For many of the more than 600 fifth grade students sitting in the Park Theater in Union City on March 27, it was their first time ever on stage.
“I always wanted to do something like this on stage,” said Naisha Correa from Washington School as she lined up with her classmates to perform their skit. “Now it is really happening, and now I am really scared.”
Other students were less subtle in giving away their stage fright.
“We are having fun back here,” said Kareem Abdelaal from Washington School, who was dancing backstage with friends. “But not up front [on stage].”
These students were getting ready to perform their skits for their parents, teachers and friends at their Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program graduation ceremony.
“The Park Theater has a 1,400 seat capacity,” said Sergeant William Peer, who is the director of the city’s DARE program. “And it is going to get packed tonight.”
This year, more than 1,300 students and 37 fifth-grade classes participated in the 17-week curriculum that works to teach children how to say no to drugs and alcohol.
“We try to show the kids that they can have a good time without drugs and alcohol,” said Peer.
All of the fifth grade students in Union City participate in the program.
“These kids are entering middle school age, where they are starting to feel the effects of peer pressure,” said Peer about targeting fifth-grade students in the program.
The city now has 10 full-time DARE officers and assigns one officer to each school.
“We try to steer the kids in the right direction,” said DARE Officer Robert Espinosa, who is assigned to Hudson School. “These kids need role models.”
The graduations took place over three nights; March 27 through March 29.
Making learning fun
While these kids may never have performed on stage before, acting out little skits is not new to them. In fact, they probably do this everyday as part of their 17-week DARE curriculum.
“[The curriculum] teaches the ill effects of alcohol, tobacco, drugs and violence,” said Espinosa.
These skits help teach the students the effects of alcohol and other drugs while allowing them to have a good time.
“Officer Phil [Alvarado] teaches us in a fun way instead of a strict manner,” said Trisha Aliaga about her DARE officer at Gilmore School.
“It was way cool,” agreed her classmate Lisany Torres.
“Two people go up in front of the class and act,” said Jhoan Ortega from Washington School, explaining how some of the skits work.
In these skits, children become police officers, drug-dealers and drug users.
“We got to act out how people act when they are drinking and smoking,” said Grace Rodriguez from Hudson School.
These skits also help the students learn the different ways to say no to drug pushers and peer pressure.
“Act out different situations that they might come across,” said Espinosa who added that the children are also taught the consequences of taking drugs.
Drug-free
While the students are having a good time in their DARE classes, the officers also want to make sure that they are learning something.
Each student had to write an essay explaining what they learned at the end of the curriculum. A winner for best essay is chosen from each school. That student then reads their essay at the DARE graduation ceremony.
“I have many reasons to stay off drugs,” wrote Stephanie Martinez from Hudson School in her essay. “They are my life, family, friends, teachers and goals.”
Although only one student could be the winner, all of the students in the DARE curriculum learned something. “We learned how to say no to drugs,” said Mary Collado from Gilmore School.
The students also learned that what they were taught in these classes can be taken with them as they get older. “Yeah, [DARE] will help me when I grow up in the future,” said Abdelaal. “It will help me to live longer by not smoking [or doing drugs].”