¿Qué es el consentimiento? (Preadolescentes)

Giving consent means giving permission for something to happen. We often think and talk about consent in regards to sexuality. While consent does play a major role in sex education, younger children can first learn to honor their bodies and personal space in a general sense. 

Understanding consent is critical to the development of healthy physical and emotional boundaries. Discussions about what consent means should start from early childhood and are a necessary precursor to eventually having a strong sense of self and positive intimate relationships. 

In class, we will talk about what consent means in a general sense. I will include private parts of the body in the discussion, but this is not a class about sex and does not require a child to have knowledge of sex. I use the FRIES method to teach this topic. Consent is:

Freely given
Reversible
Informed
Enthusiastic
Specific

After this talk, we will discuss different scenarios, discerning whether or not consent is necessary. Should a new friend give you an extra long hug without asking? What if your neighbor pats your bottom? Is it okay not to want others to touch your hair? What if you don’t want to be tickled? Students will walk away from this class understanding physical boundaries and personal space.