The School Year is Wrapping Up
The end of another school year is almost here! You’ve been having conversations with your children and modeling good choices to empower them to say “YES” to a healthy lifestyle and “NO” to underage drinking. While we have a lot to celebrate this school year, our work is not done yet! Read on for what we learned and how we are asking you to engage with our Ask, Listen, Learn community.
Parent & Kids Survey Data Released
In early 2023, Responsibility.org conducted a survey among parents and their kids about the conversations happening within the home around substance use, stress, and healthy living to better understand their concerns and how to enrich these discussions. The survey also gauged their worries and perceptions around decision making. The results are in, and there is good news regarding kids’ and parents’ attitudes and behaviors relating to underage drinking and substance use. If you would like to read the full press release, you can find it here.
Here are some highlights from the survey:
· Kids report their parents as the #1 influence on their decision to drink or not drink alcohol, followed by best friends, and then social media.
· 93% of parents have talked to their kids at least once in the past year about alcohol consumption, and over the past 20 years, the rate of past month consumption among underage kids decreased
53% (Source: Monitoring the Future, 12/2022).
· 90% of kids have talked with their parents or another caregiver about the dangers of drinking alcohol.
· 1 in 3 youth say they are worried about illegal drugs and overdoses (38%), underage drinking (38%), and underage cannabis use (34%).
· These conversations are important because:
Keep the Conversations Going this Summer
With summer around the corner, the data illustrates the importance of keeping these conversations going. As schools break for summer, many kids will face a new environment with more freedom, different surroundings, and new decisions to make. This might be the result of less structured time, new friends they meet at camp or the pool, older kids or siblings they spend time with from the neighborhood or on vacation, or the increased time they might spend time home alone or with less adult supervision. Take time now to prepare your children for these changes by talking to them about the risks they may be faced with, as well as refusal strategies to help keep them both safe and substance-free. If you’re not sure how to start talking about alcohol and cannabis, our resources are here to help you.
#Take20withKids
We invite you to share your #Take20withKids ideas, practices, and wins on social media to encourage others to inspire kids to make healthy decisions, set achievable goals, and stay alcohol- and substance-free. This could mean taking 20 seconds, 20 breaths, or even 20 minutes to model responsible behavior, celebrate healthy decision making, or discuss the risks of underage drinking.
Make sure you follow us on social media and share how you #Take20withKids. Visit our #Take20withKids blog for more information.
Parents, thank you again for all the great work you are doing in empowering kids to be safe and substance-free.
–Ask, Listen, Learn Team