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Educational Outreach Programs
For Grades K - 12

VIOLENCE is a learned behavior. We believe the lessons taught to our youth must include awareness and prevention if we truly want to work toward ending the deadly cycle. Violence threatens our schools, our communities, our homes, and our lives.

Silence is the fuel that keeps the flames of violence burning

Educational Curricula Topics:

Bullying
Sexual Harassment
Verbal, Emotional, and Physical Abuse in Teen Relationships.

Sexual Assault
Additional School or Youth Focused Programs


Issue: Bullying
Bullying is in our schools, but we've just begun to talk about it in a sustained, non-judgmental, age-appropriate manner. Many children have been bullied even before they arrived at the schoolyard gate. And most children, even those who haven't been explicitly targeted by a bully, have witnessed bullying in action. Bullying deprives children of their rightful entitlement to go to school in a safe, just, and caring environment; bullying interferes with children's learning, concentration, and desire to go to school. Since all New Hampshire schools must now have a policy on bullying, according to NH RSA 193-F, "Pupil Safety and Violence Prevention Act of 2000", many are seeking more meaningful and comprehensive measures for prevention and education.

Curriculum: Bully Proof - recommended for grades 3/4 and 5.
This curriculum addresses the bullying behavior that children deal with during school and after school hours, on the playground, and riding the bus. WCS presents five sequential classroom lessons, scheduled cooperatively with individual schools. The students learn the difference between joking, teasing, and bullying, and between passive, aggressive, and assertive responses. One of our classroom rules is that no names are given when describing an incident. Our goal is not to identify an individual as a bully, but rather, help students identify the bullying behavior, as well as being understanding and empathetic with the target. Brainstorming activities help make these behaviors and feelings more concrete and recognizable. The students view a video titled, "Real Kids: What We Learned About Bullying", which depicts incidences of bullying and teasing, commentary from former bullies and targets, and suggests strategies for dealing with bullies. Also emphasized is the importance of the action of the bystander. These lessons are reinforced by student-acted role-plays (clearly the most fun part of the class), which are developed from the real-life problems the students identify in their written work. Students develop a "web of courage" and learn to solve problems/conflicts without putting themselves or others in danger. They also learn how their responses and behaviors affect others and to respect the feelings of others.

Curriculum: Quit It! -A guide on teasing and bullying for grade K-2/3.
This curriculum discusses the reasons for the rules of social behavior and enlist the students themselves in creating the rules in their classrooms. It helps create a safe climate in classrooms and teaches children the importance of cooperation. The lessons include discussions about the difference between telling and tattling, teasing and bullying, identifying where students feel safe and unsafe, and problem solving that helps the students learn ways of responding to teasing and bullying. There is also a lesson on exploring courage, which shows a young student that there are many ways to be courageous, unlike what they usually see in cartoons and TV shows. The concepts are reinforced through writing, drawing, literature, discussions, video and role-plays.

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Issue: Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment covers a range of behaviors, including sexual insults and name-calling; inappropriate jokes, intimidation by words or actions; offensive touching such as tickling, pinching, patting, or grabbing; pressure for sexual activity; assault; and rape. It is subjective, defined by the person being targeted; what may be hostile, humiliating, and is actually offensive to one student, may not be perceived that way by another student. Being the target of sexual harassment may make it very difficult for a child to go to school or participate in school activities.

Curriculum: Sexual Harassment: Flirting or Hurting? - adapted for age appropriate grades 6-12.
This program is usually for three classroom periods ranging from 45 minutes to one hour; however, it can be expanded to meet the needs of specific classes. WCS discusses the legal definition of sexual harassment, legal consequences, and school policy. Activities begin by students generating a list of words, gestures, and physical signs that they have seen or heard dealing with sexual harassment. They learn that sexual harassment is the impact on the target, rather than the intent of the harasser. Students learn the difference between flirting and sexual harassment. We interact with the students by doing age-appropriate role-plays, improvisations or small mixed-gender group case studies. The video based on this curriculum, also called "Flirting or Hurting", is shown in two segments. Part 1 helps to identify the behaviors, and part 2 shows what options targets and bystanders have to stop harassment. It is important for the students to understand how the target, harasser, and bystander feel when sexual harassment is occurring and what their options and resources are.

