This week the 3rd-5th grade students are starting the Safe@Last program. This a great program about personal safety that is taught K-5. For their first lesson, 3rd and 5th grade students are learning about Passive, Aggressive, and Assertive behaviors. We gave examples of how each type of behavior would look in a restaurant (where your food was late and cold), and how sometimes it’s best to be Passive while other times it’s better to be Assertive. 3rd grade watched a short video about bullying, and how the different behaviors would change the situation. 5th grade students did 3 role-plays that give different situations where they need to be assertive…one about friends skipping class, one where they want a raise on their allowance, and one where a popular student wants to cheat on a test.
The 4th grade curriculum focuses on abduction, and ways to avoid being abducted. This week we talked about safe vs. unsafe people, and did a brief review of strangers. We also talked about the first step to personal safety, which is to AVOID situations that seem unsafe (if possible). Some examples include not walking alone in the dark, being aware of where people are around you, and walking around/away from people that make you feel uncomfortable or unsafe.
As we move through the program, 3rd grade students will focus on gun safety, while 5th grade students will focus on internet safety issues that are presented in the 6th grade curriculum.
