Aiming to give youth important first aid and injury prevention skills, the Canadian Red Cross has updated its Youth program to give youth greater confidence in caring for themselves and others.
Often, youth are on their own for short periods of time, perhaps after school before parents come home from work or at shopping complexes such as the local mall. Stay Safe! is a new course designed for
youth aged 9 to 13 years, in order to provide skills and knowledge to increase their confidence in staying safe on their own within their community. The program offers age-appropriate
first aid knowledge and skills to reduce injury to self or others, should an emergency occur.
“It’s the first time we have done programming targeting youth to stay safe on their own within their communities,” said Don Marentette, Director of the First Aid Education Program. “It was a missing piece. Often, due to other commitments in the family, youth may be unattended for a period of time. We’re providing the tools to build resiliency to stay safe on their own.”
Stay Safe! is in addition to our
Babysitting program, where youth are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to care for children. The Babysitting program has also been updated with a greater emphasis on first aid skills. The course provides essential content on managing difficult behaviours, youth leadership and professional conduct as a babysitter, with updated curriculum (complete with new science) providing improved learning when it comes to giving the appropriate care in the event of an emergency.
“The Babysitting and Stay Safe! programs complement each other, and build upon the other, but are completed separately,” noted Marentette.
We are also looking for Youth Leaders to help train others in various youth initiatives. Youth Leaders are provided tools to deliver youth programming in a safe environment, noted Marentette.
“Youth Leaders are youth or teachers working with youth – it fits nicely in elementary classrooms,” he added. “The Youth Leader curriculum was completely revised and we’ve engaged technology so it’s easy to become a Youth Leader.”
All new Youth Leaders will be given the same assistance as other Canadian Red Cross Instructors, and will be supported through our Instructor Development Centres. This revised approach will ensure Youth Leaders are fully supported through their teaching experience requirements, as well as when it comes to professional development opportunities, future recertification, and updates.
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