Recognize Child Abuse Prevention Month
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, a time to act collectively to raise awareness and empower people across the nation to play a role in making great childhoods happen. And our efforts to raise awareness and engagement and impact positive change this year are as vital as ever.
The outbreak of the Coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, has changed our world dramatically—and rapidly. Although the risk to our children’s physical health from the outbreak itself appears to be low…the risk to our nation’s children for experiencing child abuse and neglect in times of extreme stress and uncertainty is actually quite high.
Throughout this crucial Child Abuse Prevention Month, we’re reinforcing the message that “Everyone can make great childhoods happen—especially you, especially now!” For information and resources to support families navigating COVID-19, please visit our COVID-19 Response & Resource Page.
Child Abuse Prevention Month 2020 Virtual Activities
Child Abuse Prevention Month 2020 activities will take place online! Stay tuned to our Facebook & Twitter to participate in the activities below!
- Plant a Virtual Pinwheel to Recognize Child Abuse Prevention Month!
- Purchase and plant a virtual pinwheel in a digital pinwheel garden! Customize your pinwheel by changing the color or adding a message. Then, select Prevent Child Abuse North Carolina to benefit from your virtual pinwheel contribution!
- Monday, March 30 – Protective Factors Video Series Kick off
- Tune in to our social media for our month-long Protective Factors Video Series Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays!
- Wednesday, April 1 – Child Abuse Prevention Month 2020 Online Kick off
- Watch a Statewide Reading of the Child Abuse Prevention Month Proclamation by statewide partners and supporters!
- Friday, April 3 – Wear Blue Day 2020
- Wear blue at home to participate and share photos with #WearBlueDay2020 & #BeAConnection
- Sunday, April 5 – #BeAConnection 10 Day Social Media Challenge Kick off
- The #BeAConnection challenge will fill feeds with photos of the positive connections in our lives and how to be a connection.
- Thursday, April 16 – Prevent Child Abuse ND Virtual Forum with trauma expert Dr. Bruce Perry
- Friday, April 17 – Prevent Child Abuse America Virtual Town Hall
- Wednesday, April 28 – National Child Abuse Prevention Digital Advocacy Day
- Friday, April 30 – National Sing Along to close Child Abuse Prevention Month
- Stay tuned for more information
Child Abuse Prevention Month Videos:
- NC First Lady Kristin Cooper on Child Abuse Prevention Month and Wear Blue Day
- Prevent Child Abuse NC President & CEO Sharon Hirsch kick-off Child Abuse Prevention Month
- Statewide Reading of the Child Abuse Prevention Month Proclamation
To help you raise awareness and engagement to impacting positive change during this crucial Child Abuse Prevention Month, use the links in the accordion drop-downs below to download toolkit assets. If you need technical assistance or support, please call Prevent Child Abuse NC Communications Manager, Kris Demers, at 919-829-8009 (ext. 619) or email kdemers@preventchildabusenc.org.
CAPM 2020 Updated Social Media Toolkit
- Child Abuse Prevention Month 2020 Updated Social Media Calendar 3.31.2020
- Child Abuse Prevention Month 2020 Updated Social Media Images 3.31.2020
- Child Abuse Prevention Month 2020 Updated Videos 3.31.2020
- Social Media Best Practices Guide
- Use the Pinwheel Selfie Frame on Facebook to add a pinwheel to your selfie!
Here are the steps to follow:
- Follow this link: https://www.facebook.com/fbcameraeffects/tryit/2775102962586223/
- Click: Send notification
- When you open Facebook on your cell phone/device, you’ll have a new notification that says “Try a camera effect by Prevent Child Abuse North Carolina and see how it looks.”
- Click on the notification – it will open your camera in the Facebook App
- Take a selfie!
- Save the photo (click the downward arrow at the bottom left corner)
- Click “Done” to go to the next page
- Choose to add to your story and your news feed
- Share the photo with the hashtags: #BeAConnection #GreatChildhoods #Pinwheels & #CAPMonth (and/or #WearBlueDay2020 if you’re posting on Friday, April 3!)
- Upload the saved photo from your phone to other social media channels like Instagram, Twitter and/or LinkedIn!
Pinwheels for Prevention Ideas for 2020
Pinwheels represent our effort to focus on community activities that support families and public policies that prioritize prevention right from the start to make sure child abuse and neglect never occur. They are used to help educate communities about the importance of supporting children and families. Shining in the sun, the pinwheel is reflective of the bright future all children deserve and our belief that getting it right early is less costly than trying to fix it later.
This Child Abuse Prevention Month, we’re navigating the impacts inflicted on us by COVID19. While we would normally see large pinwheel gardens popping up across the state and the nation, we’re not able to host large gatherings and press conferences – but that won’t stop us from raising awareness about child abuse prevention strategies that work, with your help!
We invite you to join us in showing your support for the great childhoods all children deserve by sharing images of pinwheels online!
Already have pinwheels on hand? Plant pinwheels in your own front yard, make a pinwheel wreath for your front door, display them in your windows, or plant them in flower pots. Take photos and share on social media with the hashtags: #Pinwheels #GreatChildhoods #BeAConnection & #PhsyicallyDistantPinwheels.
Don’t have pinwheels on hand? That’s okay! Make your own pinwheels with this fun family activity, plant a virtual pinwheel (stay tuned for more), and update your Facebook profile photo to include this Child Abuse Prevention Month 2020 frame!
CAPM 2020 Updated Talking Points
- Child Abuse Prevention Month 2020 Updated Talking Points – English
- Talking Points – Spanish (COMING SOON)
CAPM 2020 Updated Sample Press Release
- CAPM 2020 Updated Press Release – Spanish (COMING SOON)
Sample Photo & Video Consent Release Form
- Photo & Video Consent Release – English
- Photo & Video Consent Release – Spanish
Other Resources
- Sample Child Abuse Prevention Month Proclamation
- Governor Cooper issues Child Abuse Prevention Month Proclamation for April 2019
- A Congregation’s Guide to Prevention
- Make a Pinwheel Activity for Children
- Download and install Prevent Child Abuse America’s custom Zoom Meeting background!
Share a story about the positive connections in your community that help make great childhoods happen!
We want to reinforce the message that people don’t need to have special skills or be a certain kind of person to help make great childhoods happen—all they have to be is willing. By sharing these stories of the big and small gestures many of us do throughout the year, we intend to stimulate even more engagement, providing a robust collection of examples that others can emulate and/or build on in their own way. Whether this is a story about yourself or someone else who reads to children, hosts clothing drives, volunteers at a food pantry, babysits for free for parents in the neighborhood, or plants pinwheels during April, there are so many inspiring ways people can be a connection! Tell us YOUR story to be featured in our communications during Child Abuse Prevention Month!
Contact
For more information, technical assistance or to request pre-printed materials or eps files, please contact Kris Demers, Communications Manager, at 919-829-8009, ext. 619 or kdemers@preventchildabusenc.org.