---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I flip ahead in the textbook. There's an…"
description: "\"“I flip ahead in the textbook. There's an interesting chapter about acid rain. Nothing about sex. We aren't scheduled to learn about that until elevent..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/211/laurie-halse-anderson-623_acid-rain_i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an_897540.jpg"
---

#  I flip ahead in the textbook. There's an interesting…

![“I flip ahead in the textbook. There's an interesting chapter about acid rain. Nothing about sex. We aren't scheduled to learn about that until eleventh grade.” quote by Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/211/laurie-halse-anderson-623_acid-rain_i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an_897540.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/211/laurie-halse-anderson-623_acid-rain_i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an_897540.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/211/laurie-halse-anderson-623_acid-rain_i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an_897540.jpg)

> ““I flip ahead in the textbook. There's an interesting chapter about acid rain. Nothing about sex. We aren't scheduled to learn about that until eleventh grade.””

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The narrator notes how school curricula prioritize environmental science over human sexuality, highlighting gaps in education.

**In simple terms:** School often skips sex education.

Key Takeaway

Advocate for balanced curricula.

Themes

education curriculum sexuality environment gap

Mood

thoughtful critical concerned

Type

educational social commentary

When to use this quote

- high school science class
- parent-teacher meeting
- policy discussion
- student counseling

Key Concepts

Curriculum design social norms

Questions to Reflect On

- How can schools integrate comprehensive health topics?
- What barriers exist to teaching sexuality?

A Different Perspective

Sex education can be controversial and politically charged.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Sex education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sex-education/)

## Related quotes

> [I've been very fortunate to go from interesting chapter to interesting chapter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-patrick-harris/i-ve-been-very-fortunate-to-go-from-interesting-chapter-to-2/)

[Neil Patrick Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-patrick-harris/)

> [“When things go really wrong just imagine how interesting it will be as a chapter in your autobiography.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-edward-gedall/when-things-go-really-wrong-just-imagine-how-interesting-it-will-be/)

[Gary Edward Gedall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-edward-gedall/)

> [I've been very fortunate to go from interesting chapter to interesting chapter. I've always enjoyed the process and always enjoyed working more really than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-patrick-harris/i-ve-been-very-fortunate-to-go-from-interesting-chapter-to/)

[Neil Patrick Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-patrick-harris/)

> [Eleventh grade is when I grew into my body. My athleticism and speed took off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zion-williamson/eleventh-grade-is-when-i-grew-into-my-body-my-athleticism-and-speed/)

[Zion Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zion-williamson/)

> [Academically, I think things kicked off pretty late for me. I was kind of one of those kids who was in half honors, half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-seibel/academically-i-think-things-kicked-off-pretty-late-for-me-i-was-kind/)

[Michael Seibel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-seibel/)

> [Those who don't remember the past are condemned to repeat the eleventh grade.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-w-loewen/those-who-don-t-remember-the-past-are-condemned-to-repeat-the/)

[James W. Loewen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-w-loewen/)

> [We used to go to Palm Springs, ditch school when I was in eleventh grade, and go hang out poolside with our ghetto blaster…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-trujillo/we-used-to-go-to-palm-springs-ditch-school-when-i-was-in-eleventh/)

[Robert Trujillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-trujillo/)

> [Gansey had no idea how old Blue was. He knew she'd just finished eleventh grade. Maybe she was sixteen. Maybe she was eighteen. Maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-stiefvater/gansey-had-no-idea-how-old-blue-was-he-knew-she-d-just-finished/)

[Maggie Stiefvater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-stiefvater/)

> [I was eleventh-grade class president. That was the first elective office I held until I came into Congress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-edwards/i-was-eleventh-grade-class-president-that-was-the-first-elective/)

[Donna Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-edwards/)

> [“Maya’s boyfriend, Ryan, happens to be the only other black kid in eleventh grade, and everybody expects us to be together. Because apparently when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angie-thomas/maya-s-boyfriend-ryan-happens-to-be-the-only-other-black-kid-in/)

[Angie Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angie-thomas/)

> [First deal with your own tears; tomorrow do something about acid rain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-jane-wylie/first-deal-with-your-own-tears-tomorrow-do-something-about-acid-rain/)

