Resources

Resources

There is so much great information out there on how to protect children from child sexual abuse. And since it is a lot of work to comb the Internet and all the latest books for the best knowledge, we’ve done the hard work of compiling them for you here!

Remember to look at the Parenting Safe Children companion book, “Off Limits: A Parent’s Guide to Keeping Kids Safe from Sexual Abuse,” and its accompanying Conversation-Starter Cards. And be sure to subscribe to Feather’s blog — she constantly updates it with all the latest developments in the field!

Parenting Safe Children Resources

• • Off Limits: A Parent’s Guide to Keeping Kids Safe from Sexual Abuse– Sandy K. Wurtele & Feather Berkower, LCSW
  • Conversation-Starter Cards – Feather Berkower, LCSW
  • Prevention Team™ of Caregivers tool – Feather Berkower, LCSW
  • Behaviors to Watch Out for When Adults Are with Children – Feather Berkower, LCSW/Stop It Now
  • Sample: Camp Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Policies
  • Family Online Safety Agreement (for children, tweens, and teens) – Feather Berkower, LCSW
  • Back to School Screening Packet: Questions about Body-Safety Policies and Practices – Feather Berkower, LCSW
  • Nanny Packet: Guidelines for Screening Nannies & Babysitters and Sample Agreement Form (with body-safety rules) – Feather Berkower, LCSW
  • Signs & Symptoms of Sexually Assaulted Children
  • Talking with Children and Teens about Pornography
  • Questions from Parents On gender identity, sexual identity, pronouns, sex education & child-friendly drag shows

Recommended Reading

• • Protecting the Gift: Keeping Children and Teenagers Safe (And Parents Sane) – Gavin de Becker
  • The Gift of Fear: And Other Survival Signals that Protect Us from Violence – Gavin de Becker

Books for Children on Prevention

• • Some Parts are Not for Sharing – Julie K. Federico (For ages 6 months+)
  • My Body is Special and Private – Adrianne Simeone  (For ages 2-7)
  • A Hug – Nicola Manton  (For ages 2+)
  • I Said No! A Kid-to-kid Guide to Keeping Private Parts Private – Kimberly & Zack King (For ages 3-10)
  • My Body is My Body – Allison Schmitt (For ages 2-8)
  • My Body! What I Say Goes! – Jayneen Sanders (For ages 3-7)
  • Miles is the Boss of His Body – Samantha Kurtzman-Counter and Abbie Schiller Abbie Schiller (For ages 3-8)
  • My Voice Is My Superpower – Shariea Shoatz  (For ages 5-12)
  • Can I Give You a Squish? –Emily Neilson (For ages 3-5)
  • It’s MY Body – Lory Freeman (For ages 3-8)
  • Loving Touches – Lory Freeman (For ages 3-8)
  • My Body is Private – Linda Walvoord Girard (For ages 6-11)
  • The Right Touch – Sandy Kleven (For ages 3-8)
  • Your Body Belongs to You – Cornelia Spelman (For ages 3-6)
  • My Body Belongs to Me – Jill Starishevsky (For ages 3-8)
  • A Secret Safe to Tell – Naomi Hunter (For ages 3-8)
  • Some Secrets Should Never Be Kept– Jayneen Sanders (For ages 3-8)
  • Stand in My Shoes – Bob Sornson Ph.D. (A book about empathy for ages 8 -9)
  • C is for Consent – Eleanor Morrison (For a wide range of ages)
  • Let’s Talk About Body Boundaries, Consent and Respect: Teach children about body ownership, respect, feelings, choices and recognizing bullying behaviors – Jayneen Sanders (For ages 6-12)

Books and Resources for Adults to Read with Children on Pornography 

• • Someone Should Have Told Me – Holly-ann Martin (For young children
  • Hayden-Reece Learns What To Do if Children See Private Pictures or Private Movies – Holly-ann Martin (School-age children) 
  • It’s Time We Talked
  • How to Talk with Your Kids About Porn –  Dr. Jane Cherrington (School-age children) 
  • The #AskableParent Guide to Porn – Amaze

