Our Whole Lives
2011/2012 OWL Program Schedule & Logistics
“Sex and the Swimming Pool” by Elizabeth Canfield
“I’ve often wondered what it would be like if we taught young people swimming in the same way we teach sexuality. If we told them that swimming was an important adult activity, one they will all have to be skilled at when they grow up, but we never talked with them about it.
We never showed them the pool. We just allowed them to stand outside closed doors and listen to all the splashing. Occasionally, they might catch a glimpse of partially clothed people going in and out of the door to the pool, and maybe they’d find a hidden book on the art of swimming, but when they asked a question about how swimming felt or what it was about, they would be greeted with blank or embarrassed looks.
Suddenly, when they turned 18, we would fling open the doors to the pool and they would jump in. Miraculously, some might learn to tread water, but many would drown.”
Our Whole Lives, or “OWL” is a series of age-appropriate human sexuality courses that we are pleased to offer at Shadow Rock. Written by professional sexuality educators and developed jointly by the United Church of Christ and the Unitarian Universalist Association, OWL isn’t just about “the birds and the bees!” The program engages students in four key areas:
- self-worth
- responsibility
- sexual health
- justice and inclusivity
Through thoughtful discussions and engaging activities, students explore these four themes and learn more about their bodies, their values, their beliefs, their concerns, their hopes for the future, and the world around them. It provides not only facts about anatomy and human development, but helps participants to clarify their values, build interpersonal skills and understand social, emotional and spiritual aspects of sexuality.
2011/2012 Owl program Schedule and Logistics
Permission form for 7th & 8th and 9th & 10th grades
Permission form for 11th & 12th grades
Become an OWL trained facilitator! click here for info and registration form