How to Talk to Kids about Sex Ed

As a mom of a 10 year-old and almost 8 year-old and an educator at a school serving infants through 6th grade, I find myself thinking a lot about how to talk to kids about sex ed. In the United States, only 13 states require that sex education be “medically accurate.” And “research published by the Journal of Adolescent Health shows that when sex education is comprehensive, students feel more informed, make safer choices and have healthier outcomes — resulting in fewer unplanned pregnancies and more protection against sexually transmitted diseases and infections.”

I made a personal commitment to talk to my children early and often about human development and sexuality. But it definitely hasn’t been easy! It was really embarrassing for me at first. But now that I’ve been talking about it for 10 years, it is getting easier. Our most recent conversation was about my first kiss.

Having open and honest conversations about these issues feels so good to me. I love knowing that my children are getting accurate information in a respectful way. It’s so easy for kids to get inaccurate information from the playground through second-hand information or from the internet.

I’ve put together my tips in this e-booklet, if anyone is interested! It talks all about the approach I use and includes my go-to resources.