Today, less than half of all U.S. families have a married mom and dad raising their genetically related children.
TOPICS
What does all of sex ed boil down to, really?
Healthy relationships! Understanding and respecting ourselves and others
Sex ed used to be all about sex - and why NOT to have it! But sex ed should include other aspects of sexual health such as friendship, sexual identity, and social/emotional well-being. Roads to Family, throws out the old framework and teaches youth skills to be powerful communicators, problem solvers, and critical thinkers so that they can advocate for themselves in all aspects of their lives; throughout their lives. We introduce each topic at the appropriate age and scaffold the concepts for youth as they are developmentally ready for them.
Human Reproduction and Family Formation
Roads to Family tells the story of how every child and family comes to be. Equally.
affirming and empowering all children and families.
When our children look up at us and ask, "Where DO babies come from?" we can no longer stammer out the same story we have been telling for generations. With discoveries in science and medicine, we now have lots of options for making babies and creating family. By bringing IVF, insemination, surrogates, and donors into the conversation, we can include all families - blended, adoptive, foster, LGBTQAI(+), extended, single-parent, and chosen. It’s time to update how we teach human reproduction and family formation, so every child is seen, heard, and valued.
Puberty is less about raging hormones and more about adolescent brain development.
Puberty
Navigating the maze of cognitive, physical, social, and emotional changes of puberty.
A reason to celebrate.
Adolescents’ brains are on fire, their bodies are rapidly growing, their relationships are morphing into who knows what, and the intensity of their emotions is something to behold. In a million different ways, we can remind kids that their growth and development is not only normal, but it’s absolutely necessary. Armed with knowledge and skills, they can work through the challenges and enjoy their journey towards adulthood.
There are only two places on the human body that hair does not grow: the soles of our feet and the palms of our hands.
Anatomy and Physiology
Approaching the human body with a sense of wonder and curiosity.
Knowledge is power.
Our bodies are these amazing machines that transport electronic messages from our brain to our limbs so we can move, that break food down and convert it to energy, and that send an army of cells to fight infections. They also have the mechanisms necessary to make and care for new life. From day one onward, learning about our body, the names of our parts, and how they work, lets us be safe, responsible and respectful to ourselves and others.
“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
— Maya Angelou
Emotional Intelligence
By knowing and managing our emotions, we can relate better to ourselves and to others.
Name them to tame them.
Are there just six core emotions that get layered on top of the other to create more complex emotions, as Confucius reported: joy, anger, fear, sadness, love, hate, desire? Or are there an infinite number of feelings? How do we calm our immediate reactions (fight, freeze, flight) and get in touch with our true feelings so that we can communicate our wants, needs, and desires? Let’s start kids early - on a path away from isolation, anger, fear, and sadness and towards connectedness, happiness, bravery, and success.
At it's best, consent is more than a yes or no answer. It's a conversation.
Bodily Autonomy and Consent
Who does my body belong to? Me.
it’s simple. don’t be a jerk.
Bullying starts with a joke, builds to teasing, and progresses to threats and violence. Sometimes bullying happens in person and other times online. Sometimes harassment is physical and sometimes emotional. Let’s teach kids how to stick up for their own boundaries, to defend the boundaries of others, and to never, ever impede on someone else’s boundaries.
On June 26, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in all fifty states.
Relationships and Sexual Orientation
A friend is someone who likes us for who we are.
pick a good friend and be a good friend.
When we are young, we instinctively choose friends because we see eye-to-eye with them. As we enter adolescence, we start picking friends based on things like popularity and wanting to fit in. And when these not-so-great relationships turn romantic, it doesn’t usually work out well, regardless of sex/gender. Practicing consent and talking about healthy friendships, crushes (fantasy and real), romantic feelings, and sexual thoughts puts youth on a path to having fun, pleasurable, safe relationships.
"When all Americans are treated as equal, no matter who they are or whom they love, we are all more free."
– Barack Obama
Sex, Intersex and Gender Diversity
From the moment we are born, the world dumps us into one of two categories and it tells us all the rules and regulations about being a boy or a girl.
Time to break the rules.
When babies are born, their sex assigned at birth is determined largely by their reproductive body parts (internal and external), and sometimes by their chromosomes and hormones. And, those three things don’t always point in a clear direction. Sometimes people are Intersex. On top of that, the gender someone identifies with doesn’t always match their sex assigned at birth. The result? A mix of labels and descriptions: cisgender, transgender, non-binary, gender fluid, two-spirit and queer. As our understanding of sex and gender has rapidly evolved, so has our vocabulary. Knowing just what to say and how to say it, isn’t always easy. But in the end, it all boils down to learning how to treat everyone with dignity, respect, and compassion - even when we don’t agree with them, and even when they are so very different from ourselves.
The Netherlands begins teaching sex ed at age 4, and they have among the lowest rates of teen pregnancy around the world.
Contraception and Sexually Transmitted Infections
Our country’s laser sharp focus of preventing unplanned pregnancy (aka teen pregnancy) and the spread of sexually transmitted infections, has made it hard for sex education to evolve with the times.
let’s aim higher.
For years, various organizations have poured billions of dollars into programs that shame teens - with the hope of all hopes that fear-based tactics will help them live a more fulfilling life. But guess what? Research study after research study has proven these strategies don’t work. Frightening teens won’t teach them to be healthy, happy and successful. They need information, services, and support to accurately weigh risks and benefits, learn from their mistakes, and achieve positive outcomes.
Genetically speaking, all humans are 99.9% identical. And yet...
Justice for All
Every human on earth deserves the same rights, opportunities and privileges.
equality is worth fighting for.
Our health and well-being is related to our biology and genetics, but it is also connected to our race, ethnicity, socio-economic status, sexual orientation, gender, immigration status, power, age, and ability. On top of that, shaping our own values, warding off family and peer pressures, navigating community norms, and handling societal expectations, is no easy task. How do we ditch stereotypes, biases, and discrimination (aka systems of oppression) so that each and every person has the power and resources to make the decisions that are just right for them?