Puppet Power, Part 1

Puppets are coming back into style with both young and old. For the young, and the young at heart, a sequel to Henson’s The Dark Crystal is in the planning stages. For the old, Henson Alternative puppets will behave badly in the game show “Late Night Liars,” which debuts next month on GSN.

We educators aren’t surprised by this puppet popularity in the least bit, considering the overwhelmingly positive response generated by our personal body safety puppet show. From school to school, teachers and guidance counselors have expressed their appreciation. One of the best things I heard a teacher say about the program was, “This is free?”

::sidebar:: Some people would say that I should be happier with comments like this one, “Love the puppets! What a wonderful job at presenting some serious and important information to these children!” I’m ecstatic about that comment! It’s even part of the promotional material I send to schools. I’ve also learned, however, that people can typically find the intrinsic value in an educational presentation… They almost never suggest they they’d be willing to pay for it!

All of these accolades are a testament to Sexual Assault Support Services of New Hampshire (SASS), the agency that actually developed the program that we use. They’ve been providing workshops to schools over the past two decades and continually strive to integrate best practices into their curriculum.

Personal body safety programs are monumentally important for students. Personal body safety programs let students know that it’s okay to tell about sexual abuse. “Because of our programs, they learn that it was okay to tell,” says SASS educator Emily Murphy. Without these programs, children may not realize that the abuse they’re experiencing is wrong. Without these programs, children may not know how to talk about the abuse. Without these programs, children may be left without a voice.

I can remember as clear as day the training session SASS provided for all sexual assault agencies in Maine. We were fortunate enough to have Emily Murphy at the presentation. She and her co-facilitator performed one of the puppet shows for us. Now, this is a room full of adults, mind you... We totally bought into it and loved it! Watching the performance was just like watching the Muppets. That’s when I knew we were going to be part of something special.

If you’d like your school to be part of something special, contact your local sexual assault agency and ask about their personal body safety program. All agencies in Maine have been trained to provide the SASS puppet show.

Talkback: Have you seen this personal body safety puppet show? If so, give us your reactions!

For more on The Dark Crystal sequel: Daybreakers Directors Helm The Dark Crystal Sequel, Promise Puppets

For more about “Late Night Liars”: New Henson puppets go wild on GSN game show

To learn more about SASS: Sexual Assault Support Services of New Hampshire

To learn more about our agency: Sexual Assault Crisis & Support Center

For a list of the sexual assault centers in the state of Maine: MECASA Member Centers