Purpose Statement

The objective of this program includes:

1) Preparing students to act decisively in refusing offers to use drugs.

2) Helping students recognize risks and avoid drug-related, and violent situations.

3) Building strong decision-making, planning, communication, and assertive refusal skills.

4) Empowering youth to value their own perceptions and feelings and make choices that support drug-free values, and avoiding violent situations.

5) Fostering positive relationships between local law enforcement, youth, and parents of youth in an effort to build community support and trust.

Needs Addressed

This program will address the responsible decision making and drug abuse plaguing our society. The curriculum, designed based on the Socio-Emotional Learning Theory (SEL), identifies fundamental, basic skills and developmental processes needed for healthy development including: 

- Self-awareness and management

- Responsible decision making

- Understanding others

- Relationships and communication skills

- Handling responsibilities and challenges

- SEL theory teaches youth to control their impulses and think about risks and consequences resulting in more responsible choices.

D.A.R.E believes that if you can teach youth to make safe and responsible decisions, it will guide them to healthy choices, not only about drugs, but across all parts of their lives. As they grow to be responsible citizens, they will lead healthier and more productive drug- and violence-free lives.

Services

This program will focus on substance abuse prevention and violence prevention. The DARE curriculum consists of 10 lessons designed to be taught in 40-45 minute segments. The lessons include a variety of teaching modalities aimed at encouraging student participation such as group work, role-plays, pair discussion and games. 

The lessons are designed to promote interaction among the students as well as between the students, the teacher, and local law enforcement so that the students are involved in their own learning. Each lesson includes a lesson outline, an activity sheet with instructions, student worksheets for use in class and as homework, and notes to the teacher.

Enjoyable activities are included to illustrate the skills and allow students to practice the REAL (Refuse, Explain, Avoid, and Leave) resistance strategies. Each lesson includes a homework assignment and, starting with lesson two, a review of the previous (Refuse, Explain, Avoid, and Leave) resistance strategies. Each lesson includes a homework assignment and, starting with lesson two, a review of the previous lesson's concepts.

The student's performance on the homework worksheets allows teachers to assess how well they are grasping the skills and knowledge taught in class. Overheads, in-class worksheets, and Spanish materials are provided.

Locations

Click on the window icon (upper right corner) of the map below to expand. List of all program locations is included with expanded view of map. Locations are also listed on this page below the map.