Marnie Goldenberg is a sex educator from Vancouver (check out her Facebook page here and her blog here). Her work is brilliant and ties in nicely with the themes discussed during the section on Sex Ed that we're covering this week.
The Vancouver Sun recently published an in-depth article about here work:
Sexplain that!: Raising sexually intelligent kids is a job for parents By Denise Ryan
When I told my son that I was going to a get-together of parents to talk with an expert about how to talk to our kids about sex, he flashed me the kind of look you would expect from a 12-year-old boy.
A mix of horror, revulsion, and something else I couldn’t quite identify. Curiosity, maybe?
“Why are you looking at me like that?” I asked.
He struggled to find the words, finally settling on these: “It’s just that I think you moms are a little bit naive.”
Armed with that assessment, he was dispatched to spend the evening with a friend and I set off to find out just how naive I was.
Marnie Goldenberg launched her Vancouver “Sexplainer” salons after making a career switch from lawyer to sexual- health educator. Now she’s offering sexual-health education for parents, aimed at helping them raise “sexually intelligent kids.” In the casual atmosphere of private homes, parents get together, split the cost — about $300 for an evening — and have a facilitated discussion focused on how to communicate effectively about sexuality with kids of all ages.
“Educated kids are safer kids,” says Goldenberg. “I want to give people skills, and empower them to be proactive.”
Goldenberg is tapping into a growing need. Parents want, and need help navigating conversations with kids that are growing up in a culture of sexuality that is changing at warp speed.
Read the rest of the article here.