Books and Programs for Parents on Talking with Kids About Sex

• • Sex Positive Talks to Have With Kids: A guide to raising sexually healthy, informed, empowered young people – Melissa Pintor Carnagey, LBSWBirds + Bees + Your Kids – Amy Lang
  • Living Earth Sex Ed, Claire Appelmans
  • The Sex-wise Parent: The Parent’s Guide to Protecting Your Child, Strengthening Your Family, and Talking to Kids About Sex, Abuse, and Bullying – Dr. Janet Rosenzweig
  • The Parent’s Guide to Talking About Sex: A Complete Guide to Raising (Sexually) Safe, Smart and Healthy Children – Dr. Janet Rosenzweig
  • Everything You Never Wanted Your Kids to Know About Sex, but Were Afraid They’d Ask: The Secrets to Surviving Your Child’s Sexual Development from Birth to the Teens – Justin Richardson & Mark Schuster
  • Beyond the Big Talk: A Parent’s Guide to Raising Sexually Healthy Teens – Debra W. Haffner
  • Yes, Your Kid: What Parents Need to Know About Today’s Teens and Sex Debby Herbenick PhD, Susan C. Stone Esq., et al.–

Books for Children & Teens on Sexuality Education, Sexual Development & Bodies

• What Makes a Baby  – Cory Silverberg (For preschool through age 7)
• Sex is a Funny Word  – Cory Silverberg (For ages 7- 11)
• You Know, Sex: Bodies, Gender, Puberty, and Other Things  –by Cory Silverberg and Fiona Smyth (For ages 10+)
• Your Whole Body – Lizzie DeYoung Charbonneau (For ages birth – 6)
• All About Vulvas and Vaginas – Dorian Solot and Marshall Miller ( For ages 3 – 7)
• All About Penises– Dorian Solot and Marshall Miller ( For ages 3 – 7)
• It’s Not the Stork!: A Book About Girls, Boys, Babies, Bodies, Families and Friends – Robbie H. Harris (For ages 4+)
• It’s So Amazing!: A Book about Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families – Robbie H. Harris  (For ages 7+)
• It’s Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, Gender, and Sexual Health– Robbie H. Harris (For ages 11-15)
• DATING SMARTS: What EVERY teen needs to know to date, relate or wait – Amy Lang, MA
• Changing Bodies, Changing Lives: Expanded Third Edition: A Book for Teens on Sex and Relationships – Ruth Bell Alexander (For ages 12+)–

Children with Disabilities – Resources for Parents and Caregivers

• •  Teaching Children with Down Syndrome about their Bodies, Boundaries, and Sexuality: A Guide for Parents and Professionals by Terri Couwenhoven, M.S.
  • Stop It Now! Tip Sheet: How To Talk To Your Child To Reduce Vulnerability to Sexual Abuse
  • The Coalition Against Sexual Abuse of Children with Disabilities (CASACD)

Books for Children on Healing and Recovery

• • Sarah’s Waterfall: A Healing Story about Sexual Abuse – Ellery Akers (For ages 7-12)
  • A Very Touching Book for Little People and for Big People – Jan Hindman & Tom Novak (For ages 6-12)
  • I Can’t Talk About It: A Child’s Book About Sexual Abuse– Doris Sanford (For ages 4-8)

Books for Children on Feelings

• • I’m Happy-Sad Today  – Lory Britain, PhD  (For ages 3-8)
  • MY Body MY Voice MY Power – A Coloring Journal for Girls   – Lory Britain, PhD  (For ages 4-9 depending on maturity level)

