Missouri Department of Elementary
Risk Taking Behaviors
Sophomores can be sometimes wise and sometimes foolish. The same can be said for their behaviors. After watching a presentation about risk taking behaviors, class members discuss the presentation in small groups, and then complete a...
Department of Education (Ireland)
Assertive Communication
Assertive communication is an acquired skill. Teaching young people to ask for what they need and to believe that they have a right to ask is at the core of a unit on assertive communication. Over the course of the unit, middle and high...
Curated OER
Health Grade 1
First graders determine the difference between good and bad drugs. In this lesson about drug awareness, 1st graders explore differences between drugs. Students will look at picture and understand what uses there are for drugs. Students...
Curated OER
Helping Adolescents Deal with Peer Pressure
Designed by a mental health center, this presentation is meant to educate educators how to help teens face peer pressure. Tips are provided for identifying at-risk youth and bullying situations. This would be a poignant topic to include...
Curated OER
Facts into Action
Students role play chosen scenario about smart decision making. For this drug awareness lesson, students discuss the danger associated with drug abuse. They practice how to make careful choices when faced with a difficult situation.
Curated OER
Environmental Causes of Birth Defects
Get your high schoolers thinking about the factors that lead to birth defects. They examine how environmental factors and personal choices can cause birth defects in unborn children. They discover the effects of various handicaps such as...
National Institute of Drug Abuse
Nurturing My Mental and Emotional Health
One exercise does not necessarily work for all! A resource from the National Institutes of Health provides tweens and teens with exercises to help them cope with anxiety and stress. Participants note their stress levels before and after...
Curated OER
Risk Behavior: HIV/AIDS
Bring to life the health risks of unsafe sex and drug use. Participants are involved in a simulation they don't understand until the end. One pupil is "in the know", secretly playing the role of being HIV-positive. Everyone else...
Department of Education (Ireland)
Understanding Influences
"Understanding Influences," a richly detailed, carefully scaffolded unit, asks middle and high school scholars to examine how internal and external factors like friends, media, and society influence their attitudes and behaviors.
Missouri Department of Elementary
Caution: Thin Ice!
Sixth graders listen to a story titled "Thin Ice!" then partake in a whole-class discussion asking and answering questions about what was read. Scholars brainstorm risky behaviors in preparation for a game of RISKO—a game similar to...
Hastings Prince Edward Public Health
My Life—My Mental Health
Between peer pressure, an onslaught of hormones, and brand new responsibilities, the teenage years can be emotionally volatile. Equip young adults with coping mechanisms and a safe place to discuss their feelings with a guided...
Curated OER
Money and health
High schoolers write a proposal with an appropriate budget to establish a health day at school. They design this day to educate and promote good health. They educate other students about health care, inform high schoolers of health...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Safe and Healthy Life Choices (Part 2)
Scholars listen to a presentation by a health care professional and then submit three questions they would like the speaker to discuss further.
Curated OER
TSI: Teen Science Investigations
Students read an article about a research conducted on teen brain decision making. In this health science lesson plan, students identify the steps in the scientific method. They discuss how this research can benefit them when faced with...
Curated OER
AIDS and Adolescence
Ninth graders examine the relationship between AIDS and teenagers. In groups, they discuss the various issues educators face in introducing the topic to teenagers in school. As a class, they brainstorm a list of the misconceptions they...
Curated OER
Grade 9 - Personal Development (Substance Abuse Prevention)
Ninth graders evaluate peer, cultural, mass media, and social influences related to substance use and abuse. Define available support and describe use refusal skills.
Curated OER
Grade 9 - Personal Development (Healthy Living)
Ninth graders analyze lifestyle factors that affect health and demonstrate an awareness of key lifestyle practices associated with prevention of disease.
Curated OER
Boating Safety
Young scholars are introduced to the safety procedures to follow while boating. After taking a quiz, they complete open-ended questions about boating accidents in Illinois. They discuss as a class how those accidents could have been...
Nemours KidsHealth
Smoking: Grades K-2
Young scholars navigate websites to discover the reasons not to smoke. In this smoking lesson plan, students research and answer questions about the bad effects of smoking.
Nemours KidsHealth
Smoking: Grades 3-5
Students discuss the pros and cons of smoking. For this smoking lesson, students navigate websites to find information on smoking and then participate in a discussion with specific discussion questions.
Healthy Native Youth
Chapter 6: Making Choices
A lesson looks closely at risky behavior such as teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. Middle schoolers use a question box to ask questions anonymously. They role-play what life would be like if they became pregnant then...
Missouri Department of Elementary
Fatal Accident
While there may not be any ghostbusters in the neighborhood, there are plenty of emergency response agencies ready to give support if something is amiss. To that end, instructors invite a member of an emergency response agency to address...
Curated OER
Fatal Accident
Eleventh graders explore, examine and study the impact of personal decisions on the safety and health of self and others. They assess how to evaluate individual coping skills to manage life-changing events. Each student defines and...
Curated OER
Health: Influences on Decisions
Young scholars discover factors influencing their decisions after explaining their reasons for choosing favorite beverages. Working in pairs, they complete worksheets about the influences on decision-making. They write stories about...