SCS integrates character education into the culture of the school, however we also include direct instruction of character education twice weekly for all students. We use the Second Step Prevention Program for direct instruction of skills. Second Step is a universal prevention program designed to reduce aggression and promote social comptence by focusing on (a) empathy, (b) impulse control and problem solving, and (c) anger management.

Research findings consistently support that students engaged in the Second Step curriculum:

• increase their positive social interactions and become less physically aggressive over time (Grossman, D, et al, 1997)
• show significant declines in anxious, dpressed, and socially withdrawn behavior (Schick, A and Cierpka, M, 2003)
• increase conceptual knowledge of social skills and decrease verbal and physical aggression (McMahon, S.D., Washburn, J., Felix, E.D., Yakin, J., Childrey, G., 2000)
• improve social competence, require less adult intervention, display less hostility, and are more fair (Frey, K.S., Nolen, S.B., Van Schoiack-Edstrom, L, Frey, K.S., and Hirschstein, M., 2001)
• endorse social exclusion less often than nonparticipants (Van Schoiack-Edstrom, L., Frey, K.S., and Beland, 2002)
• show increases in following directions and following classroom rules (Taub, 2002)

For additional information regarding the Second Step program see http://www.cfchildren.org/programs/ssp/overview/