Middle-School Program With An Adult Focus: Avoiding Unhealthy Relationships

(CBS) -- What did you learn in school today? That is a common question asked by parents to their kids.

CBS 2's Marissa Bailey explains why the answer to that question may be a bit different to kids at a South Side middle school.

Inside a seventh-grade classroom at Evergreen Middle School, main subjects are on hold while kids learn about healthy relationships and warning signs of unhealthy ones.

Educators with the non-profit Between Friends use these weekly sessions to encourage kids to communicate their feelings and recognize signs of domestic violence.

The say seventh grade is the perfect age to start the conversation.

"By the time they become a freshman or junior or senior a lot of them have already identified with being in an unhealthy relationship," education specialist Yolanda Owen says.

Her colleague, Deldric Henderson, adds: "Knowing how to manage those things as early as possible can only help."

These students are only on week 4 of the 8-week session but it seems the lessons are working for at least some of the kids.

Between Friends also offers programs for adults, and they're looking to expand to other schools.