Project: Who Am I?
Have each student draw a large Coat of Arms on poster board.
Each square should answer questions 1 through 6 graphically.
Run a contest with the most creative posters winning a prize.
Stickers and magic markers make this contest colorful.
*Modified from
Values Clarification
(see List of Reference)
Lesson Plan II
Substance Abuse Questionnaire
Ask yourself the following 20 questions and please answer them as honestly as you can. Remember,
drugs
includes reefer (pot) and
drinking
includes beer and wine coolers!
1. Are you absent from school due to drinking or drugs?
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YES
|
NO
|
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2. Is drinking or drug use causing more problems at home?
|
YES
|
NO
|
3. Do you drink or use drugs because you are shy with other
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
people?
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4. Is drinking or drug use affecting your reputation?
|
YES
|
NO
|
5. Have you ever felt badly after drinking or drug use?
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YES
|
NO
|
6. Have you gotten into financial difficulties as a result
|
YES
|
NO
|
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of drinking or drugs.
|
7. Do your friends or where you hang out change when
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
drinking or taking drugs.
|
8. Does your drinking or drug use make you less responsible
|
YES
|
NO
|
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for your family’s welfare? (Are you spending too much
|
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money on drugs or drinks?)
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-
9. Have your goals changes since drinking or using drugs.
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YES
|
NO
|
10. Do you need a drink or drug at a definite time regularly?
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YES
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NO
|
11. Do you need a drink or drug the next morning to get rid
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
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of hangover or low?
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12. Does drinking or drug use cause you to have difficulty in
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
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sleeping?
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13. Do you do less positive things since drinking or taking
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
|
drugs?
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14. Is drinking or taking drugs jeopardizing your ability to
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
|
complete whatever you are doing?
|
15. Do you drink or take drugs to forget or get away from
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
|
worries or troubles?
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16. Do you drink or take drugs alone?
|
YES
|
NO
|
17. Have you ever had a complete loss of memory as a result
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
|
of drinking or drug use? (A blackout)
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18. Has your physician ever treated you for drinking or taking
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
|
drugs?
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19. Do you drinking or take drugs to build up your self
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
|
confidence?
|
20. Have you ever been to a hospital or institution due to
|
YES
|
NO
|
|
|
drinking or taking drugs?
|
Lesson Plan III
Advertising: Its Effect on Children*
Children grow up in the United States being affected by the media in every phase of their life. By the age of two, a little tike knows that goodies are at the bottom shelf of every grocery store. He is aware of the best toys, the “in styles”, the places to shop, and products to buy, around the age of five. Messages about family life, communication, medication, sports activities, churches to visit, sexual activities, cleaning products, and the roles of men and women, have subtly infiltrated, impressionable young minds. Advertising has the greatest single influence on this country and when used constructively can redirect negative thoughts into positive ideas. Unfortunately, since the bottom line is profit, the majority of ad agencies and big business stock holders somehow forget the importance of simple human values.
* Block, S., (1988) “Advertising, Drugs, & Booze”, Institute of Teaching & Learning, STate Department of Education, Hartford, CT
Let’s take a look at a typical Sunday afternoon in many homes throughout the country. A little boy knows that his dad and cronies will be watching football. “The boys” will be munching on sandwiches and potato chips, accompanied by multitude of beers. Every fifteen minutes the game will be interrupted with beer commercials or automobile advertisements. Each commercial will show “macho men” who laugh, slug each other on the shoulder, knock down a beer or two, a have sexy woman on their arm, or drive into the sunset, looking for freedom. Mom and “the girls” are in the kitchen fixing food, cleaning up after the boys, or occasionally joining their “men”. The little boy is confused because during the week he sees mom and dad come home from work, barely communicating, watching television and drinking beer, falling asleep only to repeat the same pattern again he next day. What is the little boy learning about family life? Let’s break it down:
1. Adults talk to tv sets, not to each other.
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2. Mom and dad relax by eating junk food and drinking alcohol.
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3. “The boys” drink together and have fun.
-
4. “The girls” hang together and have fun.
5. “The girls” and “the boys” are not together.
What this same little boy is discovering about alcohol is:
1. Alcohol brings people together.
-
2. Alcohol helps you relax.
3. Alcohol is integral part of daily life.
The message continues on, no matter where this little boy goes. On his way to school, he sees a billboard with a famous sports figure leaning over a suggestive looking woman. At the bottom of the ad is a large bottle of scotch. Even if a child can’t read, the message is loud and clear . . . BOOZE MAKES IT HAPPEN . . . whether it’s sports, sex, or life’s events.
And what about drugs? A first grader may not yet read, but she absolutely knows what mom takes for a headache, how much reefer her brother smokes with his friends, the amount of alcohol dad consumes at the end of the day, how strange her aunt behaves at family parties after a few cocktails and the name of the cough syrup she takes when she has a cold. Ask this same little girl to walk into a drugstore and pick out congestion medication, feminine hygiene sprays, or ointment for itching, and she will be able to perfectly complete this task. The impact of advertising is so powerful that it’s frightening.
Teaching about the disease of alcoholism and drug abuse through media and print advertising is the most effective method this author has discovered. Utilizing what is second nature for children helps them to stay comfortable on a topic that could otherwise become very threatening. The way to reach people, regardless of age, is through listening, sharing, and personal experiences. In this way, trust is established. Without trust, education about the influence of alcohol and drug abuse can never be effective. It will be disregarded or dismissed as just another course a student is required to take. Most people turn to some type of support when they are lonely, afraid, uncertain, or have low self esteem. Unfortunately, often times that support is not positive. Alcohol and drugs become the quick fix for all of life’s problems and solutions. Teaching about addiction must first establish a feeling of safety where thoughts and questions can be shared. It’s a lot more than book knowledge of chemicals and listings of rehabilitation centers; it’s about attitudes and messages that children have seen from the time of birth through the influence of parents, environment, and advertising.
PROJECTS:
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1. Cut out magazine ads; watch tv ads at different times of the day and early evening; listen to different radio stations; cut out newspaper ads.
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2. Look at each ad for content and messages, plus hidden messages that can be derived from the heading or photo.
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3. Design a chart of ads that give mixed messages.
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4. Design your own ad about a store you can own or a product you’d like to sell.
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5. Design an ad about drugs or alcohol use.
Lesson Plan IV