Families First is a national FCCLA peer education program that guides students to develop,
plan, carry out, and evaluate activities to improve the quality of life for families in their
community.
Through the project, students experience character development and improve their critical and
creative thinking, as well as their communication and leadership skills, practical knowledge, and
career preparation.
Marietta’s FCCLA program integrated the Families First program into several different activities
that allowed them to work with primary elementary students within the school district.
Those activities included:
Pre-K: high school students read the book “Monster Trouble” to students and then helped
them to design their own monster, then students in the FCCLA Fashion Design class
hand sewed the monsters and delivered them to the students when they were complete.
Pre-K: students assisted with the Pre-K Fall Carnival and invited the Pre-K classes to
trick or treat in the FCS classroom on book character day in October.
Pre-K through second grade: On Read Across America Day, FCCLA members read
books in the classroom of students in all of the classrooms.
Pre-K through second grade: As part of National Programs in Action (the umbrella for
Families First) STAR Event, FCCLA members Allie Bruce, Capri Finch, and Allison
Santibanez created grade level appropriate lessons on kindness to teach in the primary.
In Pre-K classes, students created Kindness Critters and members read the “The
Kindness Book.” In kindergarten classes, FCCLA students spoke about how words
matter, and about how mean words are hurtful. In first and second grade classes, FCCLA
members read the book “Bucket Filling from A to Z” and helped students decorate
buckets, then practiced writing nice things to their classmates and putting them in their
buckets.
These projects were completed throughout the school year.
The Kindness Lessons were presented as a STAR Event, National Programs in Action, Level 1
at the State FCCLA STAR Events, where they placed first and qualified to compete at the
National Leadership Conference in Washington DC this summer.
“All of these projects were rewarding not only to the primary students, but also the FCCLA
members,” said FCCLA Advisor Amanda Faulkenberry. “The fashion classed loved making the
monsters and are ready to do it again next year. And the kindness lessons were a huge success
and we can’t wit to grow these projects and do more next year.”