Essential Standard
Clarifying Objective
8.ICR.3 Analyze strategies that develop and maintain reproductive and sexual health. 8.ICR.3.3 Select family, school, and community resources for the prevention of sexual risk taking through abstinence and safer sex practices. Materials Needed:
Appendix 1 – copies of 8 Questions for Teens Thinking about Having Sex
Appendix 2 – copies of Why It’s So Hard
Appendix 3 – Birds and Bees Warm Line Half Flyers
Appendix 4a, b – copies of Locating Resources
Computer
Phone books
Sources:
Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Campaign of North Carolina
National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy
Focus:
Option 1
Play one of the public service announcements from StayTeen.org (a website developed
by the National campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy) http://www.stayteen.org/youtubechannel-video/8EE738C292BB2938/0; such as Stay Teen PSA with Degrassi's Jessica
Tyler or Stay Teen PSA with Secret Life's Shailene Woodley.
Ask students what this statement means to them: Teen pregnancy is 100% preventable.
Ask why they think some teens decide to become sexually active without considering
the possible consequences or speaking with a trusted adult.
Option 2
On an Oprah Winfrey show, two 14-year olds (who believed they were ready to have
sexual intercourse) were interviewed by Dr. Laura Berman, an expert on sexuality. By
the end of the program the young people had changed their minds (at least the girl had),
deciding they were not ready for such a big step. One reason she changed her mind
was a list of questions Dr. Berman had asked. As it turned out, the couple was in
disagreement about some of the questions they had not thought about before.
Appendix 1 is the list of questions Dr. Berman suggests parents might ask their teen if
they think the young person is moving toward a sexual relationship. Share the list with
students by reading them or providing a handout. Ask, Do you think most teens think
about these questions before they move toward an intimate relationship? If so, how
would it help them make a better decision than to have unprotected sex. If not, why not?
Why might a person fail to make these considerations?
8.ICR.3.3, page 1 NC School Health Training Center NC Association for the Advancement of Health Education Compare a sexual relationship versus a sexual situation. Are those people mature
enough to engage in a sexual relationship? [A sexual relationship is when both people
are committed. A sexual situation is when one or both partners are not committed to a
relationship, referred to as “hooking up.”]
Review:
Make a copy of Appendix 2, Why It’s So Hard, for each student. Introduce the topic of
asking for help. Explain there are some barriers for young people to be able to ask for
assistance and they may be especially difficult to overcome if the issue is sensitive,
such as issues related to sexuality and sexual behavior.
Provide each student with a handout and ask them to fill out the middle column only.
When completed, ask students to share a few ideas of why it is so difficult. Stress that it
is important they speak in third person. They should say, “A teen might find it difficult to
ask for help because . . .” rather than “I wouldn’t ask for help because . . . .”
Tell students to keep the handouts for an activity later in the class period.
Statement of Objectives:
After considering why it is difficult to get help, we will look at reliable sources of
information and advice. Today we will analyze resources for the prevention of sexual
risk taking through abstinence and safer sex practices.
Teacher Input:
It is important for people of all ages to be able to get help when they need it. As we
mentioned earlier, topics about a person’s sexual health and behavior are sometimes
hard topics to talk about.
Ask students:
• What are the risks involved with the decision to be sexually active?
• Who could a teenager talk to about their sexual health and behavior? The
examples need to be adults and the discussion should include family and
school resources that a teen could go to for advice and guidance.
Some examples may include:
Family Resources
School Resources
Parent or guardian
Teacher
Grandparent
Counselor
Aunt or uncle
School nurse
Older sibling
Coach
•
Community Resources
Family doctor
Health department
Youth minister
Teen organizations
Is it important for a teen to have an adult they can talk to about their sexual
health and behavior? Why?
8.ICR.3.3, page 2 NC School Health Training Center NC Association for the Advancement of Health Education There are also community resources that an individual can go to for help in preventing
the health risks associated with sexual risk taking behaviors.
Ask students:
• Where could a teen go in their community to prevent teen pregnancy or STDs?
Answers may include family doctor, local health department, youth minister,
teen organizations, such as Boys and Girls Club.
Finally, many people, including teens, seek help or information about sexual health and
behavior electronically, including through the internet. Unfortunately, not all of those
resources contain accurate or appropriate information. One resource that we have in
North Carolina is the Birds and Bees Warm Line.
Share the BrdsNBz Text Message Warm Line information from the Adolescent
Pregnancy Prevention Campaign of North Carolina. The following is an excerpt from
the APPCNC website (http://www.appcnc.org/projects-services/brdsnbz-text-messagewarm-line):
Ideally young people can rely on their parents, factually accurate sex education,
and a medical provider. Too often, though, their answers come from a quick
Google search, friends, significant others, or the media – and those answers can
be far from truthful.
The BrdsNBz Text Message Warm Line provides confidential, factually accurate
answers to sexual health questions via text message. A young person simply
texts a question, and a trained health educator responds within 24 hours.
BrdsNBz serves young people ages 14 to 19 who live in North Carolina.
To use BrdsNBz:
• Text ncteen to 66746 to opt-in to the service. You only need to opt in the
first time you use the service.
