“Your home is your castle” . . . but when your home is a cardboard box, you’re hardly living like royalty. Cardboard Castles provides teens and their adult sponsors an opportunity to experience homelessness and hunger through a simulation project.

During this overnight program, teens hear presentations that address issues related to poverty. Participants discuss these topics and record their experiences and reflections in personal journals before sleeping outdoors in cardboard boxes.

Teens who participate in this program often take an active interest in community service. Lesson materials teach health and safety as a part of ongoing community service after the event.

Program goals:

• Educate junior high and high school students about the importance of making good decisions regarding health and safety, especially regarding alcohol, tobacco and other drugs
• Develop an awareness of poverty and homelessness in the St. Louis area
• Learn more about the 40 developmental assets based on research about healthy youth from Search Institute

BJC School Outreach and Youth Development created Cardboard Castles to provide a unique learning environment for health education. Our staff provides ongoing consultation in planning your Cardboard Castles event.

BJC provides:

• Registration materials and permission slips for parent’s signatures
• Cardboard Castles T-shirts for participants
• Mini-cards to distribute in the community
• Presenters on topics of addiction, developmental assets and nutrition
• Handouts to use if teens choose to follow-up with health presentations
• Cardboard Castles banner to display at the event as a promotional tool
• Folders, pens and journals

Our sponsoring partners provide:

• A list of participants and signed permission slips for each person
• Cardboard boxes
• Insurance coverage
• Food for evening meal and breakfast
• An appropriate site with continuous security
• Restroom facilities (preferably outdoor)
• Media coverage, if desired
• Personal care kit for teens (toothpaste, toothbrush, soap and washcloth)

Cardboard Castles makes a great service-learning project.