National Teen Pregnancy Prevention Month

Parents and Caregivers – A Teen’s First Teacher

Teens are bombarded everyday with sexual messages from television, music, and the internet.  Unfortunately most of these messages and images don’t exist to educate teens about healthy decision-making.  Sexuality is a natural part of human development, and as parents, you have to think about the kinds of messages and behaviors you want your child to embrace and carry with him/her from adolescence into adulthood.

Parents and caregivers such as grandparents and other trusted adults play an integral role in the healthy sexual development of teens.  If you are raising a teen, it is inevitable that you will be in a situation where you will need to talk about sex with your child.  While these conversations can be equally uncomfortable for parent and teen, this page will list several reliable and comprehensive resources that will help you start this very important conversation.

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Schools and Educators

If you are a parent take time to learn about the health and sexuality education your child is receiving.  Are the programs comprehensive, age-appropriate, and evidence-based?  These are good questions to ask of your child’s and teen’s school.  While parents can set the tone for values and expectations in the home, educators can be a great partner in helping provide your child with accurate and complete information that can compliment parent/child communication.

Here are some online resources that you may find helpful:

Ten Tips – National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy

Parents Sex Ed Center – Advocates for Youth

Can We Talk? – National Education Association Health Information Network

Talking with Kids – Collaborative of Children Now and Kaiser Family Foundation

American Academy of Pediatrics – General Information and Sources for Parents and Public

There's No Place Like Home...For Sex Education - Practical information about talking to children about sex