2013 TAKE 25 POSTER CONTEST

This year, North Andover School Department, Building Respectful Communities Committee, North Andover Police Department, Essex County District Attorney Johnathan Blodgett, State Senators Bruce Tarr and Kathleen O’Connor Ives, State Representatives Diana DiZoglio and Jim Lyons are joining with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) to promote the TAKE 25 campaign.  Take 25 is a national child safety campaign that encourages parents and guardians to take 25 minutes out of their day to talk to their children about safety.

Annually observed on May 25 since 1983, National Missing Children’s Day serves as a reminder to the nation to renew efforts to reunite missing children with their families, remember those who are still missing and make child protection a national priority.  With your help, we can reach the families in our community with the message of Take 25 and the prevention tools needed to help keep our children safer.

The Building Respectful Communities Committee, North Andover Police, North Andover Schools Grade 4 and 5 through the art program, and the 4^th and 5^th grade classroom teachers are forming an alliance to foster posters that are created by young people on what safety means to them.   Officer Tracy did Safety presentations to all 4^th and 5^th graders in North Andover.  Each child was invited to participate in the TAKE 25 Safety Poster Contest.  Winners will be announced in May and invited to the North Andover Police Station for a reception. 

We will also be reminding parents to take on this challenge of talking safety to their children on May 25^th, as challenged by the National Center of Missing & Exploited Children.  WWW.Take25.org

Joint Speaker Series

The North Andover Joint Speaker Series was formed in 2009 as a way to invite relevant speakers for the parents of North Andover.  The town Parent Teacher groups have done much for North Andover schools and students, but a group of PTO presidents felt it was also important to consider the parents and their needs raising children. The speaker series was also intended to help support the new school district initiatives established by the Building Respectful Communities Committee. Events are free of charge and open to all North Andover families.  The Joint Speaker Series represents and is supported by: Atkinson PTO, Franklin PTO, Kittredge PTO, Sargent PTO, Thomson PTO, Middle School PTAC, High School PAC, NAPAC, St. Michael’s School, the YouthCenter and the BRC Committee.  This collaboration has enabled several well known and worth while speakers to come speak in North Andover. 

The North Andover Joint Speaker Series and Andover Parent-to-Parent Present:

Preventing Anxiety and Depression:  Skills We Can (and Should!) Teach for Happier, Healthier Kids with Lynn Lyons, LICSW

Tuesday, May 7, 2013 @ 7:00pm

North Andover High School Auditorium

Did you know that teens and young adults currently have the fastest growing rates of depression and anxiety? Learn how to teach children and teens the life skills they need to prevent depression, anxiety, and build healthier relationships.

This workshop will cover:

• The thought and behavioral patterns that predict depression and anxiety in children and teens
• What really works for the long term prevention of anxiety and depression
• How to teach and model the skills that lead to better mental health in children

Event is free of charge and open to the public. No registration required. For information or questions please contact the North Andover Joint Speaker Series at najointspeaker@gmail.com.

The North Andover Joint Speaker Series is supported by: Atkinson PTO, Franklin PTO, Kittredge PTO, Sargent PTO, Thomson PTO, NAMS PTAC, NAHS PAC, North Andover Youth and Recreation Services, North Andover Community Programs, Building Respectful Communities Committee, and North Andover Parent Advisory Council.  

About Lynn

Lynn Lyons, LICSW, is a licensed clinical social worker and psychotherapist who lives in Concord, New Hampshire and is in private practice there. For 22 years, Lynn has helped individuals, families, and groups overcome their anxiety, manage food and weight challenges, compete effectively, and parent confidently.

Lynn received her BA in English from Williams College in 1987, her Masters in Social Work from Boston University in 1990, and has been training extensively with the world’s experts in clinical hypnosis and strategic therapy since 1993. She is a member of NASW and the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis (ASCH). She is married and has two sons.

