DARE to be Smart

Malia’s DARE graduation was today. All three of my boys were also able to participate in the DARE program, so this was not my first rodeo. In fact, this afternoon’s program was exactly the same as the other three. Even the guest speaker was the same. She’s a good speaker and she has a meaningful story to share with the kids, so it was ok though. As with the boys, each student is required to write an essay in order to graduate from the program. The topic of the essay is whichever of the ten lessons are a student’s favorite. The DARE officer (a police officer from the local force) reads all the essays and chooses the best one from each class. The winner from each class reads their essay as part of the graduation program. Malia’s essay was one of two that Officer Jake had trouble deciding between. He waffled back and forth, back and forth until he finally decided to give Malia’s classmate top honors leaving Malia in second place. Malia was actually very happy about that. Of late, she has been very nervous about talking in front of groups and she really, really didn’t want to read her essay in front of the entire fifth grade, all the parents, the DARE officer, the chief of police, the mayor, the principal, and the former Miss Utah who was our guest speaker. 

In past years the kids have gone on a field trip to Texas Roadhouse for lunch and line dancing as a way to celebrate the completion of the program. Daniel and Nathan both had a great time on their respective field trips. Since Texas Roadhouse has peanuts on all the tables, there was no way that Matthew could attend his field trip safely, so I checked him out of school and took him to a movie instead. I had planned to check Malia out like I did for Matthew, but I was greatly pleased when info about a change in routine trickled down to the parents. This year, instead of the Texas Roadhouse trip, there were DARE discount days at both Lagoon and Boondocks which meant that Malia was actually able to participate in her celebration. Kevin drove Malia and two of her friends to Boondocks last Friday and then let them loose to enjoy their visit. This is the first time Malia has been at a busy venue without an adult accompanying her, and while she was anxious to enjoy her visit sans parent, she was a bit nervous about it as well. As such, Kev acted as chauffeur and then sat in the car so the kids could enjoy their newfound independence while still having the safety net of a trusted adult close at hand. They played laser tag, some virtual reality games and arcade games as well as enjoying pizza for dinner. I think Malia had a great time and gained a bit of confidence in her ability to take care of herself and stay safe without Kev or I right by her side.

When I was in elementary school, the message we were taught was “just say no” to drugs and alcohol. I actually like the DARE program better because it does more than teach kids to say no. It also teaches them about peer pressure, stress, smart decision making, getting an education, respecting themselves and others, and a variety of other things that if factored in can help them be healthy and successful people. In the world we live in, drugs and alcohol are not some hypothetical thing that kids see in the movies. When I was a kid, they were in the schools, but they were still kind of undercover rather than out in the open. Nowadays they are out in the open. Matthew says the drug problems at the middle school are bad enough that there is a police officer at the school all the time. And the rumor mill says that some of the other schools are even worse. 

Keeping our bodies and minds free from such harmful and addictive substances is a part of the gospel, but I will gladly take any outside support or skills the schools have to offer my kids. Arming them from all directions is a plus. As Malia was worked through the DARE program, it has provided opportunities for us to discuss these things as a family as well. And knowing that we are a resource for her, a support and a source of information and guidance as well as giving her permission to use us as an instant out or excuse from any situation will hopefully help make her stronger and smarter as she grows up and moves into situations where the kinds of scenarios she has talked about in the DARE program may actually occur. Our public education program may have its shortcomings, but this is one program that I agree with wholeheartedly.

Parent Approved Sluffing

In our area, fifth graders participate in the Dare program. It is funded and run by the unified police and teaches kids about substance abuse, peer pressure, and stress and provides them with some training in problem solving and decision making associated with those kinds of situations. For the kids who participate and complete an essay at the end telling what they have learned there is a graduation ceremony. This morning was Matthew’s Dare graduation. The officer assigned to our elementary school as well as the police chief and several other officers were in attendance (and due to a local man hunt that started on Saturday and was ongoing they all looked totally exhausted) to congratulate the kids.

After the graduation, the kids were treated to a field trip to Texas Roadhouse. The local location of this restaurant gives all Dare classes a tour of the kitchens, lunch, and teaches them some line dancing. Unfortunately, this particular restaurant serves peanuts on the tables and encourages tossing of peanut shells on the floor to be swept up at the end of the day. As such, it is a literal death trap for anyone allergic to peanuts. I felt like Matthew deserved a reward for completing the Dare program and since he couldn’t participate in the reward that all the other kids had, I checked him out of school and we went to the movies instead. It was far better than having Matthew sit at the school while the other kids had a great time. It was also far better than mopping the floors, which is what I would have been doing instead. And to top it all off, Matthew got to see “The Greatest Showman” before his older brothers. 😉

Fifth Grade is Fun

As we near the end of the school year, Daniel has had some fun things going on. Last week was his DARE graduation. For those who don’t know DARE stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education. It is taught by a police officer and teaches kids about the effects of abusing drugs, how to resist peer pressure, the legal ramifications of illegal drugs, etc. In order to graduate from the program the kids must participate in the lessons as well as complete a workbook and write an essay. The teachers choose the top six essays from each class and then the DARE officer passed those essays around to some of his fellow officers who chose the top two (one boy and one girl) from each class. Daniel was one of the winners for his class so he got to read his essay at graduation. He was presented with a medal, a water bottle, a pencil, and eraser, and a stuffed lion for being one of the winners. He had no idea that he would receive anything, so he was pleasantly surprised!

Today was Daniel’s Young American Program. The fifth grade in our school has an award that the kids can earn called the Young American. In order to receive the award they must know all fifty states and capitols, the Gettysburg Address, the Preamble to the Constitution, all forty-four Presidents of the U.S. in order, the first and fourth verses of the Star Spangled Banner, and get at least 90% correct on 100 questions about U.S. history. It takes them all year to earn the award. I don’t know about all of you, but I most certainly don’t remember all that stuff. As part of their state reports, the kids had to make a float that showed off some of the things they had learned about their assigned states. Each float was required to be equipped with wheels of some sort. Before the program they had a parade of floats around the outside of the school. It was really fun! During the program the kids get to show off what they have learned as well as receive their awards. I think it is a really great way to get the kids excited about their country and while I don’t know about the other kids, I know that Daniel is pretty darn proud of himself for earning his award.