Grade 8 Fully Alive presentation

1. Grade 8
Growth and Change
BY MR. B

2. What do developing adolescents need for a
successful journey?
• Love and Guidance from their families.
• The experience of Friendship.
• Interest and concern from caring adults.
• A maturing relationship with God

3. A Changing Appearance
• Secondary sexual characteristics are changes in our bodies like facial hair for
boys or the development of breasts for girls. These changes make us more self-
conscious.
• We tend to become concerned with our changing appearance and ask questions like:
• Is it normal to develop earlier or later than other people?
• Is it normal for some parts of the body to grow more quickly than others?
• The answer is YES! The timing of changes during puberty and temporary
awkwardness still worry and sometimes embarrass us.

4. Or there’s always this conversation starter!

5. Body Image
• Puberty leads to increased self-awareness, which often causes self-
consciousness and a tendency to obsess over small imperfections.
• It’s normal to have some concerns about appearance, but we can’t fixate on
them. Anything that prompts people to fixate on themselves is usually harmful.
• Need to develop a sense of perspective about our appearance. Looks are only
one aspect of who we are!

6. Mood
• Hormones involved in sexual development have an effect on moods
and feelings.
• Moods are a state of mind that is experienced at a particular time. Ex.
Restless, miserable, happy, irritable, hopeful, distracted, relaxed,
anxious etc.
• Everyone experiences moods, however developing peoples moods tend
to come and go more often than adults.

7. Stress
• These changes in our lives can be stressful.
• More is expected of us at home and school.
• We have outside activities and social lives can be complex.
• Stress can cause a person to feel distracted, anxious, or irritable.
• A bad mood can also make everyday stresses, like school work or family
obligations, seem enormous

8. Ideas for Managing Stress and Mood
• Talk to someone you trust if something is really bothering you or
you can’t get rid of a bad mood. Everyone needs help sometime
and it’s a sign of strength to ask for it.
• Feeling annoyed? Don’t take it out on others. Spend some time
alone – listen to music, read a book or a magazine, go for a walk or
run, or take a short nap.
• Regular physical exercise is an excellent way to combat bad moods
and stress.
• Learn some relaxation methods – deep breathing, visualization,
yoga etc.
• Eat good food and get enough sleep.
• Don’t leave things to the last minute

9. Survey Says…
• Top Stresses for Grade 7/8 Students:
• 1. School (Tests, Homework, Projects)
• 2. Family Difficulties (Fights, Divorce etc.)
• 3. Presenting In Front of a Group.
• Ways they manage stress:
• 1. Listen to music
• 2. Talk to Someone (Parents, Friends)
• 3. Deep Breathing

10. Sexual Attractions and Feelings
• What attracts one person to another?
• Appearance has something to do with it, but attraction is based on
more than looks.
• An attraction between people is sometimes described as “chemistry”
– a strong connection that cannot be described in words.

11. Sexual Attraction and Sexual Feelings
• Sexual attraction as well as physical sensations and urges have a biological
purpose – To ensure the human species survives by reproducing itself.
• Sexual attraction and feelings have a purpose in God’s plan of creation: to bring
about a strong, bond between man and woman and to encourage them to have
children.
• Sexual Feelings:
• Differences between males and females:
• Males typically become aroused sexually more quickly than females.
• They also react strongly to visual images that involved sexuality – pictures, movies,
videos and websites.

12. Romantic Fantasies
• It’s natural for people to think about the kind of relationship they
might have in the future.
• Romantic fantasies are a way of preparing for future relationships.
• They help people handle some of their feelings in a safe and
uncomplicated way.
• Not good to spend most of our time daydreaming and imagining the
perfect relationship.
• May ignore other aspects of lives - developing as a person, friendships,
family relationships, schoolwork etc.

13. Sexual Fantasies
• Not about relationships, but about the physical experience of sex
• When something prompts a person to think about sex, the body responds by
becoming sexually aroused.
• There may be a strong urge to act on these feelings which may lead to
masturbation.
• Need to have self discipline.
• May lead to self-centredness, and makes it difficult for people to grow in maturity.

14. Sexual Fantasies Cont.
• They are normal.
• People can’t control the images that pop into their mind or the way the body
responds to these thoughts.
• A decision to act on these sexual feelings and abuse the gift of sexuality in a
self-centred way is wrong.

15. Pornography
• Term used for films, websites, magazines, pictures and other written materials
that are sexually explicit and are intended to cause sexual arousal.
• Some young people are motivated by curiosity to look at pornography.
• Curiosity is completely normal, but looking at images with the only purpose of
arousing sexual feelings, has no connection to love or relationship.
• In the eyes of the church this is morally wrong
• Very easy to become addicted to watching pornography.

16. Some Pornography Facts
• In 2014 it is estimated that the worldwide pornography industry earned at least
97 billion dollars.
• In 2006, there were 4.2 million websites containing pornography.
• Approximately 20% of all internet pornography is illegal child pornography.
• In an anonymous survey of teens, 96% had internet access and 55.4% indicated
that they had visited a sexually explicit website.
• More than twice as many males as females visit pornography websites.

17. Pornography Cont.
• Distorts the meaning and purpose of sexuality by portraying people as things to
be used for sexual pleasure.
• Often connects sexuality with power, aggression, and violence.
• Image of females as objects of violence and males as sexual aggressors is a
corrupt and dangerous vision of human sexuality.
• Damages view and understanding of relationships between males and females.

19. Homosexuality
• It is a description of a person’s sexual orientation.
• A homosexual orientation is a predominant sexual
attraction to members of the same sex.
• A heterosexual orientation is a predominant sexual
attraction to the opposite sex.
• About 2-5% of the population is homosexual.

20. Why are some people Homosexual?
• Most likely due to a combination of genetic make-up as well as the influence of
their social environment.
• Regardless of the reason, in most cases, homosexuality is not something that is
deliberately chosen
Did you choose to be right/left
handed? Or were you born that
way?

21. Homosexuality Cont.
• Being attracted to a person of the same sex and having an intimate sexual
relationship are not the same thing.
• The church teaches that a homosexual orientation is not sinful, but sexual acts
between people of the same sex are morally wrong.
• This is also true for unmarried heterosexual people.

22. Remember!
• Masculinity and femininity are not defined by a person’s interests or behaviour.
• Negative comments about any aspect of a person’s sexuality (their body,
behaviour, appearance or interests) are unacceptable and harmful.
• We all need to realize that God’s plan for us is mysterious.
• All of us, heterosexual or homosexual, who are trying to live as good Christians,
struggle with our sexual feelings and desire for physical intimacy.
• All of us are called by God to honour and respect the gift of sexuality.