GP Voice for Life
11449 92 Street T8X 1P4 Grande Prairie, AB, Canada

Would you let your child drive a car without taking Driver’s Ed? The same principle applies with a smart device. Brain Defense: Digital Safety is a fun, eng...aging video-based curriculum that will teach your child the healthy habits and refusal skills they need to avoid the dangers at their fingertips. Defend your child today and take advantage of this limited-time offer https://braindefense.protectyoungminds.org/ See more

Excellent discussion starter for parents of tweens and teens. https://marie-vincent.org//what-would-you-have-done-with-/

Today is Canada’s first National Human Trafficking Awareness day! Many people have long advocated for this day in Canada. As Former MP and human trafficking survivor’s advocate Joy Smith said, education is our best weapon against human trafficking. Watch this short video and realize that human trafficking is happening in your community. Don’t be drowned in despair, instead focus on hope that is coming from survivor advocates like this one, and take the next step to make a dif...ference even if it is small. We can take these steps to make Canada less hospitable to traffickers... 1. Educate ourselves and our friends, you can even start by sharing this video. 2. Report suspicious activity to the national hotline. 3. Support local programs that spread awareness or support survivors. This video is appropriate for teens as well. https://www.theglobeandmail.com//video-how-a-sex-traffick/

Even though there are many studies that correlate excess online activities and social media use with depression, there are also studies that reflect tech use benefits especially during this past year of COVID restrictions. So how can we maximize the positive impact of technology in our family, and set up boundaries so that tech does not consume all family time? Here is a great tool that parents can use to set up intentional tech use plans. https://www.healthychildren.org/Engli//Pages/default.aspx

Around the ages of 8-11 girls will start to experience the changes of puberty. We often talk about the physical changes but do we let girls (and boys) know that their brain is changing too? As a result, feelings feel intensified; sad feels more sad, happy feels more happy, anxious feels more anxious, the desire to fit in feels stronger, loss feels more devastating. This is a normal development stage because the amygdala, a key part of the "feeling brain" is growing signifi...cantly. This is an excellent book to spark conversations and equip our kids with tools to process those big emotions so they don't just become stuck. This is an excellent book for girls, but let's not forgot our boys either. They experience the same brain changes during puberty and mixed in with the flood of testosterone which often sparks aggressive emotions that can be scary, boys need our support and tools to practice healthy emotional outlets, just as much as girls do! What are some strategies that you use to deal with big emotions that you can share with your preteens and teens?

Great News! We now have teaching videos available for anyone to view! Click on this link and go to our GP Voice for Life YouTube channel to see more content like this! https://youtu.be/TrbMx97tvXQ

If your high school student is interested in Canadian Human Trafficking awareness, this is an excellent website to start with. Defend Dignity is also an official Canadian resource for survivors who have experienced abuse through the sharing of intimate images or videos on the world's largest pornography website. https://youtu.be/_fQrUovOcCA

Here is another great resource for parents to use as they teach children online safety. https://www.commonsensemedia.org//privacy-and-internet-saf

January is human trafficking awareness month. In Canada, indigenous women represent 4% of the general population, but over 50% of human trafficking victims. The red handprint represents their stolen voices, and the red dress represents the women and girls who have gone missing. #MMIWawareness

Just wanted to take a minute to encourage parents and teachers to like and subscribe to the Facebook page of "Protect Young Minds" (click on the triple dots and scroll down to select "follow settings" and then click on "favorite" and "standard" you make sure you see their posts). They have such encouraging and fact-based resources to help parents and teachers launch conversations that will fortify our children's understanding of healthy relationships and how to protect healt...hy brain development. Plus, check out the free resources and subscribe to their video course on their website. In a world where online exploitation is one of the fastest-growing crimes, this resource is a refreshing celebration and fortification of healthy relationship skills (and abuse prevention). (You could also subscribe to our GP Voice for Life Facebook page for more posts with encouraging resources while you are in subscribe mode! We get more done when we don't care who gets the credit.) https://www.facebook.com/ProtectYM/

Incredible resource for parents and educators! Brain Defense provides 5 main lessons with 11 engaging instructional videos, 10 Continue the Conversation videos and prompts, a clearly organized Instruction Manual, colorful Brain Book workbooks, and Home Connection letters to involve parents, and much more! It’s a turnkey solution for teachers--a comfortable way to teach serious topics. This is a great way to start up and continue conversations that set our kids up with supp...ort and goals for healthy relationships! https://braindefense.protectyoungminds.org/

If you are considering buying a tablet or smart phone for your tween or teen this Christmas - take a few minutes to go through this short presentation developed by Culture Reframed and a Technology Expert, to help you assess whether your child is ready for a device, and how to set up a healthy contract that helps phone ownership to be a positive experience... https://parents.culturereframed.org/contract/

Great resource here! https://rewardfoundation.org/free-parents-guide-to-intern/

This is a necessary conversation to be having with your child.

I love seeing local organizations offer much-needed support and encouragement! In our highschool presentations, one of the topics we cover is teen pregnancy and it is a privilege to be able to point to the Pregnancy Care Center as a safe place for teens to go and receive compassionate support. https://www.youtube.com/watch

Read, sign and share this official petition to the Canadian House of Commons. This is an extremely important protection for minors that needs to be in place. Our laws protecting minors online are seriously lagging behind the basic laws that protect minors offline. They need these protections so their brain and view of relationships can have chance for healthy development. This unhindered access is having a profound impact that can be seen when we look at recent studies that r...eveal the drastic levels of desensitization to and acceptance of abusive behaviours. This is far from being controlling or prudish - this is blocking kids from being raised in videos of brutal abuse, torture and rape that is common among these adult websites. We are a long ways away from the porn of the past. Kids need to have a chance to grow without sexual abuse moulding their perspective. https://petitions.ourcommons.ca/en/Petition/Details See more

Digital World Safety Tools for Parents and Contest Time! Comment below with your online safety tips or questions and you will be entered in to win a copy of the book Viral Parenting by Mindy McKnight!

