YEAR 8 DRUG EDUCATION, UNITS 4-7.
Outline Lesson Content
E Varley to prepare lesson plans
Guidelines
1. Tell purpose of session
2. Activity
3. Opportunity for reflecting on own learning
Unit
PB
Drugs Ed
4
Early Warning Signs
(Affects on body: addiction,
decision making, identifying,
assessing)
Scientific terminology: use,
misuse, abuse, addiction.
Examples from all categories
of drugs.
Legal/illegal drugs, offences,
Possession, supply, etc.
Effects of different levels of
intake of alcohol.
Identifying health risks of
drugs: General and specific.
Attitudes towards drugs.
Identifying risks to health:
General and specific drugs
covered.
Oneself as role model:
Responsibility for one’s
actions.
5
6
7
Theme One:
We all have the right to feel
safe all of the time
Rights and responsibilities:
I have the right to feel safe
and the responsibility to
respect that everyone else has
the same right too.
Thoughts/feelings/behaviours Identifying health risks of
drugs: General and specific.
Decision making in drug
misuse situations.
Attitudes and beliefs about
drugs in society.
Code
K3
K4
K5
K7
S1
A3
S1
A4
S1
S3
A1
PROTECTIVE BEHAVIOURS DRUG PROGRAMME, YEAR 8
Unit 4 Lesson Plan - Early Warning Signs
Purpose of session
By the end of the session, students will be familiar with the terms use, misuse, abuse and
addiction. They will have looked at the role that early warning signs play in helping to keep
us safe and will be more aware of the risks and laws related to drug and alcohol misuse.
Activity
Group discussion, thought-storming and a quiz.
Opportunity for reflecting on learning
Through handout reinforcing information contained in the session.
Materials and handouts
Student handout
Lesson Plan
1. Introduction (1 minute): Drugs are substances which when taken into the body, change
the way we feel, mentally, physically or emotionally. In this session, we are going to
look at how these changes can put us at risk, how our bodies can warn us that we are
at risk and how we can learn to listen to these warnings. We will also briefly look at the
different classes of drugs.
2. Ask students to think of a risky situation and imagine how they might feel. For example,
say to them: Imagine that a new friend has found a bag with pills in it in his brother’s
bedroom. He doesn’t know what they are but he swallows two and tries to get you to
take some too. Your friend is really popular at school and you don’t want him to think
you’re soft. What physical signs of fear might you suddenly experience?’ Get students
to list some of these, prompt if necessary, from Unit 4 handout. Suggest that these are
early warning signs, advising that there could be danger ahead. In some situations we
may enjoy the feelings of being scared, e.g. on the big wheel at the fairground. At other
times, perhaps when we are learning something new, we may risk on purpose, e.g.
before an important test. However, there are times when we know the risks outweigh
the potential advantages. We need to learn when to take heed of these physical early
warning signs. (4 minutes)
3. Quiz. (9 minutes) Ask students to answer the following questions, advising them that
the correct answers will be distributed at the end of the session.
Q. 1. What does the term ‘drug use’ mean? (read answer from handout}
2. What does the term ‘drug abuse’ mean? (read answer from handout)
3. What does the term ‘addiction’ mean? (read answer from handout)
4. Stimulant drugs like amphetamines and cocaine speed up the heart and can put it
under a massive strain. True or false. (True, see handout)
5. Depressant drugs like solvents and alcohol make users feel depressed. True or
false (False, see handout)
6. Hallucinogenic drugs are a form of birth control. (False, see handout)
7. Analgesic drugs reduce pain. (True, see handout)
8. What is the maximum penalty for possession of Ecstasy? (7 years, see handout)
9. What is the maximum penalty for selling amphetamines? (14 years, see handout)
10. What are the risks of excessive alcohol drinking? (see handout)
4. Give out handouts, suggesting students take the time to look at them in their own time.
Student handout
Name:
PROTECTIVE BEHAVIOURS DRUG PROGRAMME YEAR 8
Unit 4, Early Warning Signs
What makes a situation risky?
A situation is risky when we are not completely in control and believe we might
get hurt or have a bad experience.
How might we feel when we are in a risky situation?
Our bodies will usually tell us when there is risk ahead:
Our hearts may beat faster
Our hands may become sweaty
We may feel sick or have butterflies in our stomach
We may suddenly need to go to the toilet
Our knees may go wobbly
Our scalp may prickle and our hair stand on end
Drug Use means drug taking through which harm may occur.