[Betty Jane Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-jane-wylie/)

> [“We line up and make a lot of noise about big environmental problems like incinerators, waste dumps, acid rain, global warming and pollution. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-c-jenkins/we-line-up-and-make-a-lot-of-noise-about-big-environmental-problems/)

[Joseph C. Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-c-jenkins/)

> [Lyrically, 'Planets' is the precursor to 'Acid Rain'; it's about a meteoric, intergalactic war that results in an apocalypse and the human species aligning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/synyster-gates/lyrically-planets-is-the-precursor-to-acid-rain-it-s-about-a-meteoric/)

[Synyster Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/synyster-gates/)

> [“If you believed in capitalism, you had to attack science, because science had revealed the hazards that capitalism had brought in its wake. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-oreskes/if-you-believed-in-capitalism-you-had-to-attack-science-because/)

[Naomi Oreskes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-oreskes/)

> [Canada is a country whose main exports are hockey players and cold fronts. Our main imports are baseball players and acid rain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-trudeau/canada-is-a-country-whose-main-exports-are-hockey-players-and-cold/)

[Pierre Trudeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-trudeau/)

## More by Laurie Halse Anderson

> [“The word ghost sounds like memory. The word therapy means exorcism”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/the-word-ghost-sounds-like-memory-the-word-therapy-means-exorcism/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [Censorship is the child of fear and the father of ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/censorship-is-the-child-of-fear-and-the-father-of-ignorance/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [“I have this halfway place, a rest stop on the road to sleep, where I can stay for hours. I don't even need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-have-this-halfway-place-a-rest-stop-on-the-road-to-sleep-where-i/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [I can see us, living in the woods, her wearing that A, me with a S maybe, S for silent, S for stupid, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-can-see-us-living-in-the-woods-her-wearing-that-a-me-with-a-s-maybe/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [Eating plain toast will detonate her. "I'll have some honey." When the bread is done I scrape on a microscopic layer of it and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/eating-plain-toast-will-detonate-her-i-ll-have-some-honey-when-the/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [Cutting pain was a different flavor of hurt. It made it easier not to think about having my body and my family and my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/cutting-pain-was-a-different-flavor-of-hurt-it-made-it-easier-not-to/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [I am learning how to be angry and sad and lonely and joyful and excited and afraid and happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-am-learning-how-to-be-angry-and-sad-and-lonely-and-joyful-and/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [“Leaning against my father, the sadness finally broke open inside me, hollowing out my heart and leaving me bleeding. My feet felt rooted in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/leaning-against-my-father-the-sadness-finally-broke-open-inside-me/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [I like cheeseburgers too much to be a model.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-like-cheeseburgers-too-much-to-be-a-model/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [I am getting better at smiling when people expect it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-am-getting-better-at-smiling-when-people-expect-it/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [“All that crap you hear on TV about communication and expressing feelings is a lie. Nobody really wants to hear what you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/all-that-crap-you-hear-on-tv-about-communication-and-expressing/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [I doubt trees are ever told to 'be the screwed-up ninth-grader.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-doubt-trees-are-ever-told-to-be-the-screwed-up-ninth-grader/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [“It was the most eloquent silence I ever heard.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/it-was-the-most-eloquent-silence-i-ever-heard/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [I've dealt with depression my entire life, on and off, which makes me the perfect author for teenage readers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-ve-dealt-with-depression-my-entire-life-on-and-off-which-makes-me/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

> [“What did it feel like to die? Was it a peaceful sleep? Some thought it was full of either trumpet-blowing angels or angry devils.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/what-did-it-feel-like-to-die-was-it-a-peaceful-sleep-some-thought-it/)

[Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

[Explore all 437 Laurie Halse Anderson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/)

## More Acid rain quotes

> [Canada is a country whose main exports are hockey players and cold fronts. Our main imports are baseball players and acid rain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-trudeau/canada-is-a-country-whose-main-exports-are-hockey-players-and-cold/)

[Pierre Trudeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-trudeau/)

> [“If you believed in capitalism, you had to attack science, because science had revealed the hazards that capitalism had brought in its wake. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-oreskes/if-you-believed-in-capitalism-you-had-to-attack-science-because/)

