Child Development Project

The Child Development Project (CDP) is a comprehensive, elementary school-based intervention program. CDP incorporates class meetings, learning activities for partners and small groups, and open-ended discussions on literature to enhance students’ social, ethical, and intellectual development. CDP is based on the belief that prevention efforts are most likely to be effective when they occur early in a child’s development, before antisocial behavioral patterns have a chance to become firmly established. CDP emphasizes the promotion of positive development rather than the prevention of disorder. The central goal of CDP is to help schools become "caring communities of learners" by offering an environment of caring, supportive, and collaborative relationships to build students’ sense of community in school and to promote school bonding.