Have you ever been in a situation where your best friend tells you to smoke or drink alcohol with her? What do you say, yes or no? Do you want to say no but you're worried  your friend will hate you? You should take D.A.R.E class. It goes over what you should do. D.A.R.E class also goes over the effects of alcohol, tobacco use, and being safe and responsible. 

       Did you know that there are 75,000 alcohol related deaths each year? That is one of the effects of alcohol. If you take too much alcohol it can weaken your heart muscles. Also, if you take too much it can weaken your heart muscles.If you take too much alcohol, your body will slow down. Once your body slows down it can lead to a coma or even death. Also, if you have too much alcohol your brain will slow down. When your brain  slows down, the effects are loss of coordination, memory loss, and loss of self control just to name a few. Those are just a few of the effects if you have too much alcohol. 

      The use of tobacco is horrible for your body and lungs. Did you know that there are more than 200 known harmful chemicals in cigarettes? One of them is nicotine. It is illegal to sell tobacco to anyone under the age of 21. Did you know that it used to be under the age of 19 or 18? More than 400,000 Americans die from tobacco related causes each year. Almost 50,000 deaths per year can be attributed to secondhand smoke. Do not eat tobacco or you could die.

      What I learned in school is to be safe and kind. One thing I learned is that bullying is bad. It can cause the person who is being bullied to be stressed and more. The second thing I learned is being safe and responsible. If I want to be safe and not get hurt, I must be responsible. If someone I don't know asks me to come with them, I say no.The third thing I learned in D.A.R.E. was how to speak in public. When I'm speaking in public, I speak loud and thorough so that everyone can hear me. 

Remember when your friend asked you to do something bad and you did not know what to say? You know now what to say if your friend says that you say no.

    I pledge to not use tobacco and not drink alcohol. I pledge to use what I've learned in D.A.R.E. to be kind to others and to have a better life.