Youth Education Programs - Hult Center For Healthy Living

What We Do to Empower Healthier Lives

Hult Center for Healthy Living is a nonprofit organization whose youth health education classes supplement the health education efforts of schools within Central Illinois, as well as for families/caregivers, civic groups, youth organizations, social agencies, and other community health entities.

Our team of dedicated professional Health Education Specialists offer programs for Pre-K through high school students designed to meet your classroom objectives, as well as Illinois State learning standards.

We charge a nominal fee for our in-house and outreach programs. Many of our programs can be tailored to fit your students’ needs. If you serve youth with intellectual or physical impairments, we are often able to adapt our health education programs to fit the needs of your class and/or students. Please reach out to our team to inquire.

Youth Health Education Theaters

Our signature in-house health education programs are themed around the four teaching theaters here at Hult Center where health education comes alive!

THEATRES INCLUDE:

General Health featuring TAM, our Transparent Anatomical Manikin
Nutrition Education
Reproductive Health
Substance Abuse Prevention

Participants are able to see and hear larger-than-life electronic displays, audio-visual presentations, and explore interactive models. The multi-sensory input experience of our classrooms not only improves retention, but it does it in an exciting and unique way.

Consider our classrooms a resource available for your students in Central Illinois and an interesting experience with few facilities like it in the Midwest.

General Health Education Programs:

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This program highlights the wonders of the human body through educational lessons and hands-on activities. Our professional Health Education Specialists will provide two programs, with outreach and field trip options available.

Groups will be provided a menu of health education program options to choose from including Social Emotional Learning, Dental, Nutrition, and Exercise. If students come to Hult Center they will experience education come to life in our teaching theaters.

Lessons will be reinforced and student interest will be captured by displays and interactive models that can be explored.

Thank you to Heart of Illinois United Way and PNG Grow Up Great for funding to support this program.

Program Time: 30 minutes each

In this program participants will learn how to properly brush and floss their teeth using hands-on dental models, learn how many times a day to brush and floss, and the importance of proper nutrition as it relates to dentals hygiene.

Each child will also receive their own dental health bag including a new toothbrush, toothpaste and dental floss!

Thank you to Illinois State Dental Society Foundation for providing grant funding to support this program.

Program Time: 60 minutes

Subject areas that are covered during the duration of this program include: uniqueness of each individual, food groups, dental health, healthy behaviors, skeletal system, and Social Emotional concepts

Program Time: 60 minutes

Grades 1st & 2nd:

Subject areas in this program include: how to care for our bodies with healthy choices, using food groups for provide nutrition education, ‘Mary the Mandible’ for dental health education, Seymore Bones to explain the skeletal system, and our larger-than-life models to understand our five senses and how to care for them.

Program Time: 60 minutes

Grades 3rd & 4th:

Subject areas in this program include: cells, organs & body systems, digestive system and healthy nutrition, care and respect for the human body. This program includes an interactive physical activity component.

Program Time: 90 minutes

Subject areas in this program include: cells, organs & body systems, with a focus on the respiratory and circulatory systems. Students will have the opportunity to run, scoot and dribble their way through the “Heart Adventure challenge course” where students are encouraged to raise their heart rate as they are racing through a series of tubes designed to show the flow of blood through the body.

Program Time: 90 minutes

This program utilizes concepts from the evidence-based curriculum CATCH: Coordinated Approach to Child Health. This program is a deeper dive into the nutrients of MyPlate, including protein, fat, and carbohydrates, nutrient dense vs empty calorie foods, importance of fiber and calcium, portion sizes, and emphasizes the importance of daily exercise. This program includes an interactive physical activity component.

Program Time: 90 minutes

Grade Level: 5th – 8th

During this program students will learn what asthma is and how it is diagnosed and treated. Students will also learn what an asthma attack is and what to do if someone is having one. Finally, students will learn how to keep their lungs healthy. This class is designed for groups of students. For asthma self-management programs for people living with asthma please visit this link.

Program Time: 45-60 minutes

This program teaches children how to detect the warning signs of asthma, avoid their triggers, and make decisions about their health. The program is taught by an American Lung Association-trained facilitator.

Program Time: 3.5 hours

Upcoming Kickin’ Asthma Program on July 29, 2022 information can be found here.

Subjects covered in this program include: the anatomy and physiology of the brain, including where our emotions come from and the fight or flight response, and how to self-regulate when trying to manage emotions.

This program features the MEGA BRAIN, larger than life exhibit.

Program Time: 90 minutes

The purpose of the Safe Sitter program is to provide students with the crucial skills and knowledge needed in order to best prepare them for future babysitting roles and responsibilities.

The instructor-led class is filled with fun games and role playing exercises. Students will learn various safety, child care, first aid and rescue, and life and business skills.

Thank you to Community Foundation of Central Illinois Women’s Fund for providing grant funding to start this program.

Learn more about Safe Sitter classes here.

Program Time: 5 1/2 hours with no CPR & 6 1/2 hours with CPR

Substance Abuse Prevention Programs:

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Subject areas in this program include: tobacco, alcohol and marijuana. This program teaches students how to deal with peer pressure. This program engages critical thinking and student interaction through Turning Technologies© response system.

Program Time: 90 minutes

Subject areas in this program include: addiction, consequences of drug use, including alcohol, marijuana and current drugs in the news; how to deal with peer pressure. This program engages critical thinking and student interaction through Turning Technologies© response system.

Program Time: 90 minutes

Impact of prescription drugs on the body, dangers of prescription drug use/abuse, opioids, CNS depressants, stimulants, over-the-counter drugs. Students also learn about the dangers of mixing alcohol and prescription drugs through an interactive activity.

