Summary
26 June 2012
A government guide to help parents teach their children how to be confident about their bodies is being launched. The pack shows how digitally enhanced images of celebrities affect youngsters' self-esteem, and it offers advice on how to talk to children about the subject.
Reporter:
Linda Hardy
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Report
This is what children and teenagers are increasingly faced with. An array of seemingly picture perfect faces and bodies tanned, toned and transformed from what they once were and it's that transformation that the new parent pack hopes to explain – showing parents and their children how images are altered in the media, the actress Keira Knightley before and after the effects of airbrushing. 20 year old Rachel Johnson is a recovering anorexic, and says getting parents involved is key.
"I think it is education for parents, it's actually being able to talk to parents, actually being able to ask those questions 'what do I do?'. And it's not there to scare parents it's there just to raise the profile a little bit more just to get the children to talk about body image."
Aimed at parents of six to eleven year olds it gives them tips on how to talk to their children about their own bodies and is available online. It follows the success of a teaching pack launched for primary schools last year which also revealed that images aren't always what they seem.
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Vocabulary
- an array
a collection
- picture perfect
exactly right
- toned
in good physical shape
- transformed
changed completely
- altered
adjusted, changed
- airbrushing
alteration using computer effects
- key
crucial
- profile
awareness
- tips
advice
- revealed
explained