Health & Life Skills
These initiatives help youth achieve and maintain healthy, active lifestyles.
Smart Moves (Skills Mastery and Resistance Training): is a 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 collaboration among Club staff, youth, parents and representatives from other community organizations.
SMART Girls is a small-group health, fitness, prevention/education and self-esteem enhancement program designed to meet the developmental need 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 David and Luclie Packard Foundation funded the recent revision of SMART Girls.
Passport to Manhood promotes and teaches responsibility in Club boys ages 11-18. 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 and activities that reinforce positive behavior. Passport to Manhood is an excellent complement to SMART Girls.
Healthy Habits. Designed to incorporate healthy living and active learning in every part of the Club experience, Healthy Habits emphasizes good nutrition, regular physical activity and improving overall well-being.
NetSmartz teaches Internet safety skills through engaging multimedia activities and offline interaction with Club professionals in three age-appropriate modules. Topics include personal safety, shopping safely and ethical use of the Internet.