%	29%

At what age did you start having sex?

	ON OR BEFORE 13	BETWEEN 13 AND 15	AFTER 20
BOYS	34%	48%	18%
GIRLS	12%	32%	56%

Do you know about all sexually transmitted diseases?

	YES	NO	MAYBE
BOYS	23%	43%	34%
GIRLS	38%	22%	40%

Do you know about keeping you/ your partner safe from pregnancy etc?

	YES	NO
BOYS	58%	42%
GIRLS	72%	28%

 Have you ever had a pregnancy terminated?

	YES	NO
BOYS	38%	62%
GIRLS	41%	59%

Use of social media

How many social media platforms are you on?

	1-3	ALL OF THEM
BOYS	32%	68%
GIRLS	21%	79%

How many hours a day do you spend on it?

	30 MINS -1HOUR	1-5HOURS	5-10 HOURS
BOYS	11%	38%	51%
GIRLS	8%	42%	50%

What do you use it for?

	TO MAKE FRIENDS	TO KNOW ABOUT THE WORLD	TO IMPRESS FRIENDS	JUST TIME PASS
BOYS	34%	12%	32%	22%
GIRLS	38%	18%	38%	6%

Thoughts on marriage and kids

How important is it to marry?

	VERY IMPORTANT	NOT IMPORTANT
BOYS	38%	62%
GIRLS	42%	58%

When should you marry?

	WHEN YOU ARE READY	WHEN YOU FIND THE RIGHT PERSON	BEFORE THE AGE OF 25	NEVER
BOYS	42%	22%	10%	26%
GIRLS	23%	21%	38%	18%

 Should it be a love marriage or arranged marriage?

	LOVE	ARRANGED	DON’T CARE
BOYS	49%	28%	23%
GIRLS	39%	43%	18%

Thoughts on divorce

	OK	NOT OK
BOYS	52%	48%
GIRLS	38%	62%

Thoughts on extra maritial affairs

	OK	NOT OK	DEPENDS
BOYS	40%	22%	38%
GIRLS	39%	43%	18%

Physical health

Are you physically fit?

	YES	NO
BOYS	56%	44%
GIRLS	43%	57%

How hours a day do you exercise?

	LESS THAN AN HOUR	MORE THAN AN HOUR	RARELY
BOYS	18%	42%	40%
GIRLS	28%	34%	38%

Do you exercise at home or at the gym?

	HOME	GYM
BOYS	32%	68%
GIRLS	68%	32%

Self image

Are you happy with your looks?

	YES	NO
BOYS	32%	68%
GIRLS	21%	79%

Are you happy with your skin tone?

	YES	NO
BOYS	38%	62%
GIRLS	18%	82%

Are you happy with your weight?

	YES	NO
BOYS	39%	61%
GIRLS	19%	81%

Are you happy with your body type?

	YES	NO
BOYS	38%	62%
GIRLS	22%	78%

Would you consider cosmetic surgery?

	YES	NO	MAYBE
BOYS	28%	62%	10%
GIRLS	58%	22%	20%

Thoughts on sexual abuse

Why is there so much rape and abuse?

	TOO MUCH PORN	WOMEN TO BE  BLAMED	MEN HAVE NO SELF CONTROL	LACK OF LAWS
BOYS	32%	15%	18%	35%
GIRLS	38%	8%	12%	42%

What do you think should be done about it?

	STRINGENT LAWS	SOCIAL REVOLUTION	BOYS TO BE TAUGHT RESPECT
BOYS	42%	36%	22%
GIRLS	59%	3%	38%

Do you know any friends that have sexually abused someone?

	YES	NO
BOYS	38%	62%
GIRLS	21%	79%

Do you know any one who has been sexually abused?

	YES	NO
BOYS	26%	74%
GIRLS	48%	52%