5th Grade - Red Ribbon Week Lesson 2015

Please read my previous post about the purpose of our Red Ribbon Week lessons before reading this post.

The lesson began by asking the students to discuss the following questions with their small groups of 3-4 students:

• What does it mean to be healthy?
• What are some things we should not do, things that would hurt the way we think and act?
• What might happen to someone who smokes?
• What might happen to someone who drinks beer or other alcoholic drinks?
• Do you know of any other drugs that might keep us from being healthy and taking care of ourselves?

After around 5 minutes, we discussed the students' thoughts on each of these questions as a large group.  Students viewed a picture of a smoker's lungs compared to the lungs of a non-smoker and we discussed the health risks associated with smoking.  Students also viewed a picture of a 15-year-old male brain who does not drink alcohol compared to a 15-year-old male brain who drinks alcohol.  We discussed the dangers of drinking alcohol, especially as it pertains to underage drinking.

Next, the students viewed a video entitled The Boy Who Was Swallowed by the Drug Monster.  The story was written by the mother of a man who started using drugs at the age of 8 to cope with issues going on in his life.  The video is in the format of a picture book being read to the students and they are able to see the dangerous effects the drugs had on the boy and how the drugs changed his life.  The video is a very powerful video marketed for students in grades 3-5 and it shows students how a person can become addicted to drugs even after trying it one time.

After the video, we discussed the reason why Vince began using drugs in the first place - his mom and dad had gotten a divorce and Vince did not know what to do to make himself feel better about the divorce.  We talked about the fact that there will be times in life where we just don't feel happy and we need to know what to do during these times to get through them without getting ourselves into trouble.

Our lesson ended by discussing three of The 7 Habits of Happy Kids by Sean Covey.  Students were encouraged to discuss today's lesson with their parents and ask them any questions they may have on the topic.  Students were also reminded that I am available to discuss any concerns they  have on the topic and were reminded how to make an appointment to meet with me.

Thank you for your support of the school counseling program.  I know this is a sensitive topic, but it is one we must teach our students about so they have the knowledge and the skills to make safe, healthy choices.