School Based Education

The Fourth R is a comprehensive school-based prevention program based on extensive research.  It applies best-practice approaches to building skills and reducing harm among adolescents.  The foundation is a skill-based curriculum that promotes healthy relationships and targets violence (bullying, peer and dating violence), high-risk sexual behavior and substance use among adolescents.

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The contention of the Fourth R is that relationship skills can be taught in the same way as reading, writing, and arithmetic.  Furthermore, given the plethora of negative relationship models available to teens, it is crucial that adolescents be exposed to healthy alternatives, and equipped with the skills to engage in healthy relationships themselves.  During the course of the lessons, students will engage in extensive skill development and role-play activities to help develop effective and healthy responses to situations of conflict and violence.

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Relationships (the Fourth R) are crucial both in reducing violence and increasing responsible choices among youth.  The most successful strategies to reduce adolescent risk behaviors engage youth in making healthy choices and anchor these choices in the context of their relationships with peers, romantic partners, and adults.  Comprehensive prevention programs and counseling in schools and communities are very new, and schools increasingly are being called on to help students develop good citizenship and character, in addition to providing a foundation of academic skills.  The school experience offers, repeated opportunities for advancing positive conflict resolution, healthy relationship skills, and problem-solving. 

 

Accordingly, we believe that expanding efforts to assist youth in making responsible choices will play a natural and crucial role in promoting positive development and reducing harmful behaviors.

 

Approved Parent Letter – Detailing the information that we cover with the students in the middle and high schools.

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Review the training videos below that will be used during our training​.

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Please note that a copy of the full curriculum is available at the School District of Pickens County office.