Customer Reviews
We love this book. 
2007-05-12
My son and I read this book a couple of times a week. He even tells me now what he thinks is a "good touch" and a "bad touch". I recommend this to all parents!
Very informative and Easy to Understand for kids 2007-01-05
I don't think it's an Easy subject for parents to talk to their kids about, So this book opened the subject up for me. It's hard to talk about, But an Absolute Must in the World Today. It talked about bad touch and Good touch like tickles, then the mom told her son a story about a little girl. The story was a Real Life possibility because it was a neighbor asking a little girl if she liked Kittens (what kid doesn't right?)then he asked her if she wanted to come see them at his house. The book states " since she knew this person she went with him" giving you the opening to explain it's not just strangers that can hurt you. The man wanted her to sit on his lap, then he tried to put his hand in her [...], she ran home and told her mom. Then the guy got in trouble. The mom telling the story to her son Then talks about it to him so he knows to tell her if something happens. Then they get into talk about what is Private on your body.... So here's on thing I wasn't Comfortable with.... The book has an illistration of the mom and son looking at a book, and their book has a picture of a little boy and girl naked so they can identify "private Parts". EASY FIX, My husband Took a Marker and Drew a pair of underwear on the little boy So it wouldn't be an issue. So you could just draw a bathing suit on the little girl, or underwear on the little boy If you're not ready for those pics if you have younger kids.
Overall the illistration are Great, not Scary, and just draw some underwear on the naked pic if you're uneasy about that. I would Buy this Book for any kid getting ready to Go to School or a Friends house.
Helping parents raise an awkward but important issue with their young children 2006-09-13
In my experience, young children are profoundly intuitive. That is to say, they `know' some things by means other than personal experience or having been instructed or shown.
Their intuition is, ordinarily, most sensitive to their parents and, therefore, young children learn to know certain things without their ever being explicitly mentioned. This can be a problem. For example, children sometimes learn, by parental omission and/or avoidance, things that are NOT OK to talk about. Not infrequently, these subjects are the ones the parents, themselves, would have the most difficulty discussing with their children. With older kids (early teens) `sex' is the most famous of these issues. Mom says to Dad, "Have you had `the' talk with Johnny yet, dear?" Dad is concerned about their 13 year-old daughter Mary and asks mom, "Honey, have you had `the' talk with Mary yet?" Sex: awkward subject matter for many parents to address with children. I recall my own experience when at 12 or 13, my father sat me down and with a very straight and somber face, looked me in the eye and asked me, "Son, do you know where babies come from?" Having grown up on the streets of Boston, I said, "Sure!" My dad looked immediately relieved and said, simply, "Good.... Glad to hear it." That was the end of our `talk' and he never again broached the subject with me.
Licensed Clinical Social Worker Sandy Kleven's important book being reviewed here brings parents a tool that can be used to raise one of the most difficult aspects of sexual activity with young kids (3-7 years old) - that of sexual abuse.
Time have changed - or at least they seem to have. News stories about young children being inappropriately touched by adults are not as uncommon as they used to be. Is there more of it going on? Or, is the media simply reporting it more often. Reporting laws across the country usually mandate adults having professional contact with kids to report, in writing, any `suspicion' of sexual abuse to the appropriate public authority, most usually the local County's Children's Protective Services unit. Whether it is the prevalence of the activity that has increased or simply the open reporting of it when it does happen (most likely a combination of both) it remains one of the most difficult areas for parents to helpfully educate their children about. Part of the education is to do it in a way that conveys to the child that this is not only just OK to talk about if something should happen - but that the parents WANT them to tell them about it! That they will not get into trouble for telling.
Kids also need to learn that there are different kinds of touching. Some OK, and some not. This wonderfully illustrated (by Jody Bergsma) short (30 pages) book talks about that and related issues in a way that makes the reading to a child of it by a parent a natural, relaxed and nearly matter-of-fact activity: Not unlike reading a "Potty" book to child being readied to stop using diapers. The key value of this nicely and simply written book is that it encourages and invites talk between the child and parent if/when something questionable or untoward should occur in this area.
I have heard some parents contend that teaching about this should be the job of the schools. There are, in fact in many communities, school based programs dealing with Sexual Abuse - but I would contend that those activities need be secondary to a child's feeling of open permission to tell his/her own parent about having been wrongly treated or touched.