Reality Check + Hopeful Resources + Have a Vision for a Happy and Healthy future! Check out the documentary brainheartworld.org for great resources and inspiration. Need more ideas? Feel free to send us a message too!

VFL Resource Review Day

This article discusses research that found up to 42% of young men believed that punching and hitting was NOT domestic violence. This differs from only 3% of the men questioned who were older than 55. We need these older men sharing truth with the younger generation because this is a terrifying trend. Address and call our the influencers (porn) who are conditioning young men to believe that violence and rape is acceptable. The next generation needs to know the truth. https://amp.smh.com.au//incredibly-shocking-younger-men-fa

Thanks so much Ricki! This is so encouraging!

Okay folks, I am still learning how to post videos and I recorded two 30 minutes resource reviews videos, but I can't seem to get the videos to load. So in an effort to still get a resource review out to all of you this day, I have this photo and thoughts to share. Hopefully, I can get the videos posted later. This book is fantastic! Written by Justin and Lindsey Holcomb, the book "God Made All of Me" is an excellent resource to help parents equip their child with healthy ...body boundaries, and the ability to seek out adult "safety team" members when they need help. This book is obviously written from a faith perspective for those who want to teach from that foundation, and carries the theme "my body is very good, and made by God". The book celebrates the body pointing out body parts for sharing (hugs, handshakes, high fives, etc) and body parts that are private (naming private parts). It discusses how the whole body is good, and some parts require extra care and privacy, like private parts. I also love how this book encourages parents to allow their child to practice healthy body boundaries by saying "No, thankyou" or just a plain "No" when kids don't want to be hugged, or tickled, or kissed. Kid's need to practice having this body boundary before they step out into a bigger world, and they need to know that they can say "no" and a healthy relationship respects that "no". In the story of a Mom and Dad talking with their own children, readers/listeners are encouraged to identify adults who make them feel "safe and strong" so that they know who they can ask for help if they are in situations that create feelings of confusion, fear, anger, sadness, or more. Building bridges of communication and support, especially for awkward topics, is so important. It is these awkward talks that reinforce whether or not support systems are reliable. The difference between secrets and surprises is discussed as well; secrets creating a heavy, weighed down and isolating feeling, while surprises build anticipation, are uplifting and joyful as kids wait for the day when the surprise is to be shared. The thing I like the most about this children's book is that it leaves kids feeling more connected and equipped, not fearful. It is challenging to tackle a heavy topic like this in a way that does not impart heaviness, but this book does just that. Children walk away with a better understanding of their body value, their voice, and a vision for healthy relationships that respect basic boundaries. If you are considering purchasing this book for your own home - please consider local bookstores like "Shepherd's Fold" :)

Incredibly encouraging news shared from @exoduscry #traffickinghub #protectchildren #ageverification #justiceinCanada

Shared from @Exoduscry This is incredibly encouraging news! Check out the exoduscry.com blog article!

Hey Folks! It's newsletter time! Click below to access the GP Voice for Life Fall 2020 newsletter. We think it is one of our best newsletters yet because it is jam-packed with resources and encouragement! https://mailchi.mp/9d9eaa5c2ae5/fal2020gpvflnewsletter

How are kids targeted online by traffickers? How can we become aware and equip our kids to recognize and reject online danger? This a great conversation worth listening to. https://www.protectyoungminds.org//shocking-tactics-sex-t/

Why does this matter? This is the website that students talk about in our school presentations more than any other. Students access this website claiming they want to learn but are too shy to ask their parents for help. This specific website actually has posted brags about the children who regularily access their site. We NEED to see that basic online safeguards are put in place so that the next generation does not grow up accepting this kind of abuse. Canada can do better than this for survivors and for the next generation. #traffickinghub

Hello Teachers! We are looking for new ways to support you and your students. Would you be willing to take 2 minutes to fill out this brief survey and offer your feedback? Thank you! https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/JDTQY9F

Great article @romita_bella !#humantrafficking #humantraffickingawareness #southafrica

A recent survey rated this Canadian founded web giant as having the most negative impact on society. Not surprising when you think of how this web site shares the actual trauma and child abuse experienced by many survivors - it is called human trafficking when a company exploits people like this. #traffickinghub #justiceforsurvivors #shutitdown #readsignsharethepetition

This is an excellent video by @exoduscry with well researched facts about how we can end sex trafficking! Go to their page to watch - https://exoduscry.com/abolition/

If a phrase like ‘human trafficking’ feels ambiguous to you, let me assure you there’s nothing ambiguous about #humantrafficking. It’s a real, active, and glo...bal crime affecting millions around the world from first-world countries to third-world countries. But it is stoppable. Many of you want to stop trafficking and have been speaking up in recent days. And at A21, we believe you are an integral part of the solution. When you learn to recognize the indicators of trafficking, you’re equipped to help stop the cycle of trafficking. If you suspect traffickingif you see someone that exhibits any one of these behaviors, report it. Call your country’s hotline or local authorities immediately. And share these signs of trafficking with others we can never underestimate the power of awareness. This fight cannot continue with you. A21.Org/HumanTrafficking

#listentosurvivors