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Sex Ed
For Tweens
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It’s usually not a parent's favorite moment, but sooner or later most will have a talk with their children about “the birds and the bees.” Taking the sting out of the conversation is the mission of one Pennsylvania educator, who approaches the subject with music, humor, and straightforward information. Reed Galin has more. |
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SCRIPT:
(Locator: Monroeville, Pennsylvania)
Music: “XX means female and XY means male…”
He can sing like the birds, but when it comes to the bees, James Ritchie
delivers with more zing than sting.
Nat in class: “Babies do not grow in stomachs.”
He’s been called the “Dr. Ruth” of his United Methodist church.
Nat in class: “My word, you have a lot of
questions. You want to see all the questions so far?”
Ritchie gathers fifth and sixth graders for the three-day sex education
study he calls “Created by God.”
The Rev.
James Ritchie/“Created by God”: “They ask everything conceivable,
some things that aren’t conceivable, but you do your best to keep a
straight face and say, ‘what a great question that is.’”
Nat in class: “Why does it hurt when we get
kicked in the groin?”
The class doesn’t shy away from sexual vocabulary. Dr. J will use slang
words – along with the anatomical terms. The kids recite the correct
language as they learn definitions.
Nat in class: “Repeat after me, ‘Ewwwww!’ Now I
want you to hold that thought for several years.”
Parents participate on the last day of class. They, too, practice saying
“the words.”
Nat in class: “Everybody, ‘endometrium.’”
And, they hear the frank questions their kids have been asking.
Nat in class: “Is it normal to want to have
sex? Yes.”
Along with the straightforward answers.
Nat in class: “If the boyfriend is insisting on
sex, he may be a boy but he’s not a friend.”
And then Dr. J has parents and kids get together and talk about puberty,
sexuality and growing up.
The Rev.
James Ritchie/“Created by God”: “Parents tell me it opened up
lines of communication. That’s worth the price of admission right
there.”
TAG:
Ritchie travels the country teaching kids about sex from a faith
perspective. He keeps a collection of the kids’ questions, which now
number in the thousands. For more information, call 412-372-1354 or log
onto
http://www.rfsministries.com.