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Your Conversation Navigator

This guide will help you navigate the conversation with pointers of what to say and how to say it. But it is up to you to work it into a natural dialogue.

You know your kids. Be sensitive to what is appropriate for their maturity level and attention span. We recommend weaving this content into many interactive conversations instead of one long lesson.

Click through the navigator below. Then hit “continue” to start the conversation.

Know the Case

Before educating others, you must have clarity yourself on why abortion is wrong. Start with these three lines:

  1. It is wrong to intentionally kill innocent human beings.
  2. Elective abortion intentionally kills innocent human beings.
  3. Therefore, elective abortion is wrong.

Sometimes pro-life people tend to get sidetracked from why abortion is wrong, focusing on related issues, such as how abortion affects the mother. Jay Watts provides a helpful reminder: There is a difference between why abortion is wrong and what’s wrong with abortion. There are many things that are wrong with elective abortion—such as how it affects family members—but there is one objective reason abortion is wrong: It intentionally kills innocent humans.

Bring Photos

Because a picture truly is worth 1,000 words, well-chosen photos can quickly advance dialogue. For young children, we recommend using images of babies developing in the womb as evidence of their humanity. For those more mature, consider using pictures of aborted babies to convey the immorality of abortion.

Prepare for Truth

Before someone can use a navigation system, they need to know how it works. Similarly, to better lead your children in finding truth, it’s important they understand what it means for something to be true.

Truth is telling it like it is. It’s when what you say or think matches the real world. For example, imagine two people look at a blade of grass. One says, “That’s a blade of grass.” The other says, “No, that’s a human being.” The first person’s statement is true. The other is not.

Anyone can discover what is true. Let your kids know it is a good thing to question what others say. They should be like detectives who want to investigate the real world to find out what is true.

Point to Truth

Next, walk them through the case. Click each line below to see support for the claim.

Ask, “What if someone killed a newborn baby? Would that be wrong?” They’ll likely say, “Yes.”

Ask, “What if someone killed a five-year-old girl? Would that be wrong?” They’ll say, “Yes.”

Ask, “What if someone killed a teenager? Would that be wrong?” Again, they’ll say, “Yes.”

Finally say, “I agree—because each of these is an example of someone killing an innocent human. The age of the person killed doesn’t matter. What matters is that an innocent human was purposefully killed. And that is wrong.”

Say, “A preborn baby inside her mother is a human just like the newborn baby, five-year-old, and teenager. And abortion is purposefully killing her. Here’s how we know.”

Ask, “Did you know babies inside their mothers are growing?” This is a good time to show them pictures of the preborn baby’s growth. Then say, “Dead things don’t grow. So, since the baby is growing, she must be alive.”

Next, ask: “Do you think it’s possible for a pregnant mom to give birth to a kitten?” They’ll say, “No!” 

Respond, “You’re right. All living creatures make babies that are the same kind of creature as them. That’s how we know a baby inside a human is not only living but a living human.”

Say, “When parents choose abortion, the baby is purposefully killed. If it’s wrong to do this to an older child, it must be wrong to do it to the younger preborn baby, too.”

Using age-appropriate language, explain abortion methodologies.

For mature children, consider using line-drawing videos of the abortion procedures and actual pictures of babies killed by abortion.

Say, “Some people think it’s okay to kill preborn babies because they are different from kids your age. But that’s wrong. Let’s look together at the differences between you and an embryo: Size, Level of development, Environment, Degree of dependency” (remember the acronym SLED – See Scott Klusendorf, The Case for Life).

Click each category below to explore with your child.

Say, “Preborn babies are a lot smaller than you. They start out about the size of a grain of sand! But being small isn’t a bad thing, is it? And it’s not the baby’s fault she’s so small.”

Then say, “Toddlers are smaller than teenagers, but that doesn’t mean it’s okay to kill them. In the same way, being small doesn’t mean parents should be able to kill their preborn babies.”

Say, “There are a lot of things you can do that preborn babies can’t.” Make a list together. Examples: walking, talking, playing games, reading, and so on.

Next say, “But there are also a lot of things you can do that newborn babies can’t do, either. Does that mean it’s okay to kill a newborn baby just because she can’t do things you can do?” They’ll say, “No.”

