IT’S ALL
CHANGING
SO FAST
Your child, your connection to them, the sex ed landscape
Outspoken is keeping track. Sign up to our fortnightly fix of the latest news stories, advice & inspiration to start the sex ed conversation and keep it alive…
NEWS YOU CAN USE
Megan Fox on her son wearing dresses
“Actor Megan Fox on her son Noah, when he was 6 years old: ‘He likes to wear dresses sometimes. And I send him to a really liberal, hippy school, but even there – here in California – he still has little boys going: “Boys don’t wear dresses” or “Boys don’t wear pink.”
‘I'm trying to teach him to be confident no matter what anyone else says. Two days ago he came home from school and was like: “All the boys laughed when I came in, but I don’t care, I love dresses too much.”’
Noah's father once explained: ‘My son, he’s 4. I've heard from some people that they don’t agree with him wearing dresses. To them I say, I don’t care. He’s 4 and if he wants to wear it, then he wears it.
‘And it’s dresses or goggles or slippers or whatever. It’s his life, they’re not my clothes. I feel like at 4, at 5, that’s a time when he should be having fun. He’s not harming anyone wearing a dress. So if he wants to wear a dress, good on him’”
Megan Fox on Protecting Her Son Noah, 8½, from School Bullies Who Say “Boys Don’t Wear Dresses” (People, 7/7/21)
MAYDAY MOMENTS
“Can I have this?”
Your 3-year-old comes out of the bathroom wanting to play with a tampon
What do you say?
“What are you doing?”
Your 9-year-old walks in on you having sex
What do you do?
TIPS BY TOPIC
Browse information, advice and resources on every topic under the sex & relationships sun
Making babies, puberty before it hits and
teenage development
Seeking out healthy, respectful relationships from childhood on
Knowing what you like
and being able to tell others what you want
The impact of porn on kids’ attitudes & behaviour and navigating sexting
Becoming who you are
and accepting others’ sexual identities
Critical thinking and resilience in the face of limiting stereotypes
TIPS BY AGE
Whether your child is into Transformers or texting, age-specific help is at hand
Introducing
Learning
Preparing
What is age appropriate? Click here to read about the “life course approach”
WHAT OTHERS HAVE SAID
“We’re all trying to figure out how to talk to our children about this tricky stuff, and I’m turning to Outspoken Sex Ed for a few tips”
Anna Whitehouse – author, columnist and founder of Mother Pukka
“The best support and protection parents can offer young people is ensuring they have all the information they need to make decisions about their health, body, sexual exploration and emotions – which is what Outspoken is all about”
Sara Pascoe – comedian, author and member of Outspoken Advisory Board
”As a parent I felt enabled and empowered to have age-and-stage appropriate conversations with my children after the Outspoken Sex Ed workshop. This suddenly felt like a challenge I could take on with gusto rather than shying away from”
Dr Pooky Knightsmith – child and adolescent mental-health expert and author
“This is wonderful work and very much needed”
Dr Naomi Sutton – NHS sexual-health consultant on E4’s The Sex Clinic
“Misinformation about sex has always been part of teenage life. But today, with pornography and social media, young people are exposed to a tsunami of false and damaging ideas and information. It’s therefore our duty to provide young people with a healthy counter-narrative. The work of Outspoken – which provides resources for parents and teachers to have open, honest conversations about sex and relationships – is therefore more crucial than ever”
Natasha Devon MBE – mental-health and body-image campaigner
Incredibly helpful. I feel much better equipped to deal with what I thought would be awkward conversations – actually I don’t think they are at all!
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Cards on the table: the aim of our fun, factual, LGBT+ inclusive game is for kids aged 14+ to play in relationships & sex education (RSE) lessons, yes… but with 4 players minimum, try your hand at it with family or friends!
