Resources:
Sex Education
Find Focus on the Family broadcasts, best-in-class books,
referral recommendations, and more.
Boom: A Guy’s Guide to Growing Up by Michael Ross (not currently available through Focus on the Family)
This book for teen guys tackles physical changes, pornography, money management, spiritual growth, peer pressure, friendship, relationships, media, parents, and more—all to help them grow into confident men of faith.
A Chicken’s Guide to Talking Turkey With Your Kids About Sex by Dr. Kevin Leman and Kathy Flores Bell
Even the bravest parents can feel timid about discussing sex with their 8- to 14-year-olds. Leman and Bell offer reassuring,
real-life anecdotes along with reliable information so you’re prepared to be a positive influence.
Learning About Sex Series by Concordia Publishing House
- Where Do Babies Come From? Boy Ages 6–8 by Ruth Hummel
- Where Do Babies Come From? Girls Ages 6–8 by Ruth Hummel
- How You Are Changing: Girls Ages 9–11 by Jane Graver
- How You Are Changing: Boys Ages 9–11 by Jane Graver
- Sex & the New You: Boys Ages 12–14 by Rich Bilmer
- Sex & the New You: Girls Ages 12–14 by Rich Bilmer
- Love, Sex & God: Young Men Ages 14 and Up by Bill Ameiss
- Love, Sex & God: Young Women Ages 14 and Up by Bill Ameiss
The Focus on the Family Guide to Talking With Your Kids About Sex edited by J. Thomas Fitch, M.D. and David Davis
Focus on the Family’s Physicians Resource Council, along with research from the Medical Institute for Sexual Health, provides tools and encouragement to help you communicate effectively and biblically about sex, self-control, and self-respect at every stage of your child’s development.
Girls Uncovered: New Research on What America’s Sexual Culture Does to Young Women by Dr. Joe McIlhaney, Dr. Freda Bush, and Stan Guthrie
Girls Uncovered explores the emotional and physical challenges facing our daughters. Take a stand against cultural trends, and help girls choose God’s best for their lives.
God Made All of Me: A Book to Help Children Protect Their Bodies by Justin and Lindsey Holcomb (ages 2–8)
Help children understand the worth of their bodies—and the difference between appropriate and inappropriate touch.
How to Talk Confidently With Your Child About Sex by Lenore Buth
Find the right words to encourage children to have a Christ-centered understanding of one of God’s most precious gifts. Whether you have a son or daughter, this book can help you point them in the right direction.
Lintball Leo’s Not-So-Stupid Questions About Your Body by Dr. Walt Larimore
This book for preteen boys answers questions about the changes a boy experiences as he approaches adolescence.
Preparing for Adolescence by Dr. James Dobson
This book covers topics that trouble teens most, including inferiority, conformity, puberty, the meaning of love, and the search for identity.
The Talk by Geremy Keeton
This booklet offers parents basic goals and guidance for instilling in their children – birth to age 18 – a healthy sex education. Included in the suggestions are referrals to other recommended, age-appropriate resources.
Teaching True Love to a Sex-at-13 Generation by Eric and Leslie Ludy
Many of today’s Christian kids are pursuing sexual experimentation and compromise. This practical book will equip you to motivate your kids to pursue true love rather than our culture’s perversion of it.
Teaching Your Children Healthy Sexuality by Jim Burns
Burns outlines a biblical approach for preparing children for life. More than just the when and how of having “the talk,” this resource encourages parents to build a theology of healthy sexuality throughout children’s lives.
The Ultimate Girls’ Body Book by Dr. Walt Larimore and Dr. Amaryllis Sanchez Wohlever
“Not-So-Silly Questions About Your Body”
The Ultimate Guys’ Body Book by Dr. Walt Larimore
“Not-So-Stupid Questions About Your Body”
A Healthy Approach to Teaching Kids About Sex (Dr. Marilyn Maxwell)
A pediatrician and doctor of internal medicine, Maxwell discusses God’s design for healthy sexuality and emphasizes the important role parents play in teaching children to view sex properly.
Talking to Your Daughter About Puberty (Dr. Walt Larimore)
Larimore offers advice to parents about discussing the changes daughters will experience in becoming women. He also speaks about body image and its cultural impact, including potential problems with dieting.
