10 things we've learned
Published on Feb 24, 2019
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10 things we've learned
Engaging Teens with Relationship science
What is #RG?
#RelationshipGoals (shortened to just RG) began in 2017 to teach healthy relationship skills and sexual risk avoidance in Riley County, Kansas, which has the 2nd highest teen pregnancy rate in the state.
Currently, we run implementation days when our students are out of school from 8am to 330pm. We feed the kids breakfast and lunch and host activities from 330-5pm for kids who's parents work and aren't able to pick them up at the end of curriculum. We also run a siblings program which we started when we realized that some kids weren't able to participate in RG because they were taking care of younger siblings.
Currently, we run implementation days when our students are out of school from 8am to 330pm. We feed the kids breakfast and lunch and host activities from 330-5pm for kids who's parents work and aren't able to pick them up at the end of curriculum. We also run a siblings program which we started when we realized that some kids weren't able to participate in RG because they were taking care of younger siblings.
Our Curriculum
- Based on research
- Holistic
- Addresses sexual and relational safety concerns
Photo by Dayne Topkin
our students
- 59% qualify for reduced lunch
- 25% have experienced homelessness
- 56% have a family member in the military
our students
- 36% identify as LGBTQ
- 50% identify as a racial or ethnic minority
our advice
1. Teens are AWESOME
Adolescence is a period of change and growth. Teens are still figuring out who they are and what they want out of life. This can be a frustration to educators when teens aren't thinking as far into the future as we want or haven't considered our questions before.
I think this is a special ability that can be harnessed for some amazing educational opportunities. If we think about it less as transferring knowledge to teens and more like exploring the unknown, we open the door to powerful learning.
I think this is a special ability that can be harnessed for some amazing educational opportunities. If we think about it less as transferring knowledge to teens and more like exploring the unknown, we open the door to powerful learning.
Photo by Jsome1
2. It's all about the relationships
Relationships are the context within which we live our lives. Relationships are also universal.
Photo by Tim Marshall
3. Effective curriculum builds upon itself
We've found that our curriculum has become most effective as we've reformatted it to where later concepts build on past concepts. We view units in our curriculum as parts of a whole rather than distinct concepts. We are continually referring either to curriculum that is coming up or curriculum that has happened. There are several advantages to this.
1) Good relationships principles are all interconnected and this allows and
2) This puts heavier topics into a manageable context for teens. For example, when we get to our dating violence unit, we have already covered topics like equality in relationships and healthy communication, so when I bring up warning signs of violence, there's more context.
1) Good relationships principles are all interconnected and this allows and
2) This puts heavier topics into a manageable context for teens. For example, when we get to our dating violence unit, we have already covered topics like equality in relationships and healthy communication, so when I bring up warning signs of violence, there's more context.
Photo by timo_w2s
4. Inclusivity matters
Teens are at a developmental stage where they are still figuring out who they are. It's important to create spaces
Photo by jairoagua
5. They want to know stuff about sex and relationships (not just STDs)
The most common thing kids are going to get in relation to sex ed is condoms and possibly some information about STDs probably using scare tactics.
But we've opened up the discussion to kids and they had intelligent insightful questions about the social emotional aspects of sex. They are aware of societal messages about sex, they
But we've opened up the discussion to kids and they had intelligent insightful questions about the social emotional aspects of sex. They are aware of societal messages about sex, they
Photo by rawpixel
6. Activities can make abstract ideas concrete
Teens need activities and examples that are relevant
7. Students will be your most impartial judge
More than once we've planned activities that we thought were going to be super fun that fell flat or put a lot of effort into curriculum that we thought was going to be super meaningful and the kids just stared at us. Sometimes we are great at getting into the minds of teenagers and sometimes we aren't.
Piloting activities and lessons on teens, usually our mentors, has helped us know where to make adjustments and where to cut things altogether.
Piloting activities and lessons on teens, usually our mentors, has helped us know where to make adjustments and where to cut things altogether.
8. When in doubt, make a game out of it
Games break up the curriculum and encourage students to apply the information in unique ways. Games we've used that have been fun and effective include having teams race to think of a song that describes a concept and
9. Use relevant examples
Kids connect to material that is familiar and relevant. This took a little work on our part to get familiar with their TV shows and movies to pull clips from
Photo by Dunechaser
10. They won't tell you, but they probably learned something
One of my favorite RG moments happened on our sex units day. I had a couple boys in my class that were a little disruptive and seemed checked out throughout the unit. The unit ended with a worksheet designed to help kids think about their own personal plan for contraceptives and sexual decision making. At the end of the day, as I was cleaning up the room, I picked up the worksheets these boys had been working on. One of them, under the "what did you learn today?" question wrote, "Consent is ALWAYS important" and "Get tested for STDs".
Those are the moments we live for in RG!
Those are the moments we live for in RG!
Photo by Ben White
