A Reflection on The Dare Program

Learning D.A.R.E was interesting and fun. Through the D.A.R.E program, we are learning to make good decisions, avoid violence, and most importantly, be drug-free. Therefore, it is so important to stop young people before they start. What I learned in D.A.R.E was not only not using drugs, but also facing the challenges in life. Like making good choices. I learned that life is all about choices and you can choose to be good or bad, but remember every choice has its own consequence and some of the choices we make determine our future. Now moving on to, the D.A.R.E decision-making model. The D.A.R.E decision-making model stands for Define, Assess, Respond, Evaluate. By using DD MM I will teach myself and my friends to first define the problem so they clearly see what they are up against. Then, I will tell them to assess their choices, so they don’t respond impulsively. After they make their choices, I would let them evaluate their decision to see whether they made the best choice. What was so cool was that the D.A.R.E decision-making model can take part in our everyday life.

It is important learning how to say “No” to drugs, alcohol, and violence because they can harm you mentally and physically. They can ruin your life and cause you to miss opportunities of a lifetime. Some ways to avoid these situations are walking away, strength in numbers, and avoiding the situation. These are all helpful ways to resist situations like drugs or cigarettes. At some purpose in life, everybody has felt peer pressure. For example, when you are playing at recess and you are pressured to pick a good friend to be on your team or pick people who were better players and everyone keeps shouting at you to pick the best player. Obviously, we want to be a good friend, but everyone was pressuring you to do what they wanted you to do. It wasn’t a matter of life or death, it didn’t involve drugs or alcohol but it helped me to understand that peer pressure is some things that will influence me if I don’t keep in mind what’s necessary.

I’m glad the D.A.R.E program helped with more skills for getting out of uncomfortable situations without making a big scene. The skills that I have learned by being in the D.A.R.E. program will help me for the rest of my life. One of the most important skills I learned was saying “no” to anything that has to do with alcohol, drugs, and violence. I also learned the strength in numbers. If someone is trying to persuade me to do something that I know is wrong, it helps me to have others backing me up and reminding me to stay true to what I believe.