''Feeling Yes, Feeling No'' () is a film series produced and distributed by the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...

to teach children between the ages of six and twelve to avoid being sexually assaulted by people they trust, family members, and strangers. The films consist of recordings of a play that began development in 1980 in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, British Columbia, by

Green Thumb Theatre Green Thumb Theatre (also known as the Green Thumb Theatre for Young People and simply as Green Thumb) is a Canadian children's theatre company based in Vancouver, British Columbia. It was founded in 1975 by playwrights Dennis Foon and Jane Howard ...

. Dennis Foon, Wendy Van Reisen, and Fran Gebhard finished writing the play in 1982. Initially performed in workshops with children, the play was very successful. The filmed version of the play consists of four films directed by Moira Simpson and released in 1984 along with accompanying

printed matter Printed matter is a term, mostly used by mailing systems, normally used to describe mechanically printed materials for which reduced fees are paid which are lower than first-class mail. Each postal administration has it own rules for what may be p ...

intended to be used together as a sexual assault prevention program. The program is six hours long and explains the difference between good and bad

physical intimacy Physical intimacy is sensual proximity or touching. It is an act or reaction, such as an expression of feelings (including close friendship, platonic love, romantic love or sexual attraction), between people. Examples of physical intimacy i ...

. The series uses the terms 'yes' feelings and 'no' feelings and focuses on

role-playing Role-playing or roleplaying is the changing of one's behaviour to assume a role, either unconsciously to fill a social role, or consciously to act out an adopted role. While the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' offers a definition of role-playing a ...

. The program was first implemented in primary schools in British Columbia and later spread to other Canadian provinces. In a 1991 study, 286 children in grades three and four went through the program and another 113 children were used as a control group. The study found that the children who went through the program had greater knowledge about sexual assault than the control children, and that the children who went through the program were slightly better than the control children at distinguishing between safe and unsafe situations.Wurtele & Miller-Perrin (1993), p. 69.

References

Bibliography

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External links

* {{Dennis Foon 1984 direct-to-video films National Film Board of Canada series 1982 plays Social guidance films Canadian short documentary films 1984 short films Anti-pedophile activism Films about pedophilia Films about child sexual abuse Sex education Sexuality in Canada Short film series Direct-to-video film series Canadian plays Sexuality in plays Films based on Canadian plays French-language Canadian films 1980s English-language films 1980s Canadian films