Meet Jess . . .
Jess is our Director of Sexual Violence Prevention
at NMCSAP, Inc.
On this page, you will find sexual violence prevention resources, guidelines, and information – brought to you by Jess and other prevention partners.
updated September 15, 2022
Book List – Consent for Kids
Jess regularly gets requests for books about consent for kids. These are the books he and others recommend most often.
For ages 2 to 6, Consent:
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/669734/yes-no-a-first-conversation-about-consent-by-megan-madison-and-jessica-ralli-illustrated-by-isabel-roxas/
This whole series is amazing (the one on race, especially!). It is perfect for younger children and has moments where it asks children to self reflect.
For ages 5-10, Consent:
https://www.amazon.com/Consent-Kids-Boundaries-Respect-Charge/dp/0316457736
This one was written by Rachel Brian, who made the Tea and Consent video! While it is intended for older children, it can be used more simply at younger ages to scaffold conversations as the child grows.
For ages 2-8, Sexual Health Education:
https://www.corysilverberg.com/what-makes-a-baby
This author is so good at making concepts easy to understand, with beautiful illustrations, all while making adults laugh! The concepts in this book are totally non-gendered, which is a really nice way of introducing these concepts.
For ages 8-10, Sexual Health Education:
https://www.corysilverberg.com/sex-is-a-funny-word
This book builds on concepts from the previous book, What Makes a Baby, and has fantastic representation, clearly explained concepts, and is FUN!
For ages 11 and up, Sexual Health Education:
https://www.corysilverberg.com/you-know-sex
The last book in this series is the guide that I wish so many of us would have had!
Resource library for children’s books called “Raising Luminaries” – curated lists of children’s books that are separated by age and topic:
https://bookshop.org/categories/m/children-s-books?page=2
For ages 2-5, Accurate Body Anatomy:
https://www.amazon.com/Your-Whole-Body-Everything-Between/dp/1955619026/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=your+whole+body+from+your+head+to+your+toes&qid=1662741750&sprefix=your+whole+b%2Caps%2C467&sr=8-1
This book, Your Whole Body, teaches the names for body parts overall in a remarkably inclusive way. It’s terrific for normalizing that language for kids AND for adults/parents/caregivers who may struggle to say these words aloud & use them with their kids — this way they just have to read the words on the page as a start.
For preschool aged kids with vulvas:
https://www.amazon.com/My-Vulva-Dr-courtney-angermeier/dp/B096LTV9WN?
This book, My Vulva, shares the name for the vulva and how to feel about it (proud, private, curious, etc.). There’s so much shame and secrecy around vulvas, it’s nice to have a book that celebrates them.