Educating Students about Drug Use and Mental Health - Grade 6: Expectation 1

Grade 6 Overview

Expectation 1

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Specific Learning Expectation

Describe short and long-term effects of cannabis and other illicit drugs.

Background for Information

Overall learning expectations for substance use and abuse for grades prior to Grade 6 include:

• Grade 1: Recognize commonly used medicines and household products.
• Grade 2: Describe the effects on the body of appropriate and inappropriate uses of medicine on the body.
• Grade 3: Describe what a drug is, list several examples (e.g., nicotine, caffeine, alcohol), and describe the effects of these substances on the body.
• Grade 4: Identify the influences (e.g., the media, peers, family members) affecting the use of tobacco, as well as the effects and legalities of, and healthy alternatives to, tobacco use.
• Grade 5: Identify the influences (e.g., the media, peers, family members) affecting alcohol use, as well as the effects and legalities of, and healthy alternatives to, alcohol use.

Hot Tips for Teachers

In the following lesson plans, you will be discussing cannabis and other illicit drugs. (See glossary for some specifics about the drugs to be discussed.)

There is a great deal of controversy about the use of cannabis and students are influenced by what they see and read in the media. While cannabis will not "fry your brain", there is cause for concern about use, particularly for developing bodies and minds. Also, cannabis is an illegal drug, and possession is still considered a criminal offence. Research indicates that there are short- and long-term negative side effects.

In the short-term:

• Cannabis impairs the central nervous system, much the same way alcohol does (e.g., affects vision, impairs judgement, reduces reaction time).
• It affects the respiratory system and delivers more tar to the lungs than cigarettes do.
• Users find it more difficult to concentrate and learn new facts.
• We are not clear about all the effects of cannabis, but because a young person's body is developing, its impact could be much more serious than with an adult.

In the long-term:

• Psychological dependence can occur, with some people experiencing physical withdrawal if they stop using it. There is evidence that THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the active ingredient in cannabis, may be physically addictive.
• THC accumulates in the fatty tissues around vital organs (e.g., reproductive organs, brain).
• Cannabis may cause hallucinations in heavy doses.
• A person, if using regularly, may decide to sell some of his or her personal amount, in order to be able to buy more. This is considered trafficking and is a criminal offence, which is dealt with very seriously by the courts.
• If using regularly, a young person's circle of friends may change, and he or she may move towards a group who also uses regularly.

Research continues into the long-term effects of the regular use of cannabis as it relates to memory and  emotional/behavioural aspects. It appears that cannabis also has some positive side effects that affect medical conditions, for example, reducing nausea for people on chemotherapy. We will know more about this in the next few years. But in the meantime it is important to acknowledge that people use all kinds of drugs to feel good, either to enhance pleasure or relieve pain. This is why they continue to use these drugs. It is the negative side effects which cause concern, particularly for young people for whom the side effects could be enhanced because of their size and body weight.

It is very important that students get accurate information. They may be acquainted with someone who smokes cannabis and should know if the information is a scare tactic and not the truth.

If students ask about drug names that you do not know, be aware that this is very common, since new drugs are being designed all the time. You and the students can get in touch with the local public health unit or call the Central Library of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (416 595-6144) for more information.

Teaching/Learning Strategies

Review the short and long-term effects of alcohol and nicotine.

Introduce the topic, explaining that there are other drugs that students may have heard about and that you will be discussing in the next three lessons.

Ask students what they have heard about cannabis (or marijuana or some of the other names from the glossary).

Make a porcupine on the chalkboard. Write the word "cannabis", and then as the students give you information, write this as spikes coming from the body of the porcupine.

Correct inaccurate information that the students have and explain the short and long-term effects of cannabis use.

Cannabis Awareness Exercise

Play the "Cannabis Awareness Exercise" (reprinted with permission from Toronto Public Health, developed by the former North York Public Health Department).

Break the students up into three groups and give tasks to the three groups separately without telling the other groups.

• First group: give this group a secret message which they must communicate to the second group, by acting it out, or yelling it or whatever it takes to transmit the message. The message could be related to healthy alternatives, e.g., "We need to make healthy choices about drug use."
• Second group: must try to learn the message that the first group is going to send them. They must write down the message when they think they have received it.
• Third group: must stop the message from being transmitted by making as much of a distraction as they can. Making noise, waving their arms, jumping up and down are all part of their task.

The teacher starts the groups and gives them 30 seconds to complete the exercise.

Discuss the exercise:

1. Ask the second group to give the message they received.

2. Ask the first group if this was correct.

3. Ask the first group how it felt to try to get the message across with so much distraction going on.

4. Ask the second group how it felt to try to learn the message with all the distraction.

5. Discuss the effects of cannabis as they relate to this exercise, e.g., cannabis can make you feel very distracted and learning is difficult, and it can be difficult to get your message across if people have trouble understanding you. Cannabis can also make it difficult for some people to understand you or your behaviour.

Cannabis Basketball

Play the game, "Cannabis Basketball" (courtesy of American Health Foundation: Know Your Body - School Health Education Program (1996), published by Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, Dubuque, Iowa. Phone 1-800-228-0810)

1. Divide students into two teams. Alternating between teams, each team scores by having one of its players answer a question correctly (or team confers and the "captain" speaks for the team). If the question is answered incorrectly, the other team has a chance. The team that reaches 30 points first (or another agreed-upon number) wins.

2. Each player may request one of the following types of questions:

• free throw (one point) - easiest
• goal (two points) - medium difficulty
• three-pointer shot (three points) - most difficult

3. Review the questions the students have difficulty answering.

Questions:

Free Throws: (worth one point)

• Marijuana is a form of cannabis.
  (T or F)
• Cannabis can slow a person's reaction time.
  (T or F)
• Cannabis increases a person's ability to concentrate.
  (T or F)
• People driving under the influence of cannabis can cause collisions.
  (T or F)
• Using cannabis helps a person learn better.
  (T or F)
• Smoke from a marijuana cigarette can cause lung problems.
  (T or F)

Goal: (worth two points)

• Dependency cannot happen with cannabis.
  (T or F)
• Marijuana stays in several body organs for weeks.
  (T or F)
• Cannabis is better for the lungs than cigarettes.
  (T or F)
• Cannabis does not affect the reproductive system.
  (T or F)
• Cannabis is a stimulant.
  (T or F)
• Marijuana use expands short-term memory.
  (T or F)

Three-point shot: (worth three points)

• Why does cannabis use increase the chance of car crashes? (three reasons needed)
  (affects vision, impairs judgement and reduces motor skills)
• Describe three ways that cannabis can affect the body.
  (see "Hot Tips for Teachers")
• Marijuana smoke, like cigarettes, contains what two products that cause problems?
  (tar and carbon monoxide)
• What does addiction mean?

Ask students to write a paragraph in their journal/log about what would concern them the most about someone using cannabis.

Assessments of Learning

1. Review and discussion of short and long-term effects of alcohol and tobacco

2. Participation in "Cannabis Awareness Exercise"

3. Participation in "Cannabis Basketball"

4. Completion of journal/log entry

Rubric for Levels of Assessment

Level 1: Needs assistance to understand the concepts related to short- and long-term effects of cannabis and other drugs. Communicates poorly, and rarely uses appropriate terminology. Level 2: Shows understanding of the required concepts with several minor errors; communicates with some clarity, sometimes using appropriate terminology. Level 3: Shows understanding of most of the required concepts and communicates these clearly, usually using appropriate terminology. Level 4: Shows understanding of all or almost all, of the concepts, and communicates them clearly and precisely, using appropriate and varied terminology.

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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