Drug Misuse means drug taking which causes mental or physical harm, e.g.
mental or physical dependence, damage to lungs, heart, liver, etc.
Drug Abuse generally means taking drugs in a harmful way.
Addiction is a judgemental term which has largely been replaced with
‘Dependence’. It implies that dependence on a drug/drugs has reached an
advanced stage and has serious detrimental effects on the user.
Stimulant drugs speed up the heart and can cause heart failure.
Depressant drugs generally relax the user but are often very addictive.
Hallucinogenic drugs like LSD alter perception and can cause psychosis.
Analgesic drugs like heroin are pain relievers and can be highly addictive.
Misuse of Drugs Act:
Class A drugs include heroin (brown, skag), cocaine (coke, charlie), crack
cocaine (rock), methadone, ecstasy (pills), LSD (acid), processed magic
mushrooms, opium and PCP.
Class B drugs includes all forms of Cannabis (hash, solid, weed, grass,
skunk, cannabis oil), amphetamines (speed) and barbiturates.
Class C drugs include mild amphetamines (Ritolin, Provigil), mild tranquillisers (valium, temazepam), anabolic steroids.
Maximum Penalties
Class Possession
Supply
Intent to Supply
A
7 years + fine
Life + fine
Life + fine
B
5 years + fine
14 years + fine
14 years + fine
C
2 years + fine
5 years + fine
5 years + fine
The dangers of excessive alcohol consumption are loss of decision
making abilities which can lead to unwanted pregnancy, sexually transmitted
diseases, violence, crime, prison, alcohol poisoning, etc. In the long term it
can lead to dependence (addiction), liver and kidney damage, cancer, mental
health problems, heart problems, generally poor health through poor nutrition
and many other mental and physical disorders, even death.
PROTECTIVE BEHAVIOURS DRUG PROGRAMME, YEAR 8
Unit 5 Lesson Plan - Theme One
Purpose of session
Using drugs can make us feel and be unsafe. By the end of the session, students will have
an increased awareness of the link between drug use and feeling/being unsafe.
Activity
In groups, students act out how drugs affect the organs of the body, putting them at risk.
Opportunity for reflecting on learning
Through open ended questions and class discussion at end of session.
Materials/worksheets
Student worksheets, pens/pencils
Lesson Plan
1. Introduction. Advise students that in this session we are going to look at the effects of
different drugs on the body. Divide the class into four groups, to represent different
parts of the body, eg. Lungs Heart Brain Liver
2. Each students is given a drug fact sheet (1 minute) for:
Stimulant drugs Cigarettes
Amphetamines – speed, whizz, billy, base
Cocaine – charlie, coke, snow
Ecstasy – e, pills
Depressant drugs Alcohol
Cannabis – puff, hash, skunk, weed
Solvents - Gases and Glue
Hallucinogenics LSD – acid, trips, tabs
Magic mushrooms – mushies
Sheets have tick boxes which indicate which organs of the body are most at risk from
using each drug.
2. Ask students to work through sheets (5 minutes), ticking the boxes that are appropriate
for their group’s organ.
eg. students in the Heart group will tick:
under Stimulants: amphetamines, cocaine, ecstasy
under Depressants: alcohol, solvents
under Hallucinogens no boxes
Students have 2 minutes to think how they can act out the affects and risks of each
drug on their designated organ, guided by the information on the fact sheet.
Eg. students in the Brain group might act out the effects of
Hallucinogenic drugs by appearing scared, or moving wildly, or staring
unseeingly, etc. They may also express themselves with sound at the teacher’s
discretion.
4. The teacher calls out drug names one at a time (30 secs each drug, total 5 minutes
inclluding explanation). Students act out how they think each drug might affect their
designated organ, using sounds if agreed with teacher.
5. Staying in groups, the whole class considers the questions (2 minutes)
‘Would our organs feel that drug using is safe‘
‘How do I feel about putting myself and my health at risk through using drugs?’
6. Remind the class that one way we can exercise our right to feel safe is to make safer
choices for ourselves. This is about our right to feel safe - and we all have the right to
feel safe all of the time.
Student worksheet
Name:
PROTECTIVE BEHAVIOURS DRUG PROGRAMME YEAR 8
Unit 5, Theme One
Stimulant drugs
Cigarettes
Amphetamines – speed, whizz, billy, base
Cocaine – charlie, coke, snow, C
Ecstasy – e, pills
Depressant drugs
Alcohol
Cannabis – puff, hash, skunk, weed
Solvents - gases and glue
Hallucinogenics
LSD – acid, trips, tabs
Magic mushrooms – mushies
Tick appropriate boxes to
indicate a risk for your
Drug name
Effects and risks of drug on body
group’s organ
Brain Heart Lungs Liver
Cigarettes

