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New Sex Educator Foundations
For new health teachers, community educators, youth-serving professionals and school nurses, this pathway builds the essential content knowledge and confidence you need before you teach sex education.
Why this pathway
Stepping into sex education for the first time can feel like a lot: the topics are broad, students' questions are direct, and you want to get the facts right. This pathway gives you a clear order to work in. You start by checking what you already know, then build your content knowledge one topic at a time through self-paced courses. Live, instructor-led training lets you put that knowledge to work with a trainer and fellow educators, and a set of fact sheets keeps the essentials close at hand once you are in front of a group.
Goal
Build essential content knowledge and confidence before teaching.
Who it is for
- New health teachers
- Community educators
- Youth-serving professionals
- School nurses
Time
About 15 to 20 hours of self-paced courses (five core courses at three to four hours each, plus the optional course), then six or nine live sessions.
Step by step
The steps
Take them in this order. Each one builds on the one before.
Assess your needs
Sex Educator Content Knowledge Self-Assessment & Resource Library (free resource)
Start by gauging what you already know across the core topics of sex education. The resource library then points you to materials that fill any gaps you find.
Complete core self-paced courses
Sexuality & Answering Questions (self-paced course)
Learn a comprehensive, holistic definition of sexuality and how its aspects show up across the lifespan, then explore how to create a safe space for students' questions, including anonymous question time.
Reproductive Anatomy (self-paced course)
Build a thorough understanding of sexual and reproductive anatomy, the menstrual cycle and pregnancy, and learn to teach anatomy in a sex-positive, inclusive way that recognizes cisgender, transgender and intersex bodies.
Abstinence & Birth Control (self-paced course)
Get to know the full range of birth control methods, including abstinence, and how to teach their effectiveness inclusively so young people can weigh their options and make informed decisions.
STIs & HIV (self-paced course)
Learn about common STIs and HIV, who is most affected and why, and how to teach prevention, testing and treatment as a routine, stigma-free part of health and self-care.
Relationships & Consent (self-paced course)
Explore the many kinds of relationships in young people's lives, how to teach consent and clear communication, and how to separate your own values and beliefs from what you teach.
Optional – Lesson Plans & Learning Theory (self-paced course)
An optional course on lesson design: write enduring understandings and essential questions, use Bloom's Taxonomy to shape lesson content, and adapt lessons for different audiences while keeping fidelity.
Participate in virtual instructor-led training
New Sex Educator Training (live training, 9 sessions)
A nine-session virtual training that carries your content knowledge into classroom practice, with time to practice facilitating and to give and receive feedback. Choose this or Facilitating Sex Education.
Facilitating Sex Education (live training, 6 sessions)
Six live sessions build on the Teaching Sexuality course. You practice facilitating in a simulated classroom and learn to apply values and boundaries, address bias and stigma, manage disclosures and answer questions.
Reinforce learning with fact sheets
Teaching Sexuality (free resource)
A quick reference for teaching sexuality as a whole, healthy part of life.
Answering Questions in Sex Education (free resource)
Practical strategies for answering the questions students ask, clearly and accurately.
Answering Values Questions (free resource)
Guidance for responding to questions that touch on values and beliefs while keeping clear boundaries.
Teaching Anatomy & Reproduction (free resource)
Key points for teaching anatomy and reproduction with accurate, inclusive language.
Teaching Abstinence & Birth Control (free resource)
A summary of methods and teaching points that help students make informed decisions.
Teaching STIs (free resource)
The essentials for teaching STI prevention, testing and treatment without stigma.
Teaching HIV (free resource)
The essentials for teaching HIV prevention, testing and treatment with accurate, current information.
Where it leads
Participants gain the foundational content knowledge needed to confidently teach comprehensive sex education.
Enroll in this pathway
Enrolling in a whole pathway at once is on its way. Until then, you can take each course on its own from the course catalog, or ask us about enrolling yourself or a group.
Keep learning
Free fact sheets, guides and tools sit in the resource library. Every course and live training sits in the training library.