To talk to children about sex/their bodies when they are (almost) teenagers is far too late, IMO. By then they have all sorts of misinformation from their peers/magazines/wellmeaning adults spouting drivvel.
I answer DSs (aged 5 and 6) questions as they come up, they know correct names ie vagina and penis, although "nick names" are not frowned upon. When I was pregnanct with DS3 last year and we discussed a baby growing in mummy's tummy I was holding my breath for the question how the baby got there, but it never came. They understand the concept of big oak from small acorns grow, and at this stage did not require further information.
However, I agree with other posters, a lot of young people who have sex at a very young age are so caught up in a culture which sexualises everything: cropped tops, bras for little girls, anyone?? I have spoken to young people in Family Planning Clinics (so these are the ones who ARE actively seeking information) who just feel that sex is something "everybody does"; they do not fully understand that there is a choice, and that they do not HAVE to have sex to be somebody amongst their peers. It does have a lot to do with self esteem, and a certain feeling of self-worth that does not require the validation of being "loved" by somebody else.
I am all for more health/sex education in schools and I am shocked that a dissenting few should prevent a lesson for the vast majority to go ahead. Could those whose parents object not simple be excused from the lessons involved? Or, quite frankly, my own personal opinion is that those whose parents object, SHOULD attend sex ed as it would seem they will not be informed at home.
Yes, I admit, I miss a bit of paternalistic telling people what to do if it is in their best interest.
I have this week dealt with a 15 (fifteen) year old boy seeking treatment for erectile dysfunction (impotence) when with his 14 year old girlfriend. His equipment was working fine when on his own IYKWIM, and it did not occur to him that maybe, just maybe he was not ready for sexual intimacy with somebody else yet. It had been his best friend who told him he had to sleep with her as he would be a "wuss" if he didn't because they had been "going out" for 2 months and he "had not seen any action yet" .
I also dealt with a 15 year old girl who presented 28 weeks into her pregnancy who even when presented with fetal heart beat and positive pregnancy test denied that she could possibly be pregnant because she had not been aware that what she and her now ex-boyfriend had been doing is what makes babies. Her mother had apparently still been referring to "special cuddles" and she did not find her boyfriend's "cuddles" that "special". She was 15, FFS, surely she should have been told somewhere along the way about the connection between periods/making babies/intercourse etc etc.
So, yes, emphatic yes, to talking about bodies, sex and gardening (love the line, too, and gardening such an important life skill).