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Sexual health charity, FPA in collaboration with online learning experts, Aurion Learning have developed a new bespoke online resource in the area of Sex and Relationship Education (SRE) for primary schools across the UK. 

The online portal; Growing up with Yasmine and Tom, which is designed to be used from age five to 11, supports the teaching of sex and relationship education in the primary school classroom.
   
The learning portal comprises lesson plans supported by a series of graphics and interactive elements that the teacher can access through a whiteboard in the classroom to cover topics such as the potential dangers of social networks and sexting and includes discussions to challenge stereotypes around gender and sexual orientation in an age-appropriate way.

SRE expert Claire Lightley who put together the resource said it was the culmination of more than 14 years work in the field – having trained hundreds of school teachers, schools nurses, care staff and youth workers.

“Young people at secondary school tell us they would have liked more information around these issues from an earlier age,” she said. “And we have responded to major concern from teachers and parents that they want to address internet safety, and issues like sharing personal information, before they are faced with them.”

“Having collaborated previously on the award winning education resource ‘All About Us’, we are privileged to work with the team again at FPA and deliver their full requirements for this forward thinking resource and share our expertise.” Said Dr. Maureen Murphy, Managing Director at Aurion Learning.

She added:

“The online learning resource was designed to enhance the teaching of this subject and is supported by a series of graphics and interactive elements that primary school teachers can access conveniently through a white board in the classroom.”


Northamptonshire deputy head Sarah Beach was one of a panel of teachers who has tested the resource.

“It’s essential that primary school children hear certain messages clearly before they are exposed to the maelstrom of secondary school,” she said.

“So they can, hopefully, make informed decisions and have the emotional maturity to cope with a very different environment and different pressures to conform.”

She said children at her school spend a lot of time on computers and watching TV, which ‘skews’ their knowledge and leaves them ‘worried about the outside world’.

“Although our children are very streetwise, they do not have a lot of positive educational experiences outside the home environment.

“Growing up with Yasmine and Tom provides a great starting point for discussions and I can also use it to support our new teachers too because unconfident and untrained staff can shy away from difficult questions.

“The resource is very age-appropriate and it is fantastic it also covers online technology.”

FPA’s acting chief executive, Dr Audrey Simpson OBE, said: “We know that teachers want to deliver accurate, informative and useful SRE, and help pupils to make the transition through puberty, adolescence and into adulthood, but that sometimes they lack the confidence to tackle the issues involved and aren’t equipped with specialist knowledge.

“Equally, through our Speakeasy course, we know that parents want the best for their children; to help them develop the necessary skills to successfully navigate all different kinds of relationships.

“But often, especially if they didn’t have particularly good SRE themselves, it can be a difficult process and many are embarrassed or unsure about where to start and what to say.

“In fact, parents on our Speakeasy courses have told us they were surprised at how little is covered by the SRE that is taught in schools – and that they expect schools to be doing much more to prepare young people for life ahead.”

You can watch a video introducing the characters of Yasmine and Tom to primary school children, and try a free demo of the resource.

The full list of topics covered in Growing up with Yasmine and Tom can be seen here.

The sexual health charity FPA gives straightforward information, advice and support on sexual health, sex and relationships to everyone in the UK. FPA educates, informs and supports people through our specialist sexual health programmes, helpline and information service, counselling service, training and publications and public awareness campaigns.