The language and visuals are entirely age appropriate for preschoolers and early primary grade children - and one reading of it with your own child will tell them that this is an OK think to talk about and will go a long way toward countering the power of the threats child abusers frequently make: Telling the children it is their secret and they mustn't ever tell anyone. This would be, in fact, the worse thing that could happen.
You and your child may never need this book - but exposing yourself and him/her to it together cannot help but reinforce the trusting nature that most children naturally have toward their parents - especially with information about something that just doesn't feel right.
Browse through a bookstore and read it - You will see what I mean. Buy it and use it - Your child and you, as a parent, will benefit from it.
This Book Has Just the Right Touch 2005-03-24
An excellent, pro-active tool to help families empower themselves regarding child molestation. The text is gentle and direct and the illustrations are flowing and visually soothing. This book has the right touch of intelligence, compassion and clarity that is needed to discuss this very serious topic.
I like the way Jimmy's mother has night time chats with her son; she uses this time for roundtable discussions on what constitutes a "good touch" or a "bad touch" and that anything involving force, lying and sadness are all indicators of "bad touches." One important point this book includes is that bad touches are NOT always done by strangers. This is truly one of the best books on the subject and one that will certainly make for a more safety-savvy environment.
I recommend this book together with Cornelia Spelman's book, "Your Body Belongs to You," Linda Walvoord Girard's "My Body is Private" and Peter Alsop's gentle song, "My Body" on "Songs on Sex & Sexuality." These are invaluable works that are geared specifically for families.
an important book! 2003-08-29
Endorsed by many child abuse prevention programs and counselors, this is the perfect tool for parents to teach children about inappropriate touching.
I feel it's a little much for very young children 
2008-05-18
I bought this book because I wanted help teaching my daughter why she needs to keep her privates covered and the reviews said this book was great for children as young as three years old. I personally felt this book was a little much for my five year old daughter so I decided against reading it to her. I wasn't comfortable reading about `a man trying to put his hand down a child's panties while sitting on his lap.' I'm pretty surprised I am the only one who feels this way. I also bought `Your Body Belongs To You' by Cornelia Spelman and felt that book was much more appropriate for her so that is the book I read with her. I think The Right Touch is better for children a little older or any child you might suspect has possibly been abused.
Excellent Book to Introduce Body Privacy 2007-11-04
Excellent on teaching children that their body belongs to them - and no one else. Discusses appropriate & inappropriate touches. Provides an example of a trusted neighbor who tricked and tried to inappropriately touch a child - all in child-friendly language and drawings. It also discusses when it is okay to be touched - bathing or when at the doctor's for a check-up. It is not scary, but matter-of-fact. We read this to our 4.5 & 3 year old daughters and have them practice saying STOP with an outstretched hand at appropriate parts of the book. Highly recommended.
Wonderful story. 2007-09-17
This book is tastefully written, not scary, but led to good discussion about boundaries- with anyone he knows or doesn't know, and serious thought by my 3 1/2 year old son. He asks for the book about once a month, and refers to "touching problems" occasionally in general conversation, saying something like "you don't keep touching secrets and you say 'Stop it! I don't like that!' if someone tries to put their hand in your pants, and go tell Mom!"
It's a little shocking when your baby gets a grasp of something like that, but I'd really rather that be the case than the first time he knows of it is with a previously trusted person that betrays that trust. It's not graphic or detailed and doesn't attempt to explain why a pervert would do such a thing. It appears serious to him and has caused him to talk with me and plan his response (just like what to do if he became lost in a store), but it's no more scary to him just from reading about it and talking about it than a toothy shark or scary shadow in another book. I highly recommend this for parents brave enough to tackle this subject before your child starts attending birthday parties alone or going to neighbors' houses to play.
Every parent should read this book 2007-08-31
This book provides the details all parents need to have to protect thier children. It gives great tools for parents to use. I will purchase this book for all my friends as baby shower gifts!
Excellent book! 2007-05-13
This book helped to reinforce what I had already taught my 4-year-old son. He asked questions that he hadn't previously asked and opened up new discussion about the topic. It's well-written, common sense approach makes it easy for pre-schoolers to understand. The author is a therapist, which made me feel confident about the quality of the content.