Then say, “In the same way, it would be for parents to kill preborn babies just because they can’t do things you or I can do.”

Say, “Babies have a very special place to live: inside their mothers. But the baby’s location inside her mother doesn’t mean her mother should be able to kill her.”

Explain, “Newborn babies stay home with their parents. They don’t go to school or work. What if some parents chose to kill their newborn baby because they never left home? That would be wrong. It’s not the baby’s fault she can’t leave home. In the same way, it’s not the preborn baby’s fault she is inside her mother. And it would be wrong for parents to kill her because of where she is.”

Ask, “Do you need me? What do I do for you that you can’t do for yourself?” Make a list together. Examples: providing food, transportation, a home, etc.

Say, “Did you know preborn babies need their moms even more than you do? But that just means it’s even more important that their mothers take care of them.”

Say, “Imagine a dad had a toddler and a ten-year-old son. Both need him. What if he decided to kill the toddler because she needs him more? This would be wrong. In the same way, it is wrong for parents to kill their preborn babies because of their neediness.”

Summarize: “We know it’s wrong to purposefully kill innocent humans. And we know that’s what abortion does. That’s why it is wrong.”

Say, “The reason abortion is wrong is the same reason it would be wrong to kill a newborn, toddler, or teenager. All of these are innocent human beings. And it is wrong to purposefully kill innocent humans.”

For more on this, check out our Questions about Abortion.

Highlight the Wrong Route

Even if your children have not yet heard pro-abortion arguments, one day soon, they will. Prepare them for some of the more common ones.

Say, “Some people think moms should be able to kill preborn babies because they’re part of her body. But there are two problems with this.”

Explain, “The first problem is that the preborn baby is not part of the mother. She is inside the mother but that doesn’t mean she is part of her mother. Does the mom have four eyes and four arms? Of course not. The baby’s body parts belong to the baby, not her mother, no matter where the baby is located.”

Continue, “The second problem is that some choices are wrong. Just because parents choose something doesn’t mean it is right. It would be wrong for parents to kill their toddlers, because choosing to kill an innocent human is wrong. And that’s what abortion is.”

Say, “Sometimes people argue abortion is better for the baby than being born into a difficult situation, such as if the family is really poor. But this is wrong. It is not compassionate to kill someone because they might have a hard life.”

Continue, “What if we knew a family with a toddler who was going to have a hard life? Would it be compassionate to kill that toddler? No. That would be wrong. In the same way, it would be wrong to kill a younger baby—one not yet born—because she might have a hard life.”

Say, “Sometimes people think it’s wrong for us to say abortion is wrong. But no one says its wrong if we say people shouldn’t kill toddlers or teenagers—because we all know they’re humans. If preborn babies are humans, too, then it is also good for us to tell others they shouldn’t kill them.”

Prepare for Detours

Your children may have a lot of questions as you seek truth together. Here are a couple common ones.

Your child’s curiosity may lead them to ask if you know anyone who’s had an abortion. If you do know someone who aborted their baby, be sure to check with them before telling your kids about it. And assess your child’s maturity level before sharing this information.

Also be sure to remind them of the good news: Those who believe in Jesus Christ are forgiven for their sins. Abortion is sin, but God’s grace is greater. If someone who had an abortion believes in Jesus, they have been forgiven by God.

Some children are skeptical and thus more prone to question what you teach them. Refer back to “Prepare for Truth” above. Commend them, saying it is good to question what they hear. Then remind them what it means for something to be true. 

Explain that if someone says, “The preborn baby is a human” and another says, “The preborn baby is not a human,” these statements can’t both be true. Your job is to find out which, if either, of these is true. 

Finally, commit to working with them to find out what actually is true about the point they’re challenging.

For help, see our Questions About Abortion.

Say, “Some parents choose not to care for their preborn babies. But the only way to stop caring for a baby inside her mother is to have her killed. This is called ‘abortion.’”

Then say, “Remember when we discussed how parents should care for all their kids—not just some of them? In abortion, parents are refusing to care for one of their children. This is wrong.”

Also say, “But abortion is more than not caring for a child. It’s killing her. If it’s wrong for a parent not to feed their baby, it is even worse for a parent to kill her. That’s what happens in abortion.”

CONTINUE