As the weeks of summer are winding down, many families are beginning to plan for the upcoming school year. This is an ideal time to look at your student’s sleep schedule and see if it might need some tweaking. While sleep is imperative in mental, physical, social, and emotional development, kids often view it as […]
Louie’s Law, also known as the Illinois Youth Education and Drug Overdose Prevention Act, was passed in July of 2023 as a guide rather than a mandate. The law is named for Louie Miceli, who died from a drug overdose in 2012. His mother’s hope was that these reforms would allow young people to make […]
Since 2019, the month of May has been recognized as Sex Ed for All Month, an effort put forward by numerous sexual education organizations that are dedicated towards advocating for sexual health, rights, and increased education. Young people having access to quality sex education has been found to improve social-emotional learning skills and help them […]
For adolescents going through puberty, it’s never going to be an easy time. But for those experiencing their period for the first time, it can be even more difficult due to things like lack of education and knowledge on the menstrual cycle, the social stigma that surrounds periods, and the issue of being able to […]
The tobacco industry has a new way to target and influence young people to use their products, in the form of oral nicotine pouches with one of the most popular brands being used called Zyn. Because these pouches do not contain any actual tobacco leaf, the FDA does not classify or regulate them as smokeless […]
Though the opioid epidemic has been well publicized, the landscape of this epidemic is ever evolving and changing; and ultimately the prevalence of these harmful drugs persists. So how do we support our young people in developing an awareness and understanding of the dangers of opioids? Increased education. It appears that young people are more […]
Whether at home, in healthcare, the classroom, or the workplace the importance of self-advocacy is undeniable. However, even for an adult, self-advocating isn’t always easy. The ability to “speak-up for [ourselves] and the things that are important to [us]” is a necessary life skill. As young people’s trusted adults we can both teach and model […]
A reflection on 2023 and outlook for 2024 from our Executive Director: Barb Thayer With 2024 quickly approaching, it has given me pause to think about how I want to start the new year, both personally and professionally. With every year comes challenges and opportunities and for Candor 2023 has been a year in which […]
For many students, their first experience with school-based sex education happens in fourth or fifth grade with a lesson(s) about puberty. While not widespread, some schools include age – appropriate sex education beginning in kindergarten. My first career was in early childhood education and I found it was common to have daily interactions with the […]
With students well into a new school year and exploring the excitement of new learning opportunities, friendships, and extra curriculars it is inevitable that at some point, they will hit a bump in the road and experience a setback or failure. As human beings, especially kids, we sometimes tie self-worth or our value to […]
