by Austen Petersen, Director of Religious Education
Did you know that Religious Education recently completed a session of Our Whole Lives for upper elementary?
Our Whole Lives
Grades 4, 5, and 6
Our Whole Lives is our comprehensive science based sexuality education program. Parent permission was required.
Thank you to our awesome team of facilitators:
- Kim and Scott Dellinger
- Nan Hart
- Melissa Stump
- Kurt Williamson
Melissa and Kurt took the lead on this important offering making sure that the children who signed up for this class got important information covered in the OWL curriculum.
Way to go, team! Please thank these folks when you see them next.
Interested in learning more?
Our Whole Lives helps participants make informed and responsible decisions about their relationships, sexual health and behavior. With a holistic approach (PDF), Our Whole Lives provides accurate, developmentally appropriate information about a range of topics, including relationships, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, sexual health, and cultural influences on sexuality.
Our Whole Lives Offers
- Accurate information presented in developmentally appropriate ways
- Affective and emotional learning
- Guiding values and principles
- Activities that help participants clarify values and improve decision-making skills
- A safe and supportive peer group
- Acceptance of diversity
- A social justice approach to inclusive sexuality education
- Step-by-step instructions for program promotion, implementation, and facilitation
- Parent orientation that affirms parents as their children’s primary sexuality educators
- Facilitator trainings, continuing education, and email forums to increase knowledge, skills, confidence
- Expert user support from the Unitarian Universalist’s Association OWL Program Manager and the United Church of Christ’s Minister of Sexuality Education and Justice
- Sexuality and Our Faith, an optional religious supplement for use in Unitarian Universalist and United Church of Christ settings
Our Whole Lives Values
While Our Whole Lives is secular, it is not value-free. The program gives clear messages about the following key sexuality issues:
- Self-worth
- Sexual health
- Responsibility
- Justice and inclusivity
Our Whole Lives recognizes and respects the diversity of participants with respect to biological sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, and disability status in addition to cultural and racial background. The activities and language used throughout the program have been carefully chosen to be as inclusive as possible of this human diversity.