Elementary Drug Prevention Lessons
Elementary school students begin to develop life skills and learn about the world around them through educational initiatives. Many parents and teachers also feel that students should begin to learn about drug abuse resistance during these formative years. There are several formal educational programs available to schools to teach students how to avoid drugs, deal with peer pressure and learn about the dangers of taking drugs or using alcohol. In addition, many of these programs offer education for parents, so the lessons are reinforced outside of the classroom.
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D.A.R.E.
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D.A.R.E, which stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education, is one of the most common drug education programs for elementary schoolchildren. More than 75 percent of U.S. public school districts use this program as their main source of drug resistance education. Developed in Los Angeles in 1983, the program requires D.A.R.E.-trained police officers to enter the schools to instruct students. The program uses police officers rather than teachers because police often deal with drug-related crimes on the streets and have another type of insight to offer students. D.A.R.E offers programs for all grade levels, from kindergarten to 12th grade. The program focuses on teaching students about positive alternatives to drug use and how to deal with peer pressure. To set up a D.A.R.E. program in your school, contact the local police chief or sheriff to discuss forming an alliance. Once a partnership between law enforcement and the school district is established, contact D.A.R.E America for more information about training and implementation.
Narconon
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Narconon International is a nonprofit public health organization that aims to eliminate drug use through drug prevention, drug education and drug abuse rehabilitation. One of Narconon's initiatives is to consistently monitor youth drug trends to design education programs that effectively deal with the real-life concerns facing America's youth. As of 2011, the Narconon drug education programs have reached 3.5 million American students. Narconon education programs focus on combining visual presentations with classroom education and focus on a variety of drug-related topics. Each program is geared toward a specific age group, making it easy for teachers to select a program appropriate for elementary school students. Narconon works upon the principle that students should know about the true effects of drug use, have a real-life picture of addiction and understand the culture of peer pressure. Narconon educators believe this type of education will lead students to make their own informed choices as they grow. To obtain Narconon materials for your classroom, contact the organization for local resources.
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Drugfree.org
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Instead of focusing on classroom initiatives, Drugfree.org aims to educate entire communities, including parents, children and teachers. The Community Education program is primarily aimed at adolescents and their parents but may be adopted for many age groups. The program offers research-based educational tools, community-specific education focusing on the issues prevalent in a local area, education for parents about how to talk to children about drug use and training to help students, teachers and community leaders develop new drug education programs.
Funding Grants
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Many teachers or parents may want to begin a formal drug education program in the local school district but feel overwhelmed at how to begin. Other school districts may be facing funding issues. The Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, a division of the U.S. Department of Education, offers a number of grant programs designed to increase the safety of American school. The Safe and Supportive School Grant program was designed by the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools as an avenue for funding drug education programs as well as other safe school initiatives. To apply for a grant, schools must present evidence that drug education provides a "systematic approach to improving conditions for learning," according to the office's website. Application materials are available through the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit Police image by Zeno from Fotolia.com
