Curricula Respecting the Circle of Life

Respecting the Circle of Life: Mind, Body & Spirit is an STD/HIV education and pregnancy prevention program for Native American youth between ages 11 and 19 and their parents or other trusted adults. The program gives young people the knowledge and skills they need to protect themselves from unplanned pregnancy and STDs. Respecting the Circle of Life is adapted from Focus on Youth with ImPACT, a program originally developed in Baltimore to reduce the risk of HIV among urban African-American youth. The Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health worked with Native American community members to adapt the program for use with Native youth and families to include a focus on unintended pregnancy in addition to STD/HIV.

Eight peer-group sessions help youth:

• Build trust among the group
• Think about their values and the risks they take
• Know where to get information about puberty, pregnancy and STDs/HIV
• Learn skills for good communication and healthy decision making
• Look at the consequences of their behaviors
• Take care of their sexual health
• Express affection without having sex
• Look toward their future and set goals

Parents, guardians and other trusted adults are a very important part of this effort, and the program includes a session for individual youth along with a parent or other trusted adult. The youth-parent/trusted adult session covers these topics:

• Basic components of good communication and how to talk to youth
• Importance of parental monitoring
• Steps for proper condom use
• STI and HIV facts, including prevalence data among Native American youth

The Center for American Indian Health has an excellent article on the impact of Respecting the Circle of Life: Teen pregnancy prevention program for Native American youth expands to Minnesota.

For more information on Respecting the Circle of Life including a sample lesson, table of contents, research, adaptation guidelines, training and TA and much more, please visit the Respecting the Circle of Life section of our Program Success Center for Sexual and Reproductive Health.

Respecting the Circle of Life--Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program video