Can someone explain about children monks? I've seen pictures online of young children dressed in monks robes in Buddhist countries. Does someone make the decision on behalf of the child that they will become a monk? Do they eat only one meal a day as adult monks do? Are very young monks also called Venerable Sir? Thanks for helping a western mind to understand this matter.
In Thailand, male novices (called nen or samanera) are a fairly common sight.  Very often they have taken vows only temporarily.  They may do it during the phansa (rainy season) period, during summer holidays from March to May, or just for a few days in order to make merit when a parent or grandparent has passed away.  The latter motivation is in a sense repayment of a debt owed to family members for being under their care as a young child.  According to Thai wikipedia, novices should be no younger than 8.  A temple website states that they follow only 10 precepts.  A Thai friend of mine told me that one motivation on the part of parents is that since the boys learn the basics of meditation practice, they are more mature and exhibit fewer behavioral problems when they come out.  I recall reading something like this in a biography of one well-known Thai monk – it might have been Buddhadasa bhikkhu.  

Regarding language, my friend said that some of the special monastic vocabulary (like chan for ‘to eat') is used when speaking to novices as well as monks, but that the overall politeness level is less formal (e.g. novices are not addressed as ‘venerable’.) 

In Burma I have seen young girls (samanerī or the Burmese equivalent) in pinkish robes out on alms rounds, perhaps later in the morning than monks.  You wouldn’t see that in Thailand though.

Donald Swearer discusses additional motivations for ordaining as a teenager in his book ‘The Buddhist World of Southeast Asia’ (1995), p. 48:


  In Thailand one of the principle reasons for being ordained is to acquire an education.  Among poorer families often children cannot afford to attend school.  Ordination as a novice provides for their material needs as well as a basic education.  Indeed, if a boy is bright and highly motivated he may complete secondary school as a novice or monk, graduate from a monastic college, and then earn an advanced degree from a university in another country, such as India.  After teaching in a monastery school for several years or serving as an administrator in a larger provincial monastery he will probably disrobe and take a responsible and respected secular job.  Although such exploitation of the monastic educational structure siphons off able leadership, it has become standard practice and bears little or no social stigma.


I have known several university teachers who followed this career path - they were all from the relatively poor northeastern region of Thailand. 

Swearer goes on to suggest that in an earlier era, ordaining at the age of puberty was a kind of rite of passage that all males went though.  Monks in fact lead rather comfortable lives and for a child from a poor family, being a monk would mean raising one’s economic and social status.  Given the traditional link between education and the sangha, it should be no surprise that males ordain at a young age and that this is encouraged by local cultural norms.  In comtemporary Thai society the link has been weakened with the advent of universal secular education, but elsewhere in Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Laos and Burma) it is likely still quite strong.