Past Joint Speaker Series Events:

    Social Media Minefield: Navigating Your Child’s Online Activities with Dr. Elizabeth Englander

Dr. Englander is a Professor of Psychology, and the founder and Director of the Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center at Bridgewater State University in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. She is a nationally recognized researcher and trainer in the field of childhood aggression, bullying and cyberbullying. Dr. Englander has trained tens of thousands of teachers, students, and parent and community groups. She presents at many national conferences and is the author of dozens of journal articles and book chapters, including the books Understanding Violence and Bullying Online, Offline and Between the Lines. Dr. Englander will also be conducting a professional development workshop for all North Andover teachers and staff.

Please contact NAJointSpeaker@gmail.com for more information.

The Yellow Dress - Performed by Deana’s Educational Theater

The Yellow Dress is a one woman play that stimulates a thought-provoking discussion about relationships. It was developed and produced by an organization called Deana’s Educational Theater, a non-profit organization that uses theater and interactive trainings to teach audiences of all ages about dating violence, harassment and respect.

The program portrays the progression of an abusive relationship, starting with young love and ending in tragedy. It consisted of a 30 minute performance and a 30 minute interactive discussion with the actors. The play is intended to help students and parents recognize the different aspects of teen dating violence, how to identify the early warning signs, and where to seek help if they or a friend are involved in a violent relationship.

This same program was shown to all high school students earlier in the day.

Too Much Of a Good Thing: Raising Children of Character in an Indulgent Age

Dan Kindlon, Ph.D.

Harvard Psychologist and Author, Dan Kindlon, Ph.D. wrote his best seller of the aforementioned title in 1999, but the lessons still resonate with our kids (and ourselves) today. We all want what's best for our children, but many of today’s parents are overly indulgent and permissive, and hyper focused on protecting today’s young people from failure and disappointment. Dr. Kindlon argues that our society's focus on high academic and athletic achievement has replaced the development of a strong moral compass, making it harder for kids to accept responsibility for their actions, and in turn, impairing key connections within relationships. In this discussion, Dr. Kindlon will impart practical advice for parents who want to avoid misguided giving, as well as discuss developing a "good inner parent": one that will set fair, consistent limits for children.

Talking with Your Child about Sex, Responsibility and Values

Sally Fogel, M.Ed

The Joint Speaker Series forum “What Every Parent Should Know About Social Hosting” will start playing on the local CAM Ed. stations starting the week of April 11.  If you missed attending the forum, please check the CAM website or local TV channel for the dates and times the program will be shown.

http://www2.northandovercam.org

Comcast Channel 10

Verizon Channel 28

October 2011  Curt Hinson, Ph.D. 

The Trouble-free Playground program includes a variety of games and activities, as well as effective management and discipline techniques, that not only help diminish common playground problems, but also help improve overall school motivation and behavior.  This program helps to:  reduce occurrences of BULLYING; build CHARACTER, RESPECT, and RESPONSIBILITY among children; and helps to create a safe environment on the playground and in the classroom.

October 2011  Dr. Michael Bradley

Dr. Bradley is a licensed clinical psychologist witha doctural degree in psychology.  Dr. Bradely's respect-based philosophy is at the heart of his presentations he has given to thousands of parents who are seeking ways to communicate with their adolescent children.  www.docmikebradley.com

March 2011    Matt Bellace

The students will see a presentation by a youth, motivational speaker on March 3 as part of this alcohol awareness/social hosting topic.  He is Matt Bellace and the joint speaker series is helping to pay the speaking fee along with the youth center, NAPD and high school.  All grades at the high school will see him and the 8^th graders at NAMS and St. Mike’s.  His website is www.mattbellace.com. The aim is to make this event positive and encompass all parts of the community and we are getting a lot of enthusiastic support.

March 2011   What Every Parent Should Know About Social Hosting Liability

The evening of March 10 is a parent-community forum titled “What Every Parent Should Know About Social Hosting Liability”.  Participants in the forum are:  North Andover High School staff, a representative from the law firm Campbell, Campbell, Edwards and Conroy, a representative from the district attorney's office. and the North Andover police dept.

