As the holiday season approaches, families might reach out to educators looking for resources to support learning over school break. By leveraging high-quality, vetted resources, you can ensure that the school-to-home connection stays strong, even during winter break. Today on the blog, I’m excited to share some resources for the holidays from the team at Ask, Listen, Learn.
If you’ve stopped by the blog before, you know that I’m a big fan of everything that the Ask, Listen, Learn underage drinking prevention program has to offer. When you craft newsletters for families with resources for the holidays, you’ll certainly want to include some of their materials. Ask, Listen, Learn is an initiative designed to empower kids to say “YES” to a healthy lifestyle and “NO” to underage drinking.
Let’s explore how these resources can make a difference during the holidays and beyond!
Why the School-to-Home Connection Matters
When educators and families use shared messages and consistent language, they reinforce important lessons, values, and expectations. This consistency certainly helps children make informed decisions and understand the “why” behind the rules. By integrating Ask, Listen, Learn materials into your classroom and winter break communications, you’re providing families with the tools they need to start and sustain these critical conversations.
They have lots of resources to use in your classroom and to share with families before a holiday break. On their website you’ll find infographics, videos, and conversation guides. These materials are designed to make it easier for parents to discuss the science of the developing brain and the impact of alcohol on kids.
Easy Ways to Share Resources with Families
The holiday season is a great time to recommend resources to families. If you’re already writing a newsletter you can drop these links into your message. Or if you don’t have a monthly or weekly email you typically send, you might want to send a special greeting before a holiday or school break with these resources.
Here are a few great options from the team at Ask, Listen, Learn:
- Watch the “Snowman Video” which provides an engaging analogy for building conversations about underage drinking. It’s super short and breaks down big ideas into easy to digest content.
- Explore the “Knowing the Facts” infographic to understand the science of the developing brain. It includes lots of quick facts on the important role parents and caregivers play in helping their children make healthy choices.
- Use the conversation guides on the Ask, Listen, Learn website to spark meaningful discussions. These include sample questions families can use in their conversations with families.
Building Conversations Like a Snowman
The snowman analogy from Ask, Listen, Learn I mentioned above, is a powerful way to think about fostering these conversations. Just as building a snowman starts with a sturdy base, conversations about underage drinking begin with a strong foundation of facts and values. I really like this analogy that they’ve shared and here’s a quick rundown:
- The Foundation: Start with science. Help kids understand how alcohol affects their developing brain and body. By confidently sharing these facts, parents establish a solid base of knowledge and trust.
- The Heart: The middle section represents conversations from the heart. Connecting the risks of underage drinking to safety shows kids how much their well-being matters. This is also where parents can encourage kids to trust their instincts when faced with tough decisions.
- The Head: The top of the snowman symbolizes curiosity and learning. Parents can seize teachable moments, ask thoughtful questions, and adapt conversations as kids grow older.
This snowman analogy beautifully illustrates how small, meaningful conversations can snowball into lifelong habits and values. You can find the full video featuring this analogy on YouTube and additional resources on the Ask, Listen, Learn website.
Sharing Resources for the Holidays
As educators, you can play a vital role in fostering these school-to-home connections. Here are a few ideas for incorporating Ask, Listen, Learn resources into your plans:
- Winter Newsletters: Include links to videos and infographics in your holiday communications to families.
- Classroom Discussions: Introduce the science of the developing brain in age-appropriate ways, using materials from Ask, Listen, Learn.
- Resource Sharing: Direct families to the Ask, Listen, Learn website for conversation guides and additional support materials.
This holiday season, you can strengthen the bond between school and home by providing families with tools to guide their children toward healthy decisions. The resources from Ask, Listen, Learn make it easier than ever to start these important conversations.
Ready to get started? Visit, Ask, Listen, Learn to explore their full range of resources and make this winter break a meaningful one for the families in your community.
