- prevention
- 3 mins
School Prevention Programs
Completed Programs in May
We only had one session of one program to squeeze in before the school year finished. After we did the final session of Project Selfie on June 1st, we were officially finished with our school-based prevention programs for the 2025/2026 school year.
SADD Club
Since the school year ended for students the first week of June we had just enough time to squeeze in a volunteer project before everyone headed off for summer break. Students collected donations from generous businesses like Agway, Franklin's Flowers, and Sinclairs. These community partners stepped up in a big way, donating a beautiful variety of flowers and plants, along with other materials we needed for planting. We planted the donated flowers in the mulch beds around the sign at the entrance of the school grounds and around the front of the elementary school.
It was a simple project, but it gave students a chance to give back to their school and end the year with a positive, visible contribution to their community. Our hope is that in the future, students can look at the perennials we planted and appreciate the hard work and lasting impact that our SADD members have on the school.
Summer Stories and Snacks
June 11th
Our first featured story was The Way I Feel by Janan Cain. The Way I Feel helps children recognize and name their emotions through simple language and expressive illustrations. Just like kids learn words for everyday objects, they also need words to understand what’s happening inside them.
We chose this book because giving kids the language to describe their feelings helps them to cope and communicate their big emotions. To practice our emotion-naming skills we played Emotion Charades and a fun and active game called Emotion Commotion.
June 18th
In Enemy Pie by Derek Munson, we follow a boy who learns a powerful recipe for turning a best enemy into a best friend.
We chose this book because making new friends and getting along with others can be hard at any age, but the rewards can be sweet as pie.
After we learned Dad's recipe for enemy pie, everyone got to put their own spin on real-life versions that we made and ate together. Our game this week was kindness tic-tac-toe, where we practiced recognizing other's strengths in a fun and energetic version of the classic game.
June 25th
I Need a Hug by Aaron Blabey follows a lonely porcupine who wants a hug but is rejected by the other animals due to his quills, until he meets an unlikely animal who is happy to cuddle.
We chose this story to teach a lesson about friendship, not judging others, and finding companionship in unexpected places. We made porcupine art using paint and forks. Our game was a team game called Person, Panther, Porcupine. Similar to Rock, Paper, Scissors the game focuses on decision making and strategy as a team.
Independent Living
Independent Living met this month to look ahead and make concrete plans for the summer. We have several trips and fun events planned, including community outings, skill-building activities, and a few purely social get-togethers so students can relax and stay connected. To make sure everyone can participate as much as possible, we took time to synchronize schedules and set expectations.
We spent time working on filling out pocket resumes. Pocket resumes are small, easy-to-carry documents that list personal information, work and volunteer experiences, skills, and references. These pocket resumes are designed to be kept in a wallet or folder so students can bring them along when they’re picking up job applications or speaking with potential employers. Having everything written down in one place makes it much easier to complete job applications on the spot and helps students remember important details like phone numbers, dates, and addresses.
Independent Living also participated in their annual volunteer opportunity at the Fishing Derby. Students helped with tasks like setting up the event, registering participants, measuring and recording the captured fish, and cheering on the kids. It was a fun, hands-on way to practice responsibility, communication, and customer-service skills while giving back to the community.