The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

LEARNING TO STOP VIO LEN CE Donors can support education In 2018, as Halton Women's P lace em barks on 40 years, the com m unity is invited to b e p a rt of the Ruby anniversary c a m p a ig n that signifies the future of ending violence against w om en. The future is with children. The Ruby C am paign will specifically raise funds to continue the Public Education a n d A dvocacy Program a n d rea c h more kids. With no governm ent funding the program relies on com m unity support. For m ore information on being a Ruby Donor a n d w hat our recognition opportunities a re for e a c h level, p lease call Carm Bozzo, D evelopm ent M an ag er a t 905-332-1200 ext. 222 or email cbozzo@ haltonw om ensp lace.com E d u c a t io n p r o g r a m h a s r e a c h e d 3 6 ,0 0 0 s tu d e n ts in H a lto n o v e r fc5ur y e a rs Educating children about gender equality and creating an understanding that power and control in abusive relationships takes many forms, are the overarching themes of the Public Education and Advocacy Program offered by Halton Women's Place. Available to students from Grades 1 to 12, the program reached more than 13,000 stu­ dents in the 2016-2017 school year. Its reach has expanded significantly over the past four years thanks to private donor funding. There are now four educators and more presentations have been developed including resources for Grades 1 to 5. To date, more than 36,000 stu­ dents have taken part in approximately half of the schools in Halton. Laurie Hepburn, Manager of Programs and Services notes that not all parents are comfort­ able discussing topics like healthy friendships, relationships and dating with their children and teens. "Our hope for the program is that these con­ versations will extend beyond the classroom and carried on at home, perhaps around the dinner table," says Hepburn. According to public education team lead Nicole Chapman, "Recognizing healthy, unhealthy and abusive relationships starts young," In Grade 8 we discuss "red flags" of unhealthy/abusive behav­ iour, and a tool called the "relation­ ship spectrum" helps us differentiate between healthy and unhealthy be­ haviours. For example, we can look at tilings such as decision-making in relationships, or how responsibilities or finances are shared/divided to give us a sense of equality in the relation­ ship," explains Chapman. For younger students, from Grades 1 to 8, the focus is on social emotional learning, such as developing the skills needed for healthy friendships (conflict resolution, active listening, understanding body language, respect) as well as safety tips such as safe places in the community, online safety and safe use of technology. High school students learn about healthy dating relationships through topics like sexual consent and coercion, break ups, relationships in the media, domestic violence and the law and the impact of domestic violence on mental heal tli. "When discussing sexual consent vs co­ ercion, communication is a huge focus. As a class we discuss scenarios in "Our tagline which an assault occurs, and • |_i _ examine why it is considered lb n t f U I I I ly scxua( assauit under the law," Relationships explains Chapman, adding -- l - lo n l+ h \ / that discussions also include ' whether age or position of au- Communities, thority or trust is a factor and and w g reallv arc tliey legally able to con_ ' sent given the circumstances. believe that." "We also examine the role - Laurie Hepburn of potential bystanders and the idea of awkward conver­ sations. Finally we discuss the role of 'words or conduct' in communicating around issues of sexual activity. There is also a male ally program, Engage- MENt, which targets young men as allies in ending violence against women. "Not all men are part of the problem, but all men can be part of the solution. It's overdue that we engage boys and men as leaders in vio­ lence prevention," says Chapman. "Our tagline is Healthy Relationships = Healthy Communities, and we really believe that.," Chapman said. Jensen Tire Taking care of Oakville and Mississauga winter tire needs for 30+ years. Conveniently located just south of Royal Windsor on Winston Churchill. Great w inter traction and life on snow and ice Michelin® X-Ice®Xi3™ JENSEN TIRE SALES & SERVICES LTD. 928 WINSTON CHURCHILL BLVD 905-338-9919 jensentire.ca O ) | O akville B eaver | Thursday, February 8, 2018 insidehalton.com LEARNING TO STOP VIOLENCE Taking care of Oakville and Mississauga winter tire needs for 30+ years. Conveniently located just south of Royal Windsor on Winston Churchill. Great winter traction and life on snow and ice Michelin® X-Ice®Xi3™ JENSEN TIRE SALES & SERVICES LTD. 928 WINSTON CHURCHILL BLVD 905-338-9919 jensentire.ca