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April 2015Vol. 16, No. 3April Is National Child Abuse Prevention Month

Each year during the month of April, the Children's Bureau observes National Child Abuse Prevention Month—a time to raise awareness about child abuse and neglect and promote activities across the nation aimed at protecting children and supporting families. This year's Prevention Month initiative continues to highlight the theme chosen by the Office on Child Abuse and Neglect's (OCAN's) 2014 National Conference, "Making Meaningful Connections," which focuses on the community and cross-system collaborations required to protect children and strengthen families.

The 2015 Prevention Month website features resources, publications, videos, and more aimed at protecting children and strengthening families. Also highlighted is the updated 2015 Prevention Resource Guide: Making Meaningful Connections. This year's Resource Guide features the following:

  • The 2015 Resource Guide builds on the theme "Making Meaningful Connections" by keeping last year's core structure, refreshing new information, and expanding on theme-related content.
  • Chapter Two, "Working With Families Using the Protective Factors," includes a new section on "Protective Factors in Practice," which features vignettes illustrating how multiple protective factors can support and strengthen families who are experiencing stress. These vignettes are also featured as interactive scenarios on the Prevention Month website.
  • The guide features 19 strength-based parent tip sheets—in English and Spanish—each addressing a specific parenting issue. This year's guide includes three new tip sheets: "Feeding Your Family," "Human Trafficking: Protecting Our Youth," and "Support After an Adoption."
  • Activity calendars for parents, programs, and community partners offer suggestions for promoting well-being using protective factors during April. The three calendars are also available in both Spanish and English.

The Resource Guide is the result of collaboration among the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Children's Bureau, OCAN, Child Welfare Information Gateway, the FRIENDS National Resource Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention, the Center for the Study of Social Policy, and numerous national organizations.

In support of the Prevention Month initiative, Child Welfare Information Gateway refreshed its Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect web section with updated resources and a new section on Home Visiting and Maternal Mental Health.

For more information on National Child Abuse Prevention Month or to view or order a copy of the Prevention Resource Guide, visit the Prevention Month website at https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/preventing/preventionmonth/.
 

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