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 Centre for Addictionand Mental Health |
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Education and Courses
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Educating Students about Drug Use and Mental Health - Grade 2: Expectation 3
Specific Learning Expectation Use decision-making skills to identify healthy alternatives to drug use (e.g., fresh air and exercise can help to relieve a headache). Background Information Students may have been introduced to the decision-making model, "LOOK, THINK, DECIDE, ACT" (used wiith permission from the "Making Decisions Program" (1999), Alcohol-Drug Education Service, Vancouver, B.C.) in Grade 1. Hot Tips for Teachers At times, children do not want to take the medicine prescribed for them. This lesson is not meant to give these children an excuse not to take their medicine, but is meant to introduce the idea that there are healthy alternatives to drug-taking, which can contribute to feeling better. A list of these will include:
Teaching/Learning Strategies 1. Have the steps for decision-making on a poster and display these: Key words are: "LOOK" "THINK" "DECIDE" "ACT" 2. Review with students the difference between prescription and non-prescription medicine and some of the concerns if someone doesn't take medicines correctly. Review the rules about safer use of medicines. Review with students why it is sometimes necessary to make a decision about whether or not to take a certain medicine, whether it is prescription or non-prescription. Discuss or create a list on the board of some other alternatives to using medicine which could help to make you feel better. Review the steps of the decision-making model, "LOOK, THINK, DECIDE, ACT". 3. Present a specific situation and walk the students through the model, still in a large group, asking the students for possible decisions. Discuss the safest decision. 4. Activity: Divide students into small groups. Have students answer the following questions about the situations and then role-play the situations (if possible), particularly emphasizing that the safest decision. Scenarios/Situations for Discussion and Role-Play (Drug Abuse Prevention Project: An Educational Resource (DAPPER) (1996), Toronto District School Board, former Board of Education for the City of York, Toronto, ON.) Debbie is eight years old. She doesn't mind it when her parents go out, if they ask Su to babysit. Debbie likes Su because they play games together and sometimes Su just sits and talks to Debbie. It's nice to have a friend. One night Su is baby-sitting. Debbie can't sleep because she has a headache. When Su is downstairs watching TV, Debbie walks to the bathroom and opens up the medicine cabinet. Debbie sees the pills that her mother takes when she has a headache.
You and your friends have been outside playing tag and running around a lot. You feel hot and dizzy. When your grandma gets dizzy, she takes her pink pills, which are on the table beside her bed upstairs.
Your best friend has asthma and uses an inhaler to help her to breathe better. One day, you come to school with a cough and she offers to give you some of her inhaler medicine.
Assessments of Learning 1. Review and discussion of concepts learned to this point 2. Brainstorming ideas for healthy alternatives 3. Completion of decision-making answer sheets 4. Observation of small group work 5. Active participation in role-play, as a participant or as an observer who will report back to larger group Decision-making Rubric for Levels of Assessment
Additional Resources There are some additional resources listed at the end of this document. You may also check with your local school board, public health office or call the central information numbers at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health:
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Last updated: Apr 08, 2008 2:54 PM Published: Dec 09, 2009 8:41 PM ID#P3983 |