Bringing H.O.PE. to Arizona Schools
WHAT
Honoring our Peers Every Day, or H.O.P.E., teaches children and teens how to honor their peers through the lens of childhood cancer. Teachers and parents can learn as well. Facts about the realities of cancer are taught along with simple, everyday strategies that help transition the survivors and siblings back into the classroom.
Developed in 2016 and tied to the Common Core, Science, and Counseling standards, the program answers many questions about cancer which breaks down barriers so that youth can talk openly with each other about this deadly disease.
HOW
The 55-minute, interactive, age appropriate presentation (K-1, 2-3, 4-6 and 7-12) can be done assembly or classroom style in the school, at your church, with your friends and family, or with your child’s sports team. H.O.P.E. can be offered Face to Face in Arizona or through a webinar by Children’s Cancer Network via Directions Training! Both formats are interactive, age-appropriate, engaging, and well received by the participants. H.O.P.E. educates youth about childhood cancer while empowering them to make a difference for childhood cancer survivors and all classmates.
The program has three components – education, compassion and action – that together build understanding and lifelong skills of respect and acceptance for all people in school and the community.
The H.O.P.E. team also offers strategies for how youth can become a H.O.P.E. ambassador at their school. In addition, there an important connection between H.O.P.E. and STEM education by inviting students to apply their knowledge of science in a real-world environment.
Resource boxes with pre and post activities are available to participants. Concrete examples of activities are supplied under each standard that are aligned with Common Core, Science and Counseling standards. The Ways to H.O.P.E. poster is available to display where they would like to do so.
WHEN AND WHERE
The H.O.P.E. program takes to the road every weekday during the school year and summer school and is also available by webinar to schools, families, and community groups. If you are interested in scheduling a HOPE presentation for you or your group, please complete the form below. If you would like to participate in an online webinar scheduled for individuals, please visit the Children’s Cancer Network calendar and click on the registration link on the date on which you choose to participate in the H.O.P.E. session offered. For more details, please call 480-398-1564 or email sharon.wozny@childrenscancernetwork.org.
WHY
Cancer – especially childhood cancer – is a scary subject.
Unfortunately, the number of children diagnosed with cancer continues to grow. Nationwide, more than 16,000 children from birth to age 19 are diagnosed with cancer, and cure rates for some pediatric cancers remain below 50 percent. Cancer kills more children than AIDS, asthma, diabetes, cystic fibrosis and congenital anomalies combined, yet pediatric cancer continues to be one of the most overlooked and underfunded categories of all cancer research.
Along with the diagnosis are myths associated with the disease. For example, upon returning to school after months of treatment for leukemia, one child was barraged with questions: “Is your cancer gone?” “Will your hair grow back?” “Can I catch the disease?”
The H.O.P.E. program helps address these and many other issues in an age-appropriate, interactive manner, without focusing on a specific child.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT H.O.P.E.
Since the program’s inception, H.O.P.E. program volunteers have reached 3000 students at 13 Arizona schools. Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.
I still get goosebumps when I read the letters from kids after your H.O.P.E. visit. I will never forget how Ben’s attitude changed from quiet apprehension to joy at the thought of returning to school.
Great work. I thought that it went very well and the students were very engaged.
The past H.O.P.E. presentation for Sophia’s siblings was wonderful! Upon leaving the school, the principal said that a student went up to her and said 'I learned so much today, I will do my best to be nice to people in my school.' I just love attending the different schools and observing the kiddos different interactions with their fellow classmates. H.O.P.E.’s mission is such a simple concept, yet it seems to be practiced so rarely, mutual respect and kindness are always in style! When these values are presented as a visual and interactive experience for the school aged student, they are something that is easy to understand and incorporate into their daily lives.
Your program is so comprehensive and interactive that it grasps the audience’s attention and heart strings. School administrators are constantly amazed by how smoothly the presentation flows with all aspects of effective classroom management embedded into learning incorporating all types of learning styles. Students not only walk away with knowledge on what cancer is and how it affects their peers but also a sense of empowerment on how they can be a positive change in other’s lives.