Not too long ago I read a post on a popular ESL teachers in Korea forum that talked about the audacity of older elementary school girls because they were...*gasp!*... wearing makeup. The original poster wrote that he was appalled by the use of lipstick in his classroom and that he had begun confiscating it. I was appalled that a grown man was appalled that some 6th grade girls were experimenting with makeup. The issue of 'sexy dancing' also came up. It's not at all uncommon here for an after school club to consist of a large group of girls learning all the latest dance moves from the latest music videos and performing at school assemblies.
What I have to say about this is very simple: Children wearing makeup and experimenting with what being an adult is all about are completely normal. Grownups are charged with being graceful to children during this part of life.
Today there was a lot of noise in the hall during a time when the school is usually empty. I went to check it out and all the 6th graders were filtering in because today they will be escorted to their new middle schools. They have been off school for 3 weeks and they all look well rested with combed hair and clean clothes and it made me really happy. A lot of the girls had on lip gloss and maybe a bit of foundation and they looked happy and like they were growing up. I'm happy for them and I hope they continue to grow and learn and become confident women, wearing whatever makes them feel awesome.
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