Kudos to the young role models at SV High School who are taking the time to meet with fifth graders at Brookside and Donnelly Elementary Schools as Peer Leaders! The peer leadership program trains high school students to serve as positive role models for younger students.
At the end of January, they taught the fifth-grade classes 10 ways to say “no” when confronted with peer pressure to engage in negative behavior. During their second visit, we caught up with two groups on February 20 who visited Brookside fifth graders. They reminded the students of the lesson they learned last time, talked about the dangers of vaping and drug or alcohol use, and played some interactive games to help the kids identify positive behaviors versus negative behaviors.
“It gives them early information about how drugs and alcohol are harmful to our bodies, and how we should always respect our bodies,” said Julie LaMantia about why it’s important to her to be a Peer Mentor.
They also took the time to answer the elementary students’ questions about what middle and high school are like! These are simultaneous visits with additional Peer Leaders meeting with fifth-grade classes at Donnelly Elementary on February 20. The Peer Leaders will next visit both schools again on March 18, weather permitting.