My son- child on child sexual abuse?

I understand. I would feel the same way if I were in your situation.

Firstly, the mom is probably in need of help for herself. I think there is something odd, in this day and age, in a woman having 5 children by a man who is so wretchedly unhappy that he kills himself. It's just very odd. I suspect this 8 year old girl's inappropriate behavior is just the tip of the iceberg of what is wrong in her home.

I'm wondering what dss stands for? (dept. of social services???)

There would be no obligation for the camp to report this incident to any civic authority. That kind of obligation ensues when someone caring for children finds evidence of a child being abused by an adult, or in a situation of danger that prudence indicates requires some intervention. Their main obligation, now, - at the camp - is to more closely observe this girl's interactions with other children. But it's not like she were 16 years old.

I'm not minimizing the incident. Eight years old, especially in a female child, is a bit old for this to not be viewed as disturbing behavior. However, 8 is a lot different from, say, 15 . . . or even 11. We don't call the cops, if one kid steals another kid's candy . . . or even if one kid physically assaults another kid. Somethings are supposed to be dealt with by the adults on the scene and those adults who are legally responsible for the children involved. I'm wondering: What would one think that a social service agency could do in response to this scenario? I don't think I'ld want to live under a government where a family could be subject to an investigation of their home environment on the strength of an incident like this.

Having said that, I would still maintain that the girl's behavior is disturbing and probably does signal deeper issues going on in her home. Knowing about this incident, for instance, would be enough to make me hesitate to let a child of mine go hang out at this girl's home. Just because this doesn't warrant bringing in civic authorities doesn't mean that it doesn't warrant private citizens exercising increased caution.

Another thing bothers me. As someone above commented: What are these little kids doing in a darkened room? I've always believed you just can't watch kids closely enough. An 8 year old off in a dark corner with a 4 and 5 year old? A "camp" where 8 year olds play with 4 year olds? I question the quality of this camp and the quality of the experience it is providing. A child as young as 4 should be pretty much under the eyeballs of an adult at all times.