Teaching Kids the Simple Truth About Sex (Mary Flo Ridley)
Even while you’re playing defense against harmful messages about sexuality, you need to put an offensive plan in place. Don’t shy away from children’s curious questions—impress upon their hearts the truth about God’s design for healthy sexuality.
Training Your Child to Be Sexually Pure (Fred Stoeker)
Revealing his former struggles with pornography and promiscuity, Stoeker shares how he and his sons stood against generational sin to experience freedom in Christ. Learn how and when to start a conversation with sons about sexual purity.
Uncovering the Dangers of Hooking Up (Dr. Freda Bush, Dr. Joe McIlhaney)
Bush and McIlhaney present scientific and medical evidence to help young people make wise choices regarding their purity. They advise parents about how to share with children God’s design for healthy sexuality.
Why Waiting Until Marriage Matters (Dannah Gresh)
Gresh speaks candidly about God’s design for sexuality and offers a biblical perspective on why physical intimacy is reserved for a committed marriage. She offers encouragement and practical ways you can talk your children about sex.
Passport 2 Purity: Weekend Retreat Kit by Dennis and Barbara Rainey (FamilyLife Ministries)
Connect with your children to teach them godly principles of sexuality. All sessions include a special project to help preteens and teens learn concepts more clearly.
Preparing for Adolescence by Dr. James Dobson
Pre-teens are introduced to subjects of inferiority, puberty, love, and more. The CD set also includes information directed to parents, which discusses how to help a child during the difficulties of adolescence.
Launch Into the Teen Years Kit
This six-session online video-based program created by Focus on the Family will help you and your preteen talk about how to make great decisions and soar with confidence.
Online Video Session Titles:
- Who Am I? – How God Sees the True You
- The One About Family, Friends, and Enemies – BFF’s and Boy-Girl Relationships
- Of Memes & Meanies – Bullies, Criticism, and Voices Worth Listening To
- Bodies, Sex & Stuff – God Created You
- What’s Happening to My Body? – Puberty and Relationships
- The Big Talk – God’s Design for Sex
The Kit Contains:
- Parent guide
- Child participant journal
- Key-code access to online video content
- Tips on engaging your child, along with questions and activities that will encourage thoughtful consideration and discussion
Additional Details: The video series provides a comprehensive overview of sexual issues related to adolescence and how to talk about them. Viewers follow the experiences of eight young preteens at a camp as they move through activities and challenges that follow each session topic.
Back to School — for Parents. This free 124-page, downloadable PDF offers guidance on nine different areas, helping parents protect their children in the classroom; in school clinics and counseling offices; in restrooms and locker rooms; in school libraries; and on school-owned computers and research databases. A cooperative venture between Family Policy Alliance and Focus on the Family, Back to School — for Parents also offers insights about exercising school choice and protecting children’s free speech and religious liberty.
Focus on the Family Counseling Consultation Line
If you need someone to talk to, Focus on the Family offers a free phone counseling consultation with a licensed or pastoral counselor. Call 1-855-771-HELP (4357), Monday through Friday, 6:00 AM to 8:00 PM (MT).
Focus on the Family’s Christian Counselor Network
Search for licensed Christian counselors in your area.
Abstinence Clearinghouse
Through age-appropriate, medically accurate materials, Abstinence Clearinghouse encourages appreciation for and practice of sexual abstinence until marriage.
The Choice Game
This interactive program helps students build strong moral decision-making skills regarding healthy sexuality.
Concordia Publishing House
Concordia’s resources include several helpful sex education series.
Educational Guidance Institute, Inc.
This organization promotes abstinence through sex education curriculum.
Josh McDowell Ministry
This organization equips believers to better understand their faith and share it with others.
Medical Institute for Sexual Health
This organization creates and distributes medically accurate, research-based materials on sexuality.
Referrals to secular organizations dealing with specialized areas of knowledge shouldn’t be read as an indication that their stances necessarily align with Focus on the Family’s perspective in all areas.
Please also note that Focus on the Family doesn’t necessarily endorse all of the outside organizations you’ll find through the links above—they’re listed for informational purposes only. If you have any questions or concerns about a particular organization, we encourage you to contact them directly.
