ACT - Adults & Children Together - Against Violence

Children seldom misquote.  In fact, they usually repeat word for word what you shouldn't have said.  ~ Author Unknown

ACT - Adults & Children Together - Against Violence is a grassroots violence prevention program developed by the American Psychological Association (APA) and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The ACT curriculum is geared to adults who work with children and parents/caregivers. The program's content is based on over four decades of research on:
* child development,
* the influence of risk factors for developing patterns of violent and aggressive behaviors,
* the importance of developing protective factors and skills for nonviolent behaviors,
* the effectiveness of community-based interventions.

The four broad focus areas of the curriculum are social problem solving skills, anger management, discipline and media literacy. Within each focus area topics are broken into typical expectations for different childhood age groups.

TRAININGS:

Currently, PEI Kids is holding two-day seminars to teach adults the ACT curriculum and to train them how to present the curriculum to other community members in their own sphere of reference. At the seminars participants will learn:
* basic elements of child development
* roots and consequences of violence in children's lives
* early violence prevention skills: anger management, social problem solving, positive discipline, and media literacy

WORKSHOPS:

Shorter presentations or workshops focusing on early violence prevention skills have been developed based on segments of the ACT curriculum. They are described in detail on the Adult Workshop page.

PARENT & CAREGIVER COURSE:

PEI Kids also conducts 5-session parent/caregiver courses in conjunction with other local organizations. The courses are comprised of5, two-hour sessions based on the ACT curriculum. Topics include social problem solving, anger management, discipline and media literacy. The course intends for parents and caregivers to leave each session with a better understanding of the development of their child(ren), how they impact their child(ren) and with tools to help modify their personal behavior in order to positively impact the well being of their child(ren). For additional information on these ongoing courses please contact PEI Kids' Communications & Outreach Associate.

Mercer County
ACT - Adults & Children Together - Against Violence
Coalition

April Aaronson
Dept. of Human Services of Cape May County

MaryJo Abbondanza
St. Francis Medical Center

Lauren Agoratus
Family Voices

Tom Brown
Mercer County Bar Foundation

Michael Capp
The Goddard Schools

Lisa Cheng

Tracey Destribats
Yardville National Bank

Lisa Forrester
Harmony Schools, Inc.

Evelyn Gill
PEI Kids

Stephanie Gray
YMCA of Hopewell Valley

Keith V. Hamilton
Mercer County Freeholder

Patricia Hart
WomanSpace, Inc.

Judy Hutton
Princeton YWCA

Joyce Kersey
Children’s Futures

Rachel Klein
The Office of the Child Advocate of New Jersey

Craig Lafferty
United Way of Greater Mercer County

Anne Law
Rider University

Terry McEwen
State of New Jersey Department of Banking & Insurance

Deborah Megaro
Capitol County Children’s Collaborative

Elizabeth Muoio
Mercer County Freeholder

David Quinlan, Esq.
Private Practice

Marci Rubin
West Windsor Plainsboro Community Education

Jonathan Savage
Maguire Group, Inc.

Michele Siekerka
Mercer County Chamber of Commerce

Kristy Sugg
Kiddie Academy

Nancy Thomson
Child Care Connection, Inc.

Trisha Thorme
Princeton University

Andrew Zalescik
AAA Mid-Atlantic