This Fourth of July, don’t just spark fireworks, but also spark short and meaningful conversations about celebrating responsibly with your kids.

Even though school may be out for the summer, the teaching and learning continues, especially when it comes to lessons on responsibility. This summer assign yourself some homework to continue conversations with your kids about making responsible choices because when kids are empowered, they’re more likely to say “YES” to a healthy lifestyle and “NO” to underage drinking.

As parents and educators, it’s our responsibility to help kids feel energized, optimistic, and excited to say “YES.” Here are a few things that kids can say “YES” to as we make our way into the final weeks of school and prepare for summer.

Over the last 20 years, more kids are saying “NO” than ever before—with more than 6 out of 10 kids having never consumed alcohol. That’s a record low!

The statistics don’t lie—underage drinking is down and the majority of kids don’t drink. The 2023 Monitoring the Future study found that alcohol consumption among America’s teens is at or near record low levels and below pre-pandemic prevalence rates.

The start of every new year comes with the best intentions to set goals for the next 365 days, but what happens when your focus and determination wane? The pressure to maintain and achieve goals can feel like a lot, especially to our kids. Here are 3 pieces of learning that are good for us to remember and share with our kids when it comes to goal setting.

As we prepare for Red Ribbon Week (October 23-31), let’s tap into kids’ natural curiosity about the developing brain and show them how alcohol and cannabis negatively affect it.

As your family prepares for a new school year, the Ask, Listen, Learn team wants you to feel prepared to have conversations about healthy behaviors with your kids. We queried Responsibility.org’s Educational Advisory Board and asked them for their tips on starting conversations with kids about health and wellbeing and of course, prevention education.

Summer has arrived at last! As part of our 20^th anniversary celebration, we want to challenge you to #Take20withKids while school is out! 

This year for Teacher Appreciation Week—just like in years past—we want to say two simple words to educators everywhere: THANK YOU