I recently read a statistic that took me aback:

The United States has the highest rates of teen pregnancy and births in the western industrialized world. Thirty-four percent of young women become pregnant at least once before they reach the age of 20 — about 820,000 a year. Eight in ten of these teen pregnancies are unintended and 79 percent are to unmarried teens. (Statistics from FamilyFirstAid.com).

Some kids will engage parents in conversations about sex, some won’t. I’ve got one of each. Even though one child is uncomfortable about talking to me about sex, the potentially catastrophic consequences of not-talking are unacceptable to me. One great resource I’ve found is a terrific book titled “It’s Perfectly Normal” by Robie H. Harris. Written for children age 10 and up, “It’s Perfectly Normal” was a favorite book for both the talker and non-talker until well into high school.

For the high-schoolers in your life have a look at the Planned Parenthood site for teens - Teenwire.com.