Free school lesson plans
“Of all activities on the internet, porn has the most potential to become addictive,” say Dutch neuroscientists Meerkerk et al.
Children and young people are naturally curious about sex and as digital natives will seek it out wherever they can. Despite age verification legislation many children still have access to porn sites and to porn on social media. This is driving much of the harmful sexual behaviour today. New legislation around nudification apps, AI deep fakes, images of strangulation and smothering will help but discussion with young people themselves about the risks will be beneficial as well. The Reward Foundation has four up-to-date lesson plans on internet pornography and sexting available for free at our shop. They are:
Best TEDx talk about Porn and the Brain (ages 14-18)
Choking, the Law, and You (age 14-18)
Sexting, Nudies, the Law, and You (ages 11-14)
Sexting Nudies, the Law, and You (ages 14-18)
Feel confident about teaching this challenging subject. Parents can use these lessons too for homeschooling.
Background
Our unique approach focuses on the effects of internet porn on the adolescent brain. The charity’s online course for professionals was accredited by the Royal College of General Practitioners (family doctors) in London for 6 years until they stopped covering this type of training. The self-paced 6-hour course, which includes a safeguarding section for teachers and school leaders, is now available for free. It also comes in eight bite-size sections of up to one hour.
For over 10 years The Reward Foundation was teaching in state and independent schools about the impact of internet pornography on mental and physical health. We listened to what pupils want to learn and discuss. Most are fascinated by the workings of their brain and how their internet activities can affect their mental and physical health, behaviour and motivation.
We’ve also been listening to what teachers need to feel confident teaching this contentious subject matter. By focusing on the science and practical life experience, teachers will be in a good position to help pupils think through the challenges they face in today’s pornography-saturated internet environment.
According to psychiatrist Dr John Ratey, “Your life changes when you have a working knowledge of your brain. It takes guilt out of the equation when you recognize that there’s a biological basis for certain emotional issues.” (P6 Introduction to book “Spark!”).
Expert Input
We have worked with the assistance of a range of experts including teachers, lawyers, police officers, youth and community leaders, doctors, psychologists and many parents. The materials have diversity elements and are porn-free.
Testimonials:
- The lessons went really well. Pupils were fully engaged. There was enough information in the lesson plans to let teachers feel prepared. Would definitely teach it again.
- Re: Sexting, the Law and You: It was very helpful. They liked the stories, and these stimulated a lot of discussion. And we discussed the legalities that had to be seriously considered. Pupils said they weren’t too phased about receiving any sexting / photos as “it’s happening all the time”. They said they ignored it as it wasn’t such a big deal. We found that quite surprising. (From 3 teachers at St Augustine’s RC School, Edinburgh.
- “I believe that our pupils need a safe space where they can freely discuss a range of issues related to sex, relationships and the accessibility of online pornography in the digital age.” Liz Langley, Head of Personal and Social Education, Dollar Academy
- “Mary gave a superb talk to our boys on the topic of pornography: it was balanced, non-judgemental and highly informative, helping to equip our students with the knowledge they need in order to make informed choices in their lives.” Stefan J. Hargreaves, Master in Charge of Seminar, Tonbridge School, Tonbridge
Faith-Based Lessons
The current lessons are suitable already for faith-based schools. They do not show adult content.
For more details, please contact Mary Sharpe at [email protected].
The Reward Foundation does not offer therapy or legal advice.