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What's Your Anti-Drug Supplement
Download Supplement (PDF) |
The Media Campaign, in collaboration with USA TODAY, the National Middle School Association (NMSA), and the National Association of Student Assistance Professionals (NASAP), created a special eight-page supplement announcing what stands between America's youth and drugs. Developed by kids for kids, over 500 creative submissions were generated through national youth-serving and educational organizations. Download the supplement (Adobe Acrobat format).
Parents, grandparents, teachers, coaches, and others can use the supplement to talk with youngsters about making healthy decisions. Here are a few ways that take only minutes to do.
At Home
Share the supplement with your tween or teen, explaining that it was prepared by kids for kids. Express your interest in the good choices kids are making to grow up healthy, happy and drug-free. Invite the child to read about the various activities kids say are important enough to keep them from drugs: sports, art, music, writing, photography, ballet. Emphasize the good choices your child makes, focusing on his or her positive activities.
Activities
- Make plans to sit down together after dinner to review the supplement. Emphasize any featured anti-drugs you know your child is interested in. Help your youngster realize there are plenty of other kids out there who have similar special interests and passions. Help your child feel good about him/herself, showing your pride in his/her healthy decisions.
- Suggest visiting the Web site www.WhatsYourAntidrug.com where your child may officially register his/her personal anti-drugs.
- Later in the week, ask your child to share with you a word or phrase, drawing, story, poem or other form of creative expression that reflects his/her anti-drug. Tell your child that you will display this "anti-drug" in your workplace (or other important place) because you are proud of him/her and because you believe it will inspire other parents to sit down with their children to discuss personal anti-drugs.
- Thank your child for his/her participation in the anti-drug activity. Affection and respect will reinforce good behavior, and be more successful at changing risky behavior.
In School
Distribute inserts to each pupil. Describe how the insert came to be (kids from all over the nation submitted creative entries describing the special passions and people in their lives that keep them away from drugs—reading, music, sports, family members, volunteering, practicing their faith and more. Give the children several minutes to peruse the material. Ask them which items are their favorites. Does anyone have an identical or similar anti-drug in his/her life? Does anyone have an anti-drug that is not represented in the insert?
Activities
- Brainstorm with kids and ask them to write down the one word or phrase that best describes their personal anti-drug; tally and display responses, then use the "data" as springboard for group discussion to help the students realize that there are many ways to stay drug-free.
- Have kids create a "What's Your Anti-Drug?" publication for the school or club.
- Encourage youth to visit the Web site www.WhatsYourAntidrug.com where they may officially register their anti-drugs.
- Use the arrival of the special insert to rally interest in existing clubs, teams and groups (e.g., language, chorus, photography, math, band, baseball) as well as to survey interest in starting new ones (debate, book-of-the-month, museums and galleries, skateboarding, chess, rock climbing).
