National Educators to Stop Trafficking approves K-6 Curriculum and Resources

Feb. 19, 2015 - PRLog -- Human Trafficking is one of the largest criminal enterprises in the United States. The average age of entry into sexual slavery is 12-13, particularly those made vulnerable by challenging family situations. National Educators to Stop Trafficking (NEST) equips teachers and youth leaders with age-appropriate curriculum and resources for Grades K-12 to educate and empower youth so that sexual exploitation and human trafficking become a thing of the past.

Understanding that youth become vulnerable at a very young age, the NEST advisory committee has spent the last several weeks reviewing and vetting numerous K-6 Grade human trafficking prevention curriculums. After much deliberation the committee approved programs created by four highly credited organizations. We are proud to announce them as NEST providers: Child Lures Prevention's Think First & Stay Safe™ School Program (VA); MBF Child Safety Matters™ Program (FL); Sexual Abuse Prevention Program created by KidSafe Foundation (FL);  and Safe@Last, a program of the Sexual Assault Center in Nashville (TN).

"We're incredibly thankful to NEST for their courage to help protect children from sexual exploitation. Only by educating our children, beginning in elementary school, can we begin to cut off the supply line to these insidious sexual offenders, predators, traffickers and johns," Jennifer Mitchell of Child Lures Prevention tells us.

All of the approved curriculum and resources for Grades K-6 offer a variety of age-appropriate safety tips. Each aim to establish common goals such as: child sexual abuse and exploitation are against the law, how to identity trusted adults, setting personal boundaries, teaching and practicing proven prevention strategies from lures used by unsuspecting adults, guidance for disclosure, and more.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, traffickers frequently lure victims by making false promises of love or protection, restricting contact with family and friends, and using threats and violence. These are also tactics common among individuals who sexually abuse children. National research indicates that a child who has been sexually abused is four times more likely to be trafficked for commercial sex than his or her peers (Brantley), thus preventing child sexual abuse is one of the keys to preventing human trafficking.

NEST will be adding a page to their website just for K-6 curriculum and resources to make it easier for educators and youth leaders of these age groups to find applicable data. Visit www.ENSTeducators.org for more information.