This program engages student interaction through Turning Technologies© response system and is great to pair with the virtual Prescription Drug Safety Program.

Program Time: 45 minutes

A competitive “game” using interactive Turning Technologies© remotes; students learn and answer competitive questions about anabolic steroids, supplements, diet and exercise.

Program Time: 45 minutes

This program is adapted from the Stanford Medicine Cannabis/Marijuana Awareness & Prevention Toolkit. This program is designed to help students learn basic information about how using cannabis/marijuana products influences their brain development and identify how using cannabis/marijuana can interfere with the learning of life skills.

Through learning about addiction, students will process how using cannabis/marijuana can get in the way of finding out what can bring them pleasure. Students will also learn about refusal skills and social media impacts.

Program Time: 45-60 minutes

This program is adapted from the Stanford Medicine Tobacco Prevention Toolkit. It is designed to increase knowledge about basic facts of e-cigarettes and the harm they cause.

This interactive program will help students gain knowledge of strategies manufacturers and sellers of e-cigarettes utilize to increase use among young people and skills to refuse experimentation and use of e-cigarettes. Students will also learn about addiction social media impacts.

Program Time: 45-60 minute

Sexual & Reproductive Health Education Programs

Hult Center provides a variety of comprehensive, evidence-based, developmentally-appropriate, culturally sensitive, and relevant reproductive and sexual health education programs that align with National Sexuality Education Standards (NSES). Our most popular programs are listed below.

If you have specific requests in this subject area please reach out to our team.

Thank you to Community Foundation of Central Illinois and Heart of Illinois United Way for funding to support this program.

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This program teaches students personal hygiene skills and habits to build healthy lifestyles. This program discusses proper handwashing, bathing, dental health, and hygiene products as well as nutrition and exercise.

Optional: Menstrual hygiene products and menstruation lesson can be added to this program.

Please contact our team and we can customize developmentally-appropriate lessons for your students.

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Program Time: 45-60 minutes

Puberty Part 1: Exploring Changes

This co-ed program provides the foundation for understanding the general changes that happen during puberty and how to navigate healthy choices as their bodies grow and develop during adolescence.
Topic areas include: how the brain and body changes during adolescence, including the endocrine and musculoskeletal systems. Responsibility for our own bodies and health is explained as a part of growing up.
Youth will also learn healthy choices associated with growing strong, including proper nutrition and exercise. Youth will participate in an obstacle course for the physical activity portion of the program.
Note, if a field trip to Hult Center for Healthy Living is scheduled youth will participate in an obstacle course for the physical activity portion of the program. Outreach programs do not include a physical activity portion.

Program Time: 60-90 minutes

Puberty Part 2: Navigating Changes

This sex-specific program builds on the lessons from Part I and helps students further understand what changes their reproductive system will experience, with a deeper understanding of how to manage and navigate some of these reproductive changes.

Female System Program: Anatomy and physiology of the female reproductive system and discussion of common hygiene products.
Male System Program: Anatomy and physiology of the male reproductive system and discussion of common hygiene products.

Program Time: 60 minutes

This co-ed program provides an introduction to genetics, an overview of the male and female reproductive systems, fertilization, conception, fetal growth and development, childbirth, and an introduction to pregnancy prevention, including abstinence.

Program Time: 90 minutes

This co-ed program discusses sexual health and provides skill-based prevention education, including prevention of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

Subject areas covered in this program include: review of male and female reproductive systems and pregnancy prevention methods, including abstinence and birth control; modes of infection transmission, STI prevention methods, signs & symptoms, and treatment of bacterial and viral STIs including HIV.

Program Time: 60 minutes

This is a dual-program teaches caregivers and their youth how to navigate the changes of puberty and how to stay healthy during this life-changing process. Youth and adults will attend an introductory segment together where they will learn some of the general changes that happen to everyone during puberty.

Following this introduction, youth and adults will be separated to dive deeper into the topic of puberty; adults will attend Let’s Talk: Puberty, where they will learn how to navigate conversations with their adolescent(s) during this time of change. Youth will attend Growing Up, Growing Strong, where they will learn general health education and how to navigate healthy choices as their bodies grow and develop during adolescence.

This program does NOT include education for youth about the reproductive system changes during puberty. The adult portion of the program will discuss how to navigate these conversations and changes with youth.

Mental Health Education Programs

Hult Center’s mental health programming is abides by best practice standards, and addresses the mental health priorities that persist within the Central Illinois communities.

Hult Center has a team of trauma sensitive & informed health educators along with a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC) who provides consultation and assistance to organizations as emergent needs in the community arise.

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Programs are tailored to be age-appropriate and align with Illinois Social Emotional Learning Standards. Groups will be provided a menu of Social Emotional Learning topics to choose from that address the five key areas of social-emotional wellness, including self-regulation, decision-making, self-awareness, building relationships, and social awareness.

Thank you to City of Peoria Community Development Block Grant and Humana for funding to support this program.

Program Time: 30 – 60 minutes

This program will help train youth on suicide prevention best practices and local and national resources. Individuals will learn to identify suicidal behaviors and learn how to reach out and/or ask for help through innovative, practical, and proven strategies for recognizing the signs of crisis.

Thank you to Community Foundation of Central Illinois for funding to support this program.

Program Time: 45 – 60 minutes

What Our Youth Health Education Team Offers

Our accredited and certified staff are equipped with the training to implement effective health education programming for all grades Pre-K through 12th, and can provide expert consultation for your school, group, or organization in assessing what program or training opportunity best suits your needs.

In addition, Hult Center’s team of Health Education Specialists can provide Professional Development and Technical Assistance to support comprehensive health education in your school or community health organization.

For additional health education support, consultation, or training please call 309-692-6650 or click the button.

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