Books for Adults on Healing and Recovery

• • Miss America by Day – Marilyn Van Derbur (A memoir about surviving incest)
  • Parenting with PTSD: the impact of childhood abuse on parenting –  Joyelle Brandt & Dawn Daum
  • The Courage To Heal – Ellen Bass & Laura Davis
  • Allies in Healing: When the Person You Love Was Sexually Abused as a Child – Laura Davis
  • The Body Keeps the Score – Bessel Van der Kolk MD

Memoirs

• Light in Bandaged Places: Healing in the Wake of Young Betrayal – Liz Kinchen (educator sexual abuse)
• I Feel Real Guilty: A Memoir of Sibling Sexual Abuse – Jane Epstein
• Resolve: A Story of Courage, Healthy Inquiry and Recovery from Sibling Sexual Abuse – Alice Perle 

Websites for Children, Teens and Parents – Technology and Online Safety

• THORN For Parents
• NetSmartz®
• Safe Kids Movement

Colorado Resources

• The Kempe Center (Training and education for the prevention of child sexual abuse)
• Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault

Sibling Sexual Abuse Resources

• • Sibling Sexual Trauma
  • 5waves.org
  • Siblings Too (Sibling Sexual Abuse Podcast – The voice of sibling sexual abuse survivors and their families). 
  • Sibling Sexual Abuse: A Guide for Confronting America’s Silent Epidemic – Brad Watts
  • Complicated Courage – I Feel Real Guilty A memoir of Sibling Sexual Abuse – Jane Epstein 
  • Resolve: A Story of Courage, Healthy Inquiry and Recovery from Sibling Sexual Abuse – Alice Perle 

Adult Survivor Resources – Child Sexual Abuse / Incest

• • Wings Foundation
  • 1 in 6 (Support for men who have been sexually abused)
  • Complicated Courage
  • Incest Aware
  • Male Survivor
  • Parenting with PTSD
  • Voices of Change
  • Brave Voices

Support and Resources for Families After Child Sexual Abuse

• Healing Out Loud CSA

National and International Resources

• • Stop It Now
  • Stop Trafficking US 
  • The Mama Bear Effect
  • (MOSAC) Mothers of Sexually Abused Children
  • The Safer Society Foundation
  • (RAINN) The Rape Abuse and Incest National Network
  • Darkness to Light
  • Committee for Children
  • Childhelp USA (24-Hour National Child Abuse Hotline 1-800-4-ACHILD)
  • National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
  • International Center for Assault Prevention (School based programs addressing bully, stranger, and sexual abuse by known people)
  • The National Children’s Advocacy Center (NCAC)
  • International Domestic Violence Resource Guide
  • Stop Trafficking US
  • AMAZE  –  Sexuality Education Online for Kids & Parents (For preschool through high school)

Additional Parenting  Resources

• Sex Positive Families
• REAL Parenting, Stephanie Bryan LCSW, CAC III
• From Trauma to Triumph; Facilitator, Selena Shelley
• Theravive – Therapist referral service
• Mindful Pediatrics, Dr. Roy Steinbock, MD
• Partners in Pediatrics
• The Mama Bear Effect
• (MOSAC) Mothers of Sexually Abused Children
• The Safer Society Foundation
• (RAINN) The Rape Abuse and Incest National Network
• Darkness to Light
• Committee for Children
• Childhelp USA (24-Hour National Child Abuse Hotline 1-800-4-ACHILD)
• National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
• International Center for Assault Prevention (School based programs addressing bully, stranger, and sexual abuse by known people)
• The National Children’s Advocacy Center (NCAC)
• International Domestic Violence Resource Guide
• Stop Trafficking US 
• The Diana Screen®
• Child Molestation Research & Prevention Institute

Sexual Feelings and Thoughts for Minors?

• • What’s Ok? (Stop It Now!)
    Help Wanted Prevention InterventionThe Global Prevention Project
  • Association For The Treatment Of Sexual Abusers
  • Safer Society (Treatment Referrals)
  • Help Wanted (Moore Center for the Prevention of Child Abuse)
  • 1-888-PREVENT

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