Creating Safe and Sacred Places for Young Adolescents
Sexual Abuse Educational Sessions for 5th to 8th Graders
Overview
In recent years, our Church and society have begun to understand the pervasiveness of child sexual abuse. As our awareness of the effects of child abuse grows, frustrated educators and church leaders continue to look for ways we can prevent abuse from happening to children. Creating Safe and Sacred Places for Young Adolescents was written in response to the ever-growing need to educate young adolescents (grades five to eight) in the prevention of sexual abuse.
The manual includes three 60-minute educational sessions for fifth- and sixth-graders, as well as three 60-minute sessions for seventh- and eighth-graders.
Product Details
Copyright: May 1, 2007
Format: Paperback
Size: 8.5 x 11
Length: 88 pages
Item number: 3832
ISBN: 978-0-88489-983-9
ISBN-10: 0-88489-983-7
Customer Reviews
By Andrea Sabor, Diocese of Green Bay, Department of Education
Creating Safe and Sacred Places for Young Adolescents helps Catholic educators recognize the uniqueness of the middle school adolescent and the kind of information and activities particular to their needs for quality safe-environment education. The lesson plans provide a complete framework for conducting a session that gives the Catholic perspective on a difficult topic. The variety of methods used engages young adolescents and helps them to be attentive, alert, and aware of child sexual abuse.
By Jerry Goebel, founder and director, ONEFamily Outreach
Wouldn't it be great to live in a world where we didn't have to teach young people how to recognize, prevent, or seek assistance from sexual abuse? Unfortunately, we don't live in such a world, and we can't afford to give credence to abuse through its dual proponents of isolation and silence. Therefore, it is critical to have straightforward, yet compassionate, tools for addressing this tough issue with those most affected by it: young people. Creating Safe and Sacred Places for Young Adolescents is one of the best guides I have encountered on this topic—ever.
I have personally used some of the exercises in this book and found that the activities encouraged healthy conversations and equipped young adolescents to deepen their understanding of this all-too-often hidden social crisis.
Well done; every ministry outreach to young people should include this program as part of their curriculum.
By Susan Dorfmeister, director, Youth and Young Adult Ministries, Diocese of Dallas
As the Catholic Church becomes a clarion for the awareness and prevention of sexual abuse, this book is a concrete resource for those in the field of early adolescent ministry. The book provides safe-environment training sessions for and with young people, as outlined by the Charter for Protection of Children and Young People, that should become part of comprehensive ministry within the parish, including the school setting. Creating Safe and Sacred Places for Young Adolescents promotes skills for moral Christian living and the formation of healthy young disciples. The professional minister will be able to appreciate the good structure and balance in information and skill sets—educational and pastoral.
