Red Ribbon Ideas For Educators

Here are some ideas to make this year's Red Ribbon Week celebration the best yet!

• Use Red Ribbon Week as an opportunity to continue talking to your students about the dangers of drugs.
• Work with the PTSA To Plan a School-Wide Red Ribbon Rally.
• Tell your students to enter the Red Ribbon Photo Contest for a chance to win an iPad for the student and his/her family - and $1,000 for your school.
• Use our social media tips to post Red Ribbon Week messages on your Facebook and Twitter accounts.
• Encourage your students to take a stab at creating the 2018 National Red Ribbon Theme. Gain national recognition and $500 of Red Ribbon theme merchandise for your school. This year's theme was created by a student at Solon Middle School in Solon, Ohio.
• Access Natural High’s free celebrity drug prevention program, share celebrity videos in your classroom and use their free Common Core Standards-based curriculum to inspire a conversation with your students.
• Talk to parents and students about securing and taking inventory of their home medicine cabinets to prevent prescription drug abuse.
• Write an article about the importance of Red Ribbon Week in your school's Parent Newsletter.
• Contact a local governmental official about declaring October 23rd-31st Red Ribbon Week in your community.
• Plan fun celebration days during Red Ribbon Week, such as Wear Red Day, Put A Cap On Drugs (Hat Day), Put A Sock On Drugs Day, Be On A Drug Free Team Day (Wear Your Favorite Team Gear), Shade Out Drugs Day (Wear Sunglasses), etc.

• Organize essay contests incorporating this year's theme: A Healthy Me Is Drug Free.
• Sign the Red Ribbon Pledge.
• Decorate the interior and exterior of your school.
• Organize a Miles of Quarters Campaign to support prevention.
• Organize Door Decorating Contests.
• Invite parents and families to a special health fair or education program.
• Plan a Walk Out On Drugs Walk-a-thon.
• Create a banner and ask all students, faculty and parents to sign it, pledging to be drug free.
• Have high school sign red construction paper strips to encourage middle school youth to be drug free. Make the strips into a chain and hang it up in the middle school lobby for the youth to see with a sign stating that the high school students encourage them to not use alcohol, tobacco and other drugs. (Contributed by Susan Foster - add your best activity below to be added to our list!)
• Encourage your food services department to serve meals made of healthy, red-colored food. (Contributed by the Milton Community Youth Coalition in Vermont)
• Check out what other prevention organizations are offering to make your Red Ribbon Week the most impactful yet at www.redribbon.org/resources
• Insert Your Best Idea Here. Add suggestions to the comment section below. We'll filter out the best and add them to this list!

Want More? Download The 2017 Red Ribbon Planning Guide

LEAVE YOUR BEST IDEAS FOR RED RIBBON ACTIVITIES BELOW. WE'LL ADD THE BEST SUGGESTIONS TO OUR LIST ABOVE!