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Issue: Verbal, Emotional, and Physical Abuse in Teen Relationships.
Statistics show one in four teens will experience violence in a relationship. Jealousy and possessiveness are the most common early warning signs of abuse in a dating relationship. Many cultural or environmental "norms" may make it difficult for inexperienced teens to distinguish between what is a healthy or unhealthy relationship, putting them at risk.

Curriculum: Teen Relationship Violence - Can be adapted for specific grades 8-12.
This program addresses the issue of dating violence in a three-classroom session format. The first segment introduces Women's Crisis Services and makes the student aware of how to access our agency and what services we provide. We also brainstorm some class lists such as the "Dating Bill of Rights: Rights and Responsibilities in a Relationship"or a "Most Important Qualities of a Friend and of a Dating Partner", which cannot be physical or material. The second segment is a video presentation, currently "Toxic Relationships", which features peer educators discussing the early warning signs of an abusive relationship, the cycle of violence, and how to end an abusive relationship. The third segment focuses on small group work; such as discussing what the barriers may be to ending an unhealthy relationship or a "reverse fish bowl" activity that gives each group a different topic or scenario to discuss and present to the class for open discussion. The students are given comprehensive informational handouts, which include local and national resources.

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Issue: Sexual Assault
Statistics show that, in the United States, one in four women and one in six men will be victims of sexual assault, most before the age of 18. Eighty-four (84%) percent of all sexual assaults are committed by someone the victim knows.

Curriculum: Acquaintance Rape - adapted for age-specific grades 7-12.
This program addresses how gender stereotypes may affect attitudes; how individuals respond to an assault; the effects of rape on the survivor; and what their options and resources are, as well as learning that it is never too late to say or hear "no", and that sexual assault is never the victims "fault". Current information on date rape drugs and how to reduce risk is presented. WCS believes in sending a clear message that sexual assault prevention should be primarily focused on the assailant, and that risk-reduction and personal safety are how the potential victims may better equip and educate themselves.

Curriculum: Drug Facilitated Sexual Assault is a more in-depth presentation on the use of substances in sexual assault. This program is recommended for junior and senior high school and college age students.

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Additional School or Youth Focused Programs:

Choosing Healthy Relationships - This program addresses the many issues facing our adolescents today with a direct focus on the at-risk population and the additional needs they have. Many children from violent homes do not have healthy adult role models from which to learn healthy attitudes and behaviors. Instead, they learned that "loving" relationships are based on fear and pain; they learned that pushing, kicking, hitting, and punching are acceptable behaviors and that violence is a means of getting what they want. The most significant difference between delinquent and non-delinquent youth is a history of abuse or family violence. Boys who witness family violence are more likely to batter their female partners as adults than boys raised in non-violent homes; girls who witness their mothers abuse have a higher rate of being battered as adult women.
CHR will cover the following topics in a 12 week format:
Domestic Violence; Effects of Domestic Violence on Adolescents; Dating Violence; Healthy vs. Unhealthy Relationships; Personal Responsibility/Effective Communication in Conflict Resolution; Sexual Assault; Survivors of Sexual Assault/Coping Skills; Substance Abuse; Date Rape Drugs; Family Planning/STD's; Safety Planning; Healthy Role Models; and Community Connections/Outreach.

Issue: Violence in Society.
Curriculum: All of these topics can be adapted to meet the needs of specific classes and subject areas. We work collaboratively with the classroom teachers to ensure that materials covered and videos used are age appropriate.
        History of Violence in Society
        Violence Against Women
        Image of Women in Society - patriarchal roles,
        matriarchal roles, stereotypes, media portrayal of
        women and men.
        Changing Cultural Attitudes

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Women's Crisis Services is a Monadnock United Way Agency.
Women's Crisis Services of the Monadnock Region, 12 Court St. Keene, NH. 03431
Women's Crisis Services of the Monadnock Region, 47 Peterborough St. Suite B,
Jaffrey, NH. 03452
All graphics are the property of Women's Crisis Service's of the Monadnock Region, and New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence, © Copyright 2002
Web site designed by Trudy Emmerick