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OUR MISSION AND VISION

To provide innovative and effective comprehensive health education to children and teens to prepare them for life’s challenges.

 

 

Many habits and attitudes are acquired during childhood and early adulthood.  The subsequent behaviors have immediate and long-term consequences impacting individuals as well as the society.  The increasing decline of the overall health of our young is becoming a national crisis.  Many develop health and behavior problems previously associated with adults, such as Type II Diabetes, various obesity related ailments, sexually transmitted diseases, as well as depression and destructive behaviors, to name a few.  The need to reverse this alarming trend is acute and imperative not only to bring up a healthier next generation but also to avoid bankrupting the already over-taxed health care system. 

 

Many schools and families today lack necessary resources to provide adequate health education that is crucial to the well-being and healthy development of our children to becoming productive and responsible adults.  In California, for instance, most schools do not offer any comprehensive health education programs.  Attempts to address important health issues are often scattered and piece meal at best.  Though "adequate health education" for kids is "mandated" by the State, yet no resources are provided to the schools.  Physical education teachers, nurses, or science teachers are to teach health education, but they are usually too busy or not knowledgeable enough to do so.  We have initiated an innovative pilot program, Comprehensive Health Education for Life, in delivering health education to young students in a few local elementary and high schools in the San Francisco Bay Area.  Its success has led us to believe that our program with its unique features could be a solution to this pressing problem.  

 

An ideal and effective health education program needs to be comprehensive, scientific, understandable, and needs to empass the whole person by integrating all the different organ systems including the mind.  It also needs to be engaging and interesting to the young.  Our Proposed Project aims to meet this important and urgent need by the design and implementation of an innovative health education program that will be proved to be effective, can be integrated into the regular school curriculum, and easily used by children, parents, and educators alike.

 

 

WHO WE ARE

 

This site was developed in collaboration with Stanford University and H.E.L.P. for Kids (Health Education for Life – Partnerships for Kids, “H.E.L.P.”, 94-3305587), a a non-profit, tax-exempt 501c(3) organization.

 

In 1998, H.E.L.P. for Kids was founded by Dr. Tien-Wen Wiedmann. Since then, the organization has been working with a number of public schools in the San Francisco Bay Area by identifying specific areas of educational needs and developing innovative programs to meet them.  These programs are created and delivered by well-educated, knowledgeable, and caring individuals from the community.

 

 

OUR HISTORY

 

Dr. TW Wiedmann and medical students from Stanford University piloted a comprehensive health education program for 6th graders in Taft Elementary School in Redwood City, California, in 1992.  The enthusiastic reception by the children, the teachers, and the school administrators has led to a long partnership with the Redwood City School District and the Sequoia Union High School District and the expansion of our program to reach some children and teens in multiple grades.  These school districts serve mostly economically and educationally challenged neighborhoods.  The increasing requests from other schools for the Program is another strong testament to its need and acceptance by those it serves.

 

With our current program, we design innovative and comprehensive education curricula, in the form of videos, on health issues that are vital to the physical and emotional well-being of the children and teens.  The education curricula are science based and emphasize understanding of important concepts. In addition to teaching knowledge, it also helps the young develop skills to think logically and critically, make informed and sensible decisions for themselves, and take responsibility for their actions. 

 

 

OUR CURRICULUM

 

The objective is to teach comprehensive health education to the young through online courses with videos to build and achieve health literacy.    

 

KEY AND UNIQUE FEATURES

 

Philosophy and Strategy

 

  • Empower the young to make informed decisions for themselves and take responsibility for their own actions by arming them with knowledge and skills. 

 

  • Teach the concept of health by emphasizing the principle of the Whole Person where all organ systems interact and affect one another including the mind.  Emphasize maintenance of health and prevention of illness.

 

Design and Delivery of Digital Health Education Curricula

 

  • Our science based curricula teach the children logical and critical thinking, character building and problem solving skills to make informed choices.

 

  • The videos, comprehensive and succinct, can be easily integrated into the regular classroom curriculum at school to be taught by teachers, or viewed at home by parents and kids alike.  They will be made available through YouTube to facilitate easy access.

 

  • The different sets of curricula address issues vital and relevant to the physical and emotional well-being of the young.  They include teaching videos of the concepts and exercises emphasizing application of the concepts to real life situations.

 

  • Health core topics include nutrition, exercise, healthy weight, cardiovascular health, sleep, emotional health, tobacco use, alcohol abuse, substance abuse, puberty/adolescence, teen-age pregnancy and contraception, and sexually transmitted diseases. 

 

  • Disease based curricula focus on what the condition is, how it is diagnosed, how it is treated/managed, and how it can be prevented.

  • Practical videos include "how to" series, such as "How to make the most of a doctor's visit", "How to read a blood test". 

 

Anticipated Outcomes – Through the learning of the curricula, the young will:

 

  • Have acquired a solid understanding of health issues, physical and emotional, in a comprehensive and scientific manner.  This knowledge will help them take charge of their own health by maintaining good health,  preventing preventable illnesses, and managing disorders and diseases effectively with the help of medical professionals.

 

  • Have developed skills and attitudes that will help them make informed decisions and choices for themselves, and take responsibility for their actions not only about health matters but also about life in general.

ABOUT US

© 2015 by H.E.L.P for KIDS, sponsored by UstartX Inc.

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