SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. — More than 50 parents walked through a mock teenage bedroom at East Valley Middle School, searching for hidden drug paraphernalia and alcohol.
The Hidden in Plain Sight workshop teaches parents what warning signs to look for when teens use everyday items to conceal substance use.
Water bottles, highlighters and video game controllers filled the mock bedroom. All could be hiding something dangerous.
“Water bottles that look like water bottles with water in them. You open it and there’s a hiding compartment inside,” said Shandi Codr, East Valley Community Coalition Coordinator. “Some of these vape pens look like markers and highlighters. And they actually work as a highlighter.”
Jennifer Dorsett leads the workshop, which has visited schools across the Inland Northwest. The program teaches parents about current drug trends and their harms.
The education comes at a critical time.
“Our East Valley youth are starting to vape as early as 12. So it’s never too early to just kind of watch and see what’s happening,” Codr said.
Each workshop targets the specific school community. The East Valley presentation used local data to show what items teens use in that area.
“Tonight, if it’s East Valley, it’s going to be tailored towards East Valley data and the youth that are reported in that Healthy Year survey,” Codr said.
The workshop also teaches parents how to talk with their children if they find these items.
“I hope that their takeaway would be that they come out a little bit more educated about what is out there and what their kids are getting their hands on,” Codr said.
Parents who missed this workshop can access the Wake Up Call Backpack Curriculum, which covers similar topics.
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