January 2011   Fostering Respect and Responsibility in Children

Joint Speaker Series presents Rick Irving, LICSW who will be speaking to parents on the topic of Fostering Respect and Responsibility in Children. In this workshop, Rick will discuss why children act in ways that exhibit disrespect towards others.  He will explore strategies and techniques that parents can use to encourage respectful and responsible behavior in our children at home and at school.  Please join us for the evening and bring questions, examples, worries and frustrations.  You will leave with tools and language to use the next day, and the confidence to try them out with your children.

November 2010  Shut Up About Your Perfect Kid! The Movement of Imperfection

Today, more than ever, our society is obsessed with achievement and perfection.  This is especially true when it comes to our children.  It seems you can’t go anywhere without hearing about how someone’s child scored the winning goal or reading a bumper sticker that says, “My honor student loves me.”  So what’s a parent of a child who’s not a star athlete or Rhodes Scholar to do?  You can join The Movement of Imperfection.

May 2010  John Halligan- Bullying, Cyberbullying and Youth Depression

John lost his 13 year old son to suicide after being bullied by classmates.  All middle school students attended an assembly by John during the day and were engaged in discussions before and after the presentation.  The evening presentation for all

N. Andover parents was a timely, relevant and touching presentation covering the lessons learned too late for John’s family.

March 2010  Lynn Lyons LICSW “Worried About Your Worrier”

Parents learned skills and information to: accept and manage “normal” worries and transitions; calm and control the physical symptoms of anxiety; choose exploration of the world over avoidance; recognize and change thought patterns of anxious thinkers.  Lynn showed that parents and children can learn how to manage fears, interrupting and even preventing the “worrying cycle” of thoughts and behaviors.

November 2009 Joani Geltman, MSW Adolescent Psychology

This program provided tips on how to successfully parent your teen or tween.  The information shared with parents included: how to teen proof your home and relationship, set appropriate limits, identify and deal with experimention, and identify risk factors.

2012 TAKE 25 Poster Contest

The 2^nd annual TAKE 25 Poster Contest was a collaboration of the North Andover Police Department, the North Andover School Department, Building Respectful Communities Committee, and Lifetouch School Portraits joined with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to promote the TAKE 25 campaign.  TAKE 25 is a national child safety campaign that encourages parents and guardians to take 25 minutes out of their day to talk to their children about safety.  Grades 4 and 5 were asked to create posters concerning internet safety.  There was a winner chosen from each elementary school.  The winning posters were framed and displayed at the North Andover Police Department for the Take 25 reception.  Senator Tarr and Representative Torrisi presented citations to the winning artists, Chief Gallagher presented “Officers for a Day”, and Lifetouch Portraits awarded each child with a gift card.  A beautiful Take 25 cake was donated by Cakes by Design for the reception, which was held at the North Andover Police Station on May 16, 2012.  Each winner was congratulated and photographed with their individual message of Internet Safety.    Please see pictures below.....

The Take 25 winners:

Raphaela Machado from Atkinson Elementary School

Maddy Scribner from Kittredge Elementary School

Camilla Denney from Sargent Elementary School

Julia Ward from Thomson Elementary School

Abby Gerron from Franklin Elementary School

Thomas O’Brien from Saint Michael School

2011 TAKE 25 CONTEST

The TAKE 25 Poster Contest was a collaboration of the North Andover Police Department, the North Andover School Department, Building Respectful Community Committee, and Community Voices joined with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to promote the TAKE 25 campaign.  TAKE 25 is a national child safety campaign that encourages parents and guardians to take 25 minutes out of their day to talk to their children about safety.  Grades 4 and 5 were asked to create posters concerning internet safety.  There was a winner chosen from each elementary school.  The winning posters were framed and displayed at the North Andover Police Department for the Open House ceremonies.  Senator Baddour and Community Voices presented certificates to the winning artists at the Open House. 

 The winners:

• Zoe Lathrop from Atkinson Elementary School

• Liana Spino from Kittredge Elementary School

• Tabitha Gilligan from Sargent Elementary School

• Katrina Brown from Thomson Elementary School

• Hari Sundara Raman from Franklin Elementary School