“Teen Dating Safety”

Opening and Closing Detail: Catechist Summary * Slides
Core of the session set and presented by Sarah’s Inn personnel, our guests for the evening

Tracks A and B together: Monday 1/26/2026 from 6:45 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in Mission Hall at the Parish Center

Opening Prayer (5 min.)

“Sacred” – Joe Melendrez feat. Danielle Rose (version recorded during COVID lockdown in 2020, skipping much of the intro about social distancing)​
Lyrics handout

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEk6tIdJjWU&t=54s

Healthy Relationships Presentation from Sarah’s Inn Staff (~90 min.)

While the program is set by Sarah’s Inn personnel and varies from year to year, past activities and resources for teaching about preventing Teen Dating Violence and promoting Healthy Relationships have included:

Highlights from the January 2025 Presentation

• “Green flags” – signs of a healthy relationship or desirable qualities in a partner
• Healthy Relationhips and Types of Abuse – 2-sided handout (or graphic shown on screen) describing characteristics of healthy relationships and types of abuse that can occur in relationships, making them unhealthy
• Definining dating violence, which affects 1 in 3 teens and is rooted in the exercise of power and control
• Types of abuse one might experience – sexual, physical, digital, emotional
• “Red flags” – signs that one partner may be exercising power and control on the other
  • Coercive, degrading, controlling, embarrassing
• Relationship spectrum
  • Healthy – equal partnership
  • Unhealthy – imbalance between partners
  • Abusive – one partner has all the power and the other has none
• Scenarios with informal polling on whether the relationships described are Healthy, Unhealthy, or Abusive
• Card game Build-A-Boo
  • can be used with updated worksheet My Perfect Partner, which is set up to read traits from a slide rather than from cards
  • each table has a set of many cards, each card different from one another so there are no repeats at the table
  • each person chooses about 4 (positive) qualities to build their ideal romantic partner – things like funny, treats me well, smart, good kisser, etc.
  • discuss: what is missing?
    • appearance-based traits (tall, pretty, etc.)
    • flaws (negatives like puts me down in front of my friends, rude to my family, etc.)
  • each person is then assigned a 5th trait, a flaw, based on the first letter of their first name (this can be a little hard to read from the slide)
  • 2 universal deal-breakers: controlling and violent
• Abusive Relationships vs. Healthy Relationships
  • Controlling vs. Equal
  • Violent vs. Safety
• It’s Your Call – newer version of inventory worksheet to choose how acceptable or unacceptable certain behaviors are in a romantic partner
• It’s Your Turn – practice setting personal boundaries within a healthy relationship
• Teen Resource Guide (2 pages) – updated 2025 handout of hotline contact numbers and other crisis resources for getting help when you need it
• booklet cover page with coloring activity for dealing with stress or anxiety with a creative and calming outlet

Older materials from previous versions of the presentation:

• Card game with older My Perfect Partner worksheet to choose desired qualities from a slide for an ideal romantic partner (and be randomly assigned 3 undesirable qualities in the same partner)
• It’s Your Call – older version of inventory worksheet to choose how acceptable or unacceptable certain behaviors are in a romantic partner
• Relationship Timeline – inventory worksheet for when during a relationship certain behaviors may feel appropriate
• Relationship Manifesto worksheet, summarizing one’s values related to dating
• Ally Info and Warning Signs – 2-sided handout of information on how to be an ally of someone experiencing dating violence, and what warning signs to watch for in yours and other people’s relationships
• Teen Resource Guide – slightly older version of handout of hotline contact numbers and other crisis resources for getting help when you need it
• Adult Coloring Page provided by Sarah’s Inn for dealing with stress in a healthy way
• True/False questions about teen dating violence statistics, played on Kahoot! app

Reminders and Closing Prayer (10 min)

Homework:

• Christian service documentation for 5+ hours due at next class!

Reminders:

• Retreat 2 with Reconciliation this Friday 1/30 at St. Matthias – make sure your parents and Sponsors know to come!
  • 4:30 p.m. students arrive
  • 6:30 p.m. parents and sponsors arrive for dinner (RSVP so we have a headcount!)
  • 7 p.m. Reconciliation Prayer Service with Confessions
  • 8:30 p.m. dismissal from retreat
• bring in your service documentation, due at next class!
  • Track A (Religious Ed./Catecismo): Monday 2/2
  • Track B (Catholic Schools): Wednesday 2/4 (service hours due) and Thursday 2/5 in 8th Grade Religion class
• sign up for your Confirmation Interview if you have not already!
• make sure your Letter to the Pastor has been submitted to Ms. Hohner, digitally or in print

Closing Prayer (petitions against Domestic Violence)
Handout of all petitions

Response: Lord, hear our prayer.

1. For all who are victims of domestic or dating violence, may God help them free themselves from abuse and live safely in the peace of Christ.
   We pray… Lord, hear our prayer.
2. For our community of faith, that we become as compassionate and sensitive toward victims of domestic and dating violence as Jesus would be.
   We pray… Lord, hear our prayer.
3. For all victims of domestic and dating violence, may they feel neither guilt nor shame but have the courage to seek help in order to free themselves from abuse.
   We pray… Lord, hear our prayer.
4. For all of us and our parish that we might not judge victims of domestic or dating violence but offer them the support they need to free themselves from abuse.
   We pray… Lord, hear our prayer.
5. For perpetrators of domestic or dating violence that they may stop their abuse and seek professional help.
   We pray… Lord, hear our prayer.
6. For those who suffer domestic or dating violence, that they may know they are not alone, they are loved, and help is only a phone call away.
   We pray… Lord, hear our prayer.
7. For those who witness domestic or dating violence – especially young children – that they may understand that violence is never an expression of love, is never acceptable and must never be imitated.
   We pray… Lord, hear our prayer.
8. For victims of domestic or dating violence that they may know that their suffering is not a cross to bear or a punishment from God.
   We pray… Lord, hear our prayer.
9. For victims of all types of abuse, may they know God’s love and understand that they are not alone. May they be guided to help, support and safety.
   We pray… Lord, hear our prayer.
10. For our families, may they know God’s love and may they share this love with kindness and consideration for one another, free from abuse and controlling behaviors.
    We pray… Lord, hear our prayer.