During the 2019-2020 school year, the State Board of Education passed two rules related to required instruction in health education topics impacting elementary level students. This year, the School District will continue to engage students in this learning using Safer, Smarter Kids and an additional district-developed resource titled Substance Use and Abuse Health Education curriculum.
The district-developed Substance Use and Abuse Health Education is a developmentally-appropriate curriculum that teaches substance prevention regarding four basic medication safety principles: only take medicine from individuals that a parent (or guardian) gives permission; do not share medication or take someone else’s medication; keep medications in their original containers to avoid confusion with candy or other medicines; and always store medicine in a safe place, such as a locked cabinet or a high shelf that children cannot reach. The district-developed Substance Use and Abuse Health Education curriculum furthers students’ health education by differentiating the difference between drugs and medicine, defining alcohol and its effects and tobacco and its effects.
Safer, Smarter Kids is an abuse prevention curriculum that uses developmentally appropriate information to give children the tools and language they need to better protect themselves from abuse. This curriculum will empower your child with the tools to help them stay safe in a non-frightening, meaningful way. The Safer, Smarter Kids curriculum will teach your child ways he or she can reduce the likelihood of being abused and ways to get help from others if needed. Some of the topics the children will study are: peer pressure, cyber safety, body boundaries, respecting themselves and others, listening to their “Guiding Voice” and using their courage to tell a trusted adult when a situation makes them feel confused or uncomfortable.