Suzanne serves at Erie Family Health as a Health Educator
"If you have sex twice in one day, does that mean you'll get pregnant and have two babies later?"
This is one example of the many questions that I receive when teaching Teen Pregnancy Prevention courses (TPP) in Chicago Public Schools. TPP is a series of four classes that are taught to elementary, middle, and high school students all over Chicago by AmeriCorps members serving with Erie Family Health Center. This course utilizes lessons from the evidence-based Family Life and Sexual Health (FLASH) curricula and focuses on teaching students about healthy relationships, anatomy and reproduction, contraception, and sexually transmitted infections. Erie health educators have taught TPP courses to over 800 students all around Chicago!
My favorite part of teaching TPP is the QUESTION BOX! At the beginning of each session, we hand out small slips of paper and explain to the students that they can write an anonymous question or comment about ANYTHING to be answered at the beginning of the next class. We collect the slips of paper from all students, so that no one can figure out who asked what question. I love using the question box because it gives students an open forum to address their questions and concerns without fear of being judged by their classmates or going through the awkwardness of asking a parent or teacher. It is a safe way for students to ask whatever is on their mind. The question box is also a great way for health educators to assess their understanding and to determine difficult concepts that should be re-taught to the class. The question box is a great tool to use in all sex-ed classroom sessions!
