Author | Permission to Use Info
Practicing teaching with real students at Kidpower Core Program Training
About 10 years ago, I was walking down the street near my home and a car pulled up next to me. The young woman driving the car leaned out and said, “You’re Irene from Kidpower, right?”
I smiled and said, “Why yes I am!!”
She said, “A long ago, when I was a little girl, you taught me Kidpower! It was an awesome class! What I learned saved me from big problems, lots of times! Thank you!”
I thanked her for telling me and paused a moment after she drove off, thinking, “What else would have such an important and positive impact on someone’s life that I could teach such a short amount of time?”
In January 2017, people from all over the world will be coming to our annual Kidpower Core Program Training in Santa Cruz. This six-day program provides an immersion into learning how to use our Kidpower Positive Practice Method to teach children and their adults a wide range of skills for staying safe with people in ways that are effective, empowering, and FUN!
Although people can apply to train and start learning with us at any time, the annual six-day Core Program Training is a required part of our certified instructor training process and includes the opportunity to practice teaching with real students with the support of our highly experienced trainers.
If you would like to learn how to teach with Kidpower, please take a look at our Core Program Training page, watch the #KidpowerMoment videos from some of our instructors, and let us know asap. The application deadline is December 15th, and next year’s training is from January 26 to 31.
The “power” of Kidpower lies in the exceptional people from all over the world who have chosen to teach and provide services under our auspices. Our certified instructor training program requires a major long-term commitment on the part of the individual and of our organization. Because we are vouching for the people who we certify, we provide a high level of training and a great deal of ongoing support.
What holds our community together is the purpose and joy that being part of Kidpower adds to our lives.
We understand that most people are not able to make this level of commitment. For this reason, we offer many other resources for anyone wanting to learn how to use and teach Kidpower skills on their own including: free community or paid professional membership in our extensive online library; our curriculum teaching books; workshops for parents and guardians; trainings of professionals for educators and other adult leaders; coaching sessions by phone and video from anywhere in the world; and our 3-day Skills for Child Protection Advocates Institute.
If you or someone you know would like to explore whether the possibility that becoming trained and certified to teach with Kidpower will work for you, we will be delighted to hear from you!
If you would like more information about our other resources, we will also be happy to help.
Finally, if you are interested in teaching teens and adults of all ages and abilities, we will be offering a Fullpower Core Program Training April 27 to May 2, 2017.
Published: November 3, 2016 | Last Updated: November 3, 2016
Irene van der Zande, Kidpower Founder and Executive Director
Kidpower Founder and Executive Irene van der Zande is a master at teaching safety through stories and practices and at inspiring others to do the same. Her child protection and personal safety expertise has been featured by USA Today, CNN, Today Moms, the LA Times, and The Wall Street Journal. Publications include: cartoon-illustrated Kidpower Safety Comics and Kidpower Teaching Books curriculum; Bullying: What Adults Need to Know and Do to Keep Kids Safe; the Relationship Safety Skills Handbook for Teens and Adults; Earliest Teachable Moment: Personal Safety for Babies, Toddlers, and Preschoolers; The Kidpower Book for Caring Adults: Personal Safety, Self-Protection, Confidence, and Advocacy for Young People, and the Amazon Best Seller Doing Right by Our Kids: Protecting Child Safety at All Levels.
