Pubdate: Wed, 30 May 2007 Source: Regina Leader-Post (CN SN) Copyright: 2007 The Leader-Post Ltd. Contact: http://www.canada.com/regina/leaderpost/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/361 Author: Anne Kyle, Leader-Post STUDENTS WILL GET ANTI-DRUG PACKAGE The Regina and Area Drug Strategy will be introducing its drug and alcohol prevention resource materials in the province's high schools this fall. "We are doing this because we are trying to raise good solid citizens. These kids are our future," said Bob Kowalchuk, the agency's drug strategy co-ordinator. In 2005 the agency secured three years of funding from Health Canada to develop resource materials for Grades 1 to 12 and to create a speakers bureau. "Last year we developed supplementary curriculum materials for Grades 6, 7 and 8 that are available to every student in Saskatchewan. The curriculum is available online through the Saskatchewan Teachers Federation, Saskatchewan Learning and through the drug strategy Web site," Kowalchuk said. The second phase was the development of supplementary drug and alcohol prevention curriculum for Grade 9 and 10, and next year the agency with the help of its partners -- the Regina Catholic, Regina Public and Prairie Valley school divisions, the City of Regina, the Regina Police Service, the Regina Qu'Appelle Health Region, Saskatchewan Learning and Saskatchewan Health -- will develop resource materials for elementary students in Grades 1 to 5. "The intent behind all of these materials is really to help give the kids adequate information to help create their awareness around the impact of the use of drugs. That's the bottom line," Kowalchuk said. The Regina Crime Prevention Commission initiated a municipal drug strategy in 2002. The Regina and Area Drug Strategy was developed with 22 partners using a community mobilization and community development approach to addressing drug addiction issues in Regina. "The earlier you focus on prevention the better your chances are of having kids learning to make better decisions about the potential use of alcohol and drugs," Kowalchuk said, adding research shows that 11- and 12-year-olds are starting to experiment with alcohol. Talking to former drug users, who are part of the speakers bureau, reveals that they started using because they no longer felt connected to their family, an activity or the rest of the kids in the school, Kowalchuk said. "It is the disconnected kids who feel they need something else to do," he said. "When these kids see the use of drugs and alcohol as a way of socializing and having fun or altering their reality then we have a problem." - --- MAP posted-by: Derek