• Text your question to 66746.
• You will receive your answer within 24 hours.
You may also share the BrdsNBz flyer in English and Spanish (Appendix 3). More flyers
are available at http://files.appcnc.gethifi.com/projects-services/brdsnbz-text-messagewarm-line/Half_page_flyers_April_2012.pdf.
Finally, brainstorm with students some ways to discern age-appropriate and medically
accurate websites. Reponses might include: sections dedicated to teachers, parents,
and teens; website is not a .com (.gov, .edu, .org, preferred); is it “linked” to other
reliable websites (like government or university); check copyright or "last updated" date;
and, are there citations for data?
Guided Practice:
This activity will help students utilize local and national resources to get information and
seek assistance for preventing health risks associated with unprotected sexual
intercourse. Have students work in pairs on computers and with phone books to find
resources for the prevention of sexual risk taking through abstinence and safer sex
8.ICR.3.3, page 3 NC School Health Training Center NC Association for the Advancement of Health Education practices. You might want to show an example of a website that is age-appropriate such
as Kids Health (http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/)
Give students a copy of Locating Resources (Appendix 4a, b). Have students work
together to answer the five questions on the handout:
1) What are the risks associated with being sexually active?
2) What obstacles might teens encounter when getting or using effective
contraceptives or condoms?
3) Brainstorm with your partner what type of help a teen would need to reduce those
risks or overcome obstacles.
4) What is the purpose of the BrdsNBz Text Message Warm Line? How would you
access this resource?
5) Use the phone book and Internet to find local and national resources to get
information and help to be abstinent or to practice prevention. List name, address,
phone number and website (if given) for each resource. On the back of this paper,
record the information or services that a teen would receive from this resource. How
can you tell that the information is appropriate for a youth audience and accurate?
Independent Practice:
Ask students to take out the handout used for the Review Step, Why It’s So Hard
(Appendix 2). In the right-hand column they are to write their ideas about how a young
person can overcome the barrier. Allow them to work with a partner on this activity if you
prefer.
Call a few students for each barrier to respond with strategies. Give positive support for
the concept of accessing reliable resources about issues that involve the prevention of
risk-taking.
Closure:
We discovered today that we have many resources in our community, school, and in
our own families that will help prevent sexual risk taking through abstinence and safer
sex practices. I can see from the brochures that you have made that you now know the
resources available to you.
8.ICR.3.3, page 4 8 Questions for Teens Thinking about
Having Sex
Dr. Laura Berman
• Why do you want to take it to the next level now?
• How long do the two of you plan to stay together?
• Are you prepared for the emotions you might feel
afterward?
• Have you talked about condoms?
• Are you prepared with two forms of birth control?
• Have you talked about what happens if you get
pregnant?
• Do you understand sexually transmitted diseases?
• Are you both absolutely sure that neither one of you
has been with anyone else sexually in any way?
8.ICR.3.3, Appendix 1 Why It’s So Hard
In the left hand column is a sexual behavior or concern that might worry a young
person. In the middle column, write why it is a barrier for asking for help. The third
column will be used in a later step in this lesson plan.
Concern
Why It’s Hard
to Ask for Help
Experiencing sexual
feelings that would make a
teen want to have sex
Pressure from someone to
have sex before teen is
ready
Perception that all peers
are having sex
Embarrassment to ask
about birth control
Don’t know where to
access methods of
prevention for STDs and
HIV
Partner who refuses to use
a method of pregnancy and
disease prevention
Being afraid one is already
pregnant or infected with an
STD
8.ICR.3.3, Appendix 2 How Can a Teen
Overcome this
Barrier?
8.ICR.3.3, Appendix 3 Locating Resources
Your job is to find local and national
resources that a teen could use to get
information and access services to
reduce and/or prevent the risks
associated with being sexually active.
1) What are the risks associated with being sexually
active?
2) What obstacles might teens encounter when getting or using effective
contraceptives or condoms?
3) Brainstorm with your partner what type of help a teen would need to
reduce those risks or overcome obstacles.
4) What is the purpose of the BrdsNBz Text Message Warm Line? How
would you access this resource?
8.ICR.3.3, Appendix 4a 5) Use the phone book and Internet to find local and national resources to
get information and help to be abstinent or to practice prevention. List
name, address, phone number and website (if given) for each resource.
On the back of this paper, record the information or services that a teen
would receive from this resource. How can you tell that the information is
appropriate for a youth audience and accurate?
Local Resources
National Resources
Name:
______________________________
Name:
______________________________
Address:
___________________________
Address:
___________________________
Phone:
_____________________________
Phone:
_____________________________
Website:
___________________________
Website:
___________________________
Name:
______________________________
Name:
______________________________
Address:
___________________________
Address:
___________________________
Phone:
_____________________________
Phone:
_____________________________
Website:
___________________________
Website:
___________________________
Name:
______________________________
Name:
______________________________
Address:
___________________________
Address:
___________________________
Phone:
_____________________________
Phone:
_____________________________
Website:
___________________________
Website:
___________________________
8.ICR.3.3, Appendix 4b