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  • Health & Life Skills

Programs in this area develop young people’s capacity to engage in positive behaviors that nurture their own well-being, set personal goals and live successfully as self-sufficient adults.

Cavity Free Zone

Cavity-Free Zone aims to increase young people’s awareness of good oral hygiene and improve their dental health. Cavity-Free Zone was developed in response to a recent Surgeon General’s report on oral health, which revealed a silent epidemic of oral disease in the country, especially among disadvantaged youth. The Cavity-Free Zone program materials feature fun, engaging sessions and activities for Club members ages 6-9, 10-12 and 13-15. Club members can also log on to the program’s Web site to participate in games and other interactive activities that reinforce their learning about oral health. Crest sponsors the Cavity-Free Zone program.

SMART Moves

This nationally acclaimed comprehensive prevention program helps young people resist alcohol, tobacco and other drug use, as well as premature sexual activity. SMART Moves features engaging, interactive, small-group activities that increase participants’ peer support, enhance their life skills, build their resiliency and strengthen their leadership skills. This year-round program encourages collaborations among Club staff, youth, parents and representatives from other community organizations. The program’s components are: SMART Kids, for ages 6-9; Start SMART, for ages 10-12; Stay SMART, for ages 13-15; and SMART Parents. SMART Leaders, a peer leader/booster program for older teens, and F.A.N. Club (Family Advocacy Network), an educational and support group program for parents and caregivers of SMART Moves participants, are also available through a partnership between BGCA and Pennsylvania State University, which developed these two programs to increase the scope and positive impact of the original SMART Moves.

SMART Girls

SMART Girls is a small-group health, fitness, prevention/education and self-esteem enhancement program designed to meet the developmental needs of girls ages 8-12 and 13-17. Through dynamic sessions, highly participatory activities, field trips and mentoring opportunities with adult women, Club girls explore their own and societal attitudes and values as they build skills for eating right, staying physically fit, getting good health care and developing positive relationships with peers and adults. The program is now sponsored by Tupperware Brands, Inc. following a major revision in 2002 funded by The David and Lucile Packard Foundation.

Passport to Manhood

Passport to Manhood promotes and teaches responsibility in Club boys ages 11-14. Passport to Manhood consists of 14 sessions, each of which concentrates on a specific aspect of manhood through highly interactive activities. Each Club participant receives his own “passport” to underscore the notion that he is on a personal journey of maturation and growth. Passport to Manhood represents a targeted effort to engage young boys in discussions activities that reinforce positive behavior. Passport to Manhood is an excellent complement to SMART Girls.

Healthy Habits

Empowering youth to eat right is a generation-changing, life-enhancing program goal and Triple Play’s nutrition component, called Healthy Habits, covers the power of choice, calories, vitamins and minerals, the food pyramid and appropriate portion size. Healthy Habits is the “Mind” component of Triple Play, which emphasizes eating smart and maintaining physical fitness to improve the overall well-being of Club members.