Lesson: Responsibility and Decision Making
Essential Standard: 9.PCH.1.7 Differentiate between the lifelong effects of positive and
negative health behaviors
Benchmark/Skill: 9. PCH 1.7 Identify five behaviors that will possibly affect their life and five
behaviors that negatively affect their life
Title: Travel at Your Own Risk
Materials:
 Overhead/Power Point Slide: “What to Do If You Have Made a Wrong Decision”
 Piece of paper (ticket) for each student
1. Tell students to imagine that they have an opportunity to go anywhere in the world for
the vacation of their dreams. Ask each student to select a destination. Ask each student
to select a destination. Ask student volunteers to share their destinations with the rest of
the class. Then give each student one of the tickets you have prepared. Congratulate the
students and tell them that they have won a free trip to their dream destination. Explain
that the “tickets” you just gave them are their free airline tickets. Instruct students to
make up a name for an imaginary airline and write it on the ticket. Then, have the
students write the number 75 on their tickets. Do not explain why they are writing this
number.
2. Have students imagine preparing to leave for their trips. Ask them to picture holding
their suitcases and getting ready to board the airplane. Ask what emotions they would
be experiencing at this point. Students might answer that they would feel excited and
happy. Then tell them that you forgot to mention one bit of information. Have them
read the number (75) written on their tickets. Explain that the number 75 is the
percentage of passengers who have been killed while flying on the airline for which
they have tickets. Ask students to think about whether they still want to travel on that
airline. Ask students still willing to fly on the airline to raise their hands. Have students
discuss the reasoning for their choices.
3. Tell students that it is important to gather as much information as possible before
making a decision. For example, students decided to fl on the airline to their dream
destination before they had all the information they needed to make a responsible
decision. This is evidenced by the fact that some of them changed their decision about
boarding the airplane when they discovered the 75% death rate of passengers who flew
on that particular airline. Emphasize that to make a responsible decision, it is important
to gather all of the information first. Then, the person who has to make the decision can
evaluate the risks. Engage the students in a conversation about the conflicts they get
into with their peers, teachers, and others. For example, he said she said arguments.
Talk about the decisions they made that landed them at Turning Point Academy. Ask
what they could have done to prevent their situation.
Amy Prior
Harding University High School
2011-2012
4. Review The Responsible Decision-Making Model. The Responsible Decision-Making
Model is a series of steps to follow to assure that the decisions a person makes result in
actions that
 Promote health,
 Protect safety,
 Follow laws,
 Show respect for self and others,
 Follow the guidelines of parents and of other responsible adults,
 Demonstrate good character.
Discuss the six steps of the model. Tell students that steps one through four of the model
help them gather information, evaluate options, and consider possible risks, in order to
make responsible decisions. Ask students what they think might happen if they skip any
of the steps. Students should respond that they take unnecessary risks.
5. Tell students you are going to describe a situation that requires a decision. Instruct
them to listen to the following situation and then use The Responsible Decision-Making
Model to make the necessary decision:
Your classmate tells you she has figured out a way to access the school’s
computer system from another computer. She has broken in and changed
several of your classmates’ grades. She reminds you that you did not do very
well on one of your recent exams. She asks you which of your grades you would
like to change. What do you tell your classmate?
Have the class come to consensus about the decision and reasoning behind it.
6. Tell students that teens may make wrong decisions. They may make decisions they later
regret. Ask students to think about a time when they have made a wrong decision. They
do not need to share what they are thinking with other students. Emphasize that a
person who makes a wrong decision should not just hope that nobody finds out that
(s)he has made that decision.
7. Give students the following scenario: You are with your classmates. They start making
fun of one of your friends in a cruel manner. You decide to join in and make fun of this
friend. You turn around and see the friend standing behind you listening to what you
have said. You realize your mistake too late. Ask students what steps the teen in the
scenario might take to repair the damage done by having made the wrong decision.
8. Review the overhead/power point slide What to Do If You Have Made a Wrong
Decision. Tell students that making restitution is making good for any loss or damage.
Point out that restitution is not always a solution. In some cases, the damage may be too
great for restitution. Some wrong decisions can have serious consequences. For
example, suppose the pilot of the airplane students were taking to their dream
destination chooses to disregard safety guidelines and, as a result, the plane crashes.
The pilot is not able to “make up” for the wrong decision. A teen who chooses to drive
after drinking and kills the passenger in his care is not able to “make up” for his/her
behavior.
9. Ask students to brainstorm a short explanation of how using The Responsible DecisionMaking Model as a guide might prevent them from making wrong decisions.
Amy Prior
Harding University High School
2011-2012
What to Do If You Have Made a Wrong Decision
1. Take responsibility and admit you have made a
wrong decision.
 I made a mistake!
 I did it.
 It is my own fault.
 Don’t blame him/her…
 I take full responsibility.
 I screwed up.
 I regret I did that.
2. Do not continue actions based on wrong decisions.
 I am not going to do that again.
I am going to stop this behavior NOW.
 That was the last time I make that mistake.
 Next time I will use The Responsible Decision-Making Model.
3. Discuss the wrong decision with a parent, guardian,
or other responsible adult.
4. Make restitution for harm done to others.
 How can I make this up to you?
 I’ll pay to replace it.
 What are ways I can fix this mess?
 I am sorry… what can I do to make things better?
Amy Prior
Harding University High School
2011-2012