Speak Up Be Safe is delivered by trained facilitators who present engaging and interactive, age-appropriate lessons to youth in grades Pre-K through 12.
Empowering youth with evidence-based prevention education.
What is Childhelp Speak Up Be Safe?
Childhelp Speak Up Be Safe (SUBS) is a comprehensive youth-focused program consisting of an evidence-based core curriculum for youth in all grades (Pre-K through 12), evidence-informed supplemental modules, resources, and activities for children and youth.
SUBS helps children and teens learn proactive skills to prevent abuse and other types of interpersonal harm with a focus on:
- Minimizing risks
- Building resistance skills
- Preventing perpetration
- Fostering healthy relationships and protective factors
- Creating a responsive safety network with peers and safe adults
Why choose Speak Up Be Safe?
SUBS offers many benefits for facilitators, schools, organizations, and communities to provide impactful prevention education to youth.
FEATURES & BENEFITS:
- Evidence-based for ALL grades
- Covers all types of abuse, bullying and online safety
- Adaptable and flexible
- Affordable
- Aligned with education & health standards
- Meets legislative and policy mandates
- Scripted for easy use
- Engaging, skill-building lessons for kids
- Unique partnership with Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline for 24/7 support and resources
WHAT’S INCLUDED:
- One year license
- Facilitator training
- Digital access to curriculum and collateral materials
- Printable scripts and downloadable PowerPoints
- Reinforcement activities
- Take-home materials for students and parents
- Additional evidence-informed modules
- Optional physical materials
- Full implementation support
Program Details
Grades Pre-K–2
A primary focus for the earliest age groups is emphasizing that adults are responsible to keep children safe. Students learn basic concepts of personal safety and how to identify safe adults in their lives.
Grades 3–5
Lessons underscore adult responsibility for child safety. Children, equipped with key safety rules, actively contribute to their own safety. They identify safe adults, recognize potential risks, and practice safety rules.
Grades 6–8
Adults remain responsible for child safety, yet lessons recognize students’ increasing responsibilities and privileges. Students learn to recognize potential risks and practice resistance strategies until they can talk to a safe adult.
Grades 9–12
Lessons highlight teens’ growing independence, focusing on ways to recognize unhealthy relationships and unsafe situations. Students learn to prevent abuse, seek help, and broaden their understanding of abusive behavior. Identifying safe adults and peers reinforces a strong safety network.
Program Pricing
Our flexible pricing options help ensure our programs are inclusive and accessible for any school or organization that wants high-quality prevention education programs to help better protect the children and youth in their community.
Alignments & Endorsements
Speak Up Be Safe is a recognized effective program that aligns with and supports many mandates and guidelines for youth-focused prevention education.
Meets the mandates and requirements of Jenna Quinn Law and Erin’s Law
Supplemental Modules
The Speak Up Be Safe program also provides supplemental evidence-informed prevention modules and additional resources.
Human trafficking is a growing risk for adolescents and teens. The Human Trafficking module closely mirrors the successful learning model of the Speak Up Be Safe core curriculum.
The module includes:
- Comprehensive facilitator training
- Two scripted lessons for each grade, 6–12 (approximately 30 minutes each)
- Engaging classroom presentations
- Activities that build skills to recognize and resist risks and help youth connect with safe adults
- Impactful scenarios and videos
The Human Trafficking module is included with all Speak Up Be Safe subscriptions.
Staying Safe from Online Harm Module
Children and teens face many risks online like sextortion and online exploitation. Informed by renowned experts, educators, and youth, the Staying Safe from Online Harm module equips educators, parents, caregivers, and other concerned adults with the tools to empower young people to stay safe online.
The module includes:
- Comprehensive facilitator training
- Two scripted lessons for youth ages 10–15 (approximately 45 minutes each)
- Engaging presentations with embedded videos
- Activities that build youth’s skills to recognize grooming and sextortion tactics, talk to safe adults, support peers, and get help
- Student and caregiver handouts
- Other helpful resources
Thanks to a partnership with Meta, this module is available to anyone at no cost.
Speak Up Be Safe for Athletes Module
Speak Up Be Safe for Athletes is an evidence-informed module that aims to raise awareness about the widespread yet often overlooked issue of athlete abuse. This module promotes the physical and emotional safety of young athletes by equipping them with the tools needed to recognize, prevent, and seek help for abuse or mistreatment.
The module includes:
- Comprehensive online facilitator training
- Scripted lessons for each grade K-12 (45-60 minutes each)
- Engaging classroom presentations with embedded videos
- Scenario discussions for individual, team, and movement sports
- Interactive activities to help athletes recognize and safely navigate risks
- Athlete and caregiver handouts
- SUBS for Athletes is included with all Speak Up Be Safe core program subscriptions at no additional cost
Evidence and Impact
Speak Up Be Safe has been listed on CEBC as evidence-based since 2021. We are committed to demonstrating the efficacy of our programs through ongoing research. We will continue to build the evidence base for our programs and conduct future evaluations.
Published Studies
Evaluation of High School CH SUBS Curriculum – 2021
Teaching Youth to Resist Abuse: Evaluation of a Strengths-Based Child Maltreatment Curriculum for High School Students (2021)
Elementary and Middle School Research Results – 2022
Empowering Elementary and Middle School Youth to Speak Up and Be Safe: Advancing Prevention of Child Maltreatment with a Universal School-Based Curriculum
Additional Resources
Connect to Protect Kids
Learn more about our aligned, evidence-informed prevention training for adults.
Staying Safe from Online Harm
Discover our no-cost digital safety module developed with support from Meta.
Resource Library
Access our collection of resources and educational materials designed to promote prevention, youth safety, and well-being.