[Naomi Oreskes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-oreskes/)

> [Lyrically, 'Planets' is the precursor to 'Acid Rain'; it's about a meteoric, intergalactic war that results in an apocalypse and the human species aligning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/synyster-gates/lyrically-planets-is-the-precursor-to-acid-rain-it-s-about-a-meteoric/)

[Synyster Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/synyster-gates/)

> [“We line up and make a lot of noise about big environmental problems like incinerators, waste dumps, acid rain, global warming and pollution. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-c-jenkins/we-line-up-and-make-a-lot-of-noise-about-big-environmental-problems/)

[Joseph C. Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-c-jenkins/)

> [First deal with your own tears; tomorrow do something about acid rain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-jane-wylie/first-deal-with-your-own-tears-tomorrow-do-something-about-acid-rain/)

[Betty Jane Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-jane-wylie/)

> [Take back your insurance, baby, nothing is guaranteed. Take back your acid rain, let your TV bleed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-petty/take-back-your-insurance-baby-nothing-is-guaranteed-take-back-your/)

[Tom Petty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-petty/)

> [Bring down Mike Mann and we can bring down the IPCC, they reckoned. It is a classic technique for the deniers movement, I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-e-mann/bring-down-mike-mann-and-we-can-bring-down-the-ipcc-they-reckoned-it/)

[Michael E. Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-e-mann/)

> [“Imagine you are a member of a tour visiting Greece. The group goes to the Parthenon. It is a bore. Few people even bother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-percy/imagine-you-are-a-member-of-a-tour-visiting-greece-the-group-goes-to/)

[Walker Percy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-percy/)

> [Increasingly, our leaders must deal with dangers that threaten the entire world, where an understanding of those dangers and the possible solutions depends on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/increasingly-our-leaders-must-deal-with-dangers-that-threaten-the/)

[Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/)

> [From the cranberry cancer scare of the 1950s to the Alar-in-apples hysteria of the 1980s, from the "new ice age" of the 1960s to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-browne/from-the-cranberry-cancer-scare-of-the-1950s-to-the-alar-in-apples/)

[Harry Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-browne/)

> [It is personal - deep in my bones and my flesh - the knowledge that we squandered our chance to avoid the climate emergency;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-may/it-is-personal-deep-in-my-bones-and-my-flesh-the-knowledge-that-we/)

[Elizabeth May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-may/)

> [We can drift along as though there were still a cold war, wasting hundreds of billions of dollars on weapons that will never be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/we-can-drift-along-as-though-there-were-still-a-cold-war-wasting/)

[Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/)

> [“Sabrina surely had one dead ex-boyfriend on her record. But did Martina have a deceased ex-boyfriend in her past too? Biggie’s words swirled in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tomas-adam-nyapi/sabrina-surely-had-one-dead-ex-boyfriend-on-her-record-but-did/)

[Tomas Adam Nyapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tomas-adam-nyapi/)

> [And your words burned my skin like acid rain, leaving holes and dripping to the ground](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katy-reichl/and-your-words-burned-my-skin-like-acid-rain-leaving-holes-and/)

[Katy Reichl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katy-reichl/)

> [“She thought it funny how the poor environment had been raped just fine until there was a sufficient excess of the people who had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/padgett-powell/she-thought-it-funny-how-the-poor-environment-had-been-raped-just/)

[Padgett Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/padgett-powell/)

Browse all 43 Acid rain quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“I flip ahead in the textbook. There's an interesting chapter about acid rain. Nothing about sex. We aren't scheduled to learn about that until eleventh grade.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Laurie Halse Anderson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an-interesting-chapter-about/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Acid rain"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an-interesting-chapter-about/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/211/laurie-halse-anderson-623_acid-rain_i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an_897540.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/211/laurie-halse-anderson-623_acid-rain_i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an_897540.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/211/laurie-halse-anderson-623_acid-rain_i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an_897540.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I flip ahead in the textbook. There's an interesting chapter about acid rain. Nothing about sex. We aren't…” — Laurie Halse Anderson",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Laurie Halse Anderson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“I flip ahead in the textbook....",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an-interesting-chapter-about/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-flip-ahead-in-the-textbook-there-s-an-interesting-chapter-about/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
