Junior High Curriculum

   

 

LESSON 1: GETTING ACQUAINTED AND THE D.A.R.E. GAME 

OVERVIEW 

• Reacquaint students with the D.A.R.E. program and develop an awareness of their own knowledge about drugs and their effects.

Objectives

• Become acquainted with the D.A.R.E. officer assigned to the school.
• Feel even more at east with their peers.
• Describe the officers' and students' responsibilities.
• Be aware of gaps in their knowledge and misunderstandings of the effects and risks of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use (ATOP).
• Understand and begin to incorporate the value of respect of self and others in their interactions with the officer and other students.

 

LESSON 2: Your Body and Brain-Keep them Healthy

Overview 

• Research shows that drug use can cause short and long term damage to the body and brain reducing critical functions. It is particularly important to NOT 
  damage a developing body and brain.

Objective

• Explain the effects that alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and other drugs have on the brain and what this means for brain functions.
• Identify resources in the school and Community to turn to help yourself and others who might be in trouble with the misuse of alcohol and other drugs.

 

LESSON 3: Analyzing Advertisements 

Overview 

• Adolescents are exposed to numerous advertisements in general and for alcohol and tobacco in particular.  Use of alcohol and tobacco also appears in many television shows and movies, which is another form of advertising.

Objectives

• Recognize different advertising techniques and the reasoning behind them.
• Explain that this age group is the target of tobacco and alcohol advertisers. The tobacco companies need to get young people to become addicted to tobacco to replace the thousand of older consumers who die from tobacco related illnesses each day.
• Explain that advertisers are not respecting the consumers' health or the social costs involved in the expenses related to tobacco use and alcohol abuse.

 

LESSON 4: Headline News - Understanding Normative Beliefs

Overview

• Most teens choose not to use alcohol, tobacco, or other illegal drugs. Dispelling the myth that "everyone does it" is one of the best ways to weaken peer and self-induced pressure to use drugs and alcohol.

Objective

• Explain to others that most teens choose not to use alcohol, tobacco, or other illegal drugs.
• Revise own beliefs about drug use by others and not use the "everybody is doing it" excuse to justify own behavior.

 

LESSON 5: Going to the Movies and Decision-Making

Overview 

• Using realistic situations involving pressure to use tobacco, students will practice using the Decision-Making Model as a key tool for developing the capacity to Take Charge of Life.

Objective

• Explain and use the Decision-Making Model in problematic situations.
• Use information about Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs (ATOD) from earlier lessons into their decision-making process. Generate viable resistance options for any pressure-to-use ATOD situation.

 

LESSON 6: Hangin' Out At Anthony's

Overview

• In this lesson students are to continue to draw on the information and attitudes examined in earlier lessons and the Decision-Making Model introduced in Lesson 5 to create alternative ways to deal with situations in which ATOD and social pressure to use are present.

Objectives

• Use the Decision-Making Model.
• Explain what acting confidently means, what kinds of behaviors reflect a confident response, and what elements are present in typical confident behavior.
• Use three or more confident responses to express their decision to not to drink the beer.

 

LESSON 7: Practicing Resistance Skills

Overview 

• Integrating the information on risks of substance use with listening, decision-making, acting confidently, and refusal skills form the cluster of resistance skills. In order to become effective in the use of resistance skills, extensive practice is needed.

Objectives

• Integrate the information on risks with resistance skills.
• Effectively use resistance skills in scenarios.

 

LESSON 8: Cooling It

Overview

• Recognizing frustration and feelings of anger, as well as knowing how to "cool it" and re-direct anger can help students avoid violence.

Objectives

• Explain how thoughts and feelings can affect one's action
• Identify several factors in situations that might contribute to conflict/anger.
• Explain in their own words the meaning of "cooling it".
• Apply elements of "cooling it" in role-play scenarios.
• Combine "cooling it" skills with listening, decision-making and acting confidently.

 

LESSON 9: Social and Legal Responsibilities

Overview  

• As adolescents mature and want more freedom, it is necessary for them to have an understanding of different rules and laws, as well as an understanding of the difference between legal and social responsibilities. These are important concepts for youth to take into consideration in order to be in charge of their lives.

Objective

• Distinguish between legal and social responsibilities while applying all of the information they have learned in the previous lessons while arguing cases.

 

10. Putting It All Together

Overview

• This lesson continues the cases, looks at ways to have fun without the use of ATOD, and apply all of the concepts and skills studied to new scenarios.

Objective

• Apply the knowledge and skills learned throughout the A.S.A.P. program to new situations.