E55: Maya’s Magic Word | Ashley-Lauren Elrod on Using Storytelling to Teach Kids Consent - Advoca...

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In this week’s episode of Aspire, hosts Katie Shipp and Chessy Prout are joined by guest co-host Maria and special guest Ashley-Lauren Elrod, a multi-assault survivor, Emmy-nominated producer, and nationally recognized leader in survivor advocacy and child safety education. Ashley-Lauren is the founder of Visionary Woman Productions and the creator of Maya’s Magic Word, a new children’s book and prevention platform designed to teach body autonomy and consent to kids in a non-fear-based, trauma-informed way.


Ashley-Lauren discusses how creativity and storytelling helped her survive childhood abuse and how those same tools now ground her work in prevention, healing, and systemic change. The conversation explores what it looks like to build “systems of freedom” in the entertainment industry; creating sets and workspaces where artists, parents, and young performers are respected, informed, and empowered to say no.


She also shares how Maya’s Magic Word was born at a UN conference and why she intentionally started with preschoolers, ages two to six, to normalize conversations about body safety long before adolescence. The hosts and Ashley-Lauren talk about moving beyond “stranger danger,” using everyday scenarios, affirmations, and games to help children trust their intuition, recognize unsafe behavior (even from people they know), and understand that their bodies belong to them.


Throughout the episode, Katie, Chessy, and Maria weave in reflections on their own experiences with harmful norms. They highlight how intergenerational patterns, cultural messaging, and silence can keep survivors from accessing help, and how trauma-informed, age-appropriate education can disrupt that cycle.


Prevention starts early and everywhere: in classrooms, on sets, in families, and in policy. By centering safety, consent, and self-trust over compliance and toughness, they invite listeners to imagine a world where children grow up knowing their voices are magic, their boundaries will be honored, and they have the right to help shape safer communities.


To learn more about Ashley-Lauren and her book Maya's Magic Word, visit https://www.ashleylaurenelrod.com/may...


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