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Lets call it Life Education rather than Sex Education. When we call it Sex Education many people get their backs up. But Life Education would be a more appropriate term for what needs to be taught starting at a very young age. We should not fool ourselves young people know about sex they know the basics and in many cases they are participating in sexual activities long before they are emotionally ready for the consequences of their choices. If we continue to bury our heads in the sand then we will fail our children in and of course their children, our grandchildren.

Life Education what is this and what would be the content of a course in life. It would first have to be a continuing education course that would be structured to be age appropriate. The Life Education course would need to work with young people to dispel rumors, media hype, and schoolyard misinformation in a manner that would provide them with fact based biological knowledge of their bodies, that would be the first step. Children, as they mature need information. Parents are responsible for the moral and ethical education. Churches are responsible for furthering this moral education with their messages of abstinence and marriage first. Educators are responsible for providing facts.

My plan would be very simple and very simple to implement. At every stage of the process parents could opt their child out of the education process. I believe strongly that parents must be part of their child's education so if a parent has a moral issue with their child learning fact based biology, fact based Life Education they should not sign the consent form for their child to attend these courses. Here is my approach to Life Education for young people.

1. Fifth / Sixth Grade (age 10-11): Biology Class of Human Sexual Maturity taught gender segregated. This class is taught to ensure that boys and girls know what is happening to their bodies and make them sensitive to each other.

2. Middle School (age 12-15): Human Biology (7th Grade), Sexually Transmitted Diseases and Prevention (8th Grade), Human Sexuality and Behavior (9th grade): I would like to add to this list a course on responsible decision-making, childcare, and what we use to call Home Economics for all ninth graders. My Home Economics would focus on the cost of bad decisions including having a child before graduating high school.

3. High School (age 15-18): Advanced Biology, Advanced Human Sexuality and Gender Roles, Advanced Home Economics and Life Sciences: All courses to be the final building blocks of what has been taught previously. No course would provide moral or ethical frameworks only scientific and factual information. Home Economics would focus on managing household finances and decision-making based on different choices open to students. Life Sciences and Advanced Sexuality would indeed discuss birth control methods and safe sex versus abstinence.

By the time young people enter High School they have been exposed to sex in the media, and usually within their own peer group. Some of their friends may have already had a child or at the least a pregnancy scare. Many young people will be struggling with their own sexual and gender identity. School, especially public should be a place of learning and life preparation. By providing age appropriate information to our children we are potentially providing them with options and a way to make better choices. Religious based morals do not belong in public education. We can see clearly that the past seven years of Abstinence only education hasn't worked. Something different needs to be tried.

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