Kidpower Of Colorado Inc

Direct beneficiaries per year: 2,680 kids and their adults

Programs: Kidpower's program includes the following workshops and classes: starting strong parent/child workshops: a two-hour interactive program for children, ages four to six, and their parents/guardians to introduce everyday safety skills and guide adults together with their children to help answer the question, "how can we teach our children to be safe without scaring them? " school/agency workshops: school workshops provide training for teachers, counselors and school staff, as well as students. The kidpower approach ensures that every child practices every skill presented through carefully formatted activities and role-plays that build confidence, self-esteem and awareness in dealing with strangers, adults children know, and bullies. Pre-school and kindergarten classes are presented in two one-hour segments. Classes for first through sixth grades are presented in two two-hour segments that teach children to recognize and avoid potential danger; to walk, stand and move with awareness and confidence; to deal with emotional coercion, intimidation and bribery; how and when to set clear, strong boundaries, both with people they know and strangers; to use their voices and their bodies to stay safe; to deal with bullies and peer pressure and to avoid bullying others; to be safe on the internet; to tell an adult if someone talks about having a weapon or threatens to harm someone; and to tell an adult and to keep telling until they get the help they need. These workshops require the participation of at least one parent or guardian, which equips adults with a common vocabulary to reinforce and practice safety skills with their children at home. Teacher/counselor training helps school professionals learn how to present safety skills in the classroom so that this can be part of the ongoing curriculum. Teenpower violence prevention workshops: teenagers from ages thirteen to eighteen learn to practice skills for dealing with verbal attack, peer pressure and harassment as well as assaults from strangers and acquaintances. These classes are four hours in duration. Students practice full-force self-defense skills on a head-to-toe padded instructor. The teen women's class emphasizes defense against assault. The teen men's class emphasizes de-escalation techniques. Weekend family workshops: these workshops are eleven hours in length (three hours for parents only and two four-hour sessions for children seven to thirteen years old). Children learn skills to detect and deter potential violence and abuse. Children learn and extensively practice all techniques taught in the school/agency programs with additional realistic practice of basic self-protection techniques. The emphasis on both physical and verbal skills creates the kind of knowledge kids need to recognize and respond to psychological manipulations and physical danger. Classes for individuals with special needs: this program is designed to reduce bullying, exploitation and abuse against students in kindergarten through twelfth grade and transition students with developmental disabilities and other special needs. Special needs classes are conducted in partnership with special education classes in local school districts and agencies serving individuals with special needs. Students receive up to four personal safety training sessions (one to two hours each). Parent education is also provided (two to four hours) to help parents reinforce and incorporate the skills into their homes. Kidpower provides training and coaching to teachers in these classes so they can continue to incorporate the safety skills in their classrooms. Kidpower also offers training to developmentally disabled adults. Customized private classes: individualized training is designed for students with needs that would not be effectively addressed in a group setting or who may need special attention to a particular area of safety to best meet their needs. These classes vary in length. Counselor/ teacher training: this training guides professionals in bringing kidpower staff concepts to the school setting, preschool through high school. Trainings can be as short as two hours or may be two-day workshops. Community education forums: these forums teach about importance and effectiveness of safety education in a variety of settings and teach simple skills for adults to share with young people. Length varies depending on request.