Can cause heart problems.

Can cause breathing difficulties,
lung cancer.
Amphetamines

Speeds up heart . Can cause
heart failure.

Can cause liver damage.
Cocaine and

Can cause mental health
Crack Cocaine
problems, e.g. paranoia.

Speeds up heart. Can cause
heart failure.

Can damage the lungs.

Can cause liver damage.
Ecstasy

Can cause brain haemorrhage

May affect mental health.

Speeds up heart, can cause
heart failure.
Alcohol

Slows down mental processes.

Can affect mental health
.

Slows down heartbeat

Can cause heart problems

Can cause liver damage
Cannabis

Can lead to mental health
problems like depression,
paranoia and schizophrenia.

Can damage the lungs
Solvents

Slows down mental processes

Slows down heart beat. Can
cause heart failure

Can cause lungs to collapse
LSD

Can cause hallucinations

Can affect mental health.
Magic mushrooms

Can cause hallucinations

Can affect mental health
PROTECTIVE BEHAVIOURS DRUG PROGRAMME, YEAR 8
Unit 6 Lesson Plan - Rights and Responsibilities
Purpose of session
By the end of the session, students will better understand that being responsible for our
own actions can extend to considering how what we do and say can influence other people
- including in possible drug use/discussion situations.
Activity
Through led class discussion, students consider the implications of being a role model and
its relevance to drug discussion and drug use situations.
Opportunity for reflecting on learning
By open ended questions and opportunity for Individual written work, listing ways in which
students as role models might take responsibility for their actions.
Materials/handouts
Student worksheets, pens/pencils
Lesson Plan
1. Introduction. The last session was about our right to feel safe all of the time. Tell the
class that in this session they will be considering our rights alongside our responsibilities
for ourselves and to others. Ask the class to start by thinking of activities they like to do
in their spare time, e.g. football, netball, skateboarding, horse riding, climbing, shopping,
playstation, etc. (1 minute)
2. Now ask students how they got involved in these activities. Why did they start doing
them? Why did they think they would like them? As they are being given, write a list of
these reasons on the board. (3 minutes)
Inevitably, a common reason that students will come up with for trying something
new will be that someone they liked and respected encouraged them to do it or
was doing it first (role model).
3. What is a role model? (2 minutes) Briefly discuss with class. (e.g. a role model can
be someone we want to be like, someone who has qualities we respect and want for
ourselves, someone who seems to make the right choices and has a good/exciting/
interesting/ enjoyable life, perhaps someone who has a lot of friends).
Conclusion: a role model is someone who for all or some of these reasons has an
influence on us and how we behave.
4. Discuss briefly: (3 minutes) Do we have a choice about whether or not we follow the
example of a role model? How strong an influence can role models be, especially on
younger children? Might we sometimes do silly or dangerous things because we are
encouraged by a role model? (e.g. disobey a rule or a law?) Do role models have a
responsibility to other more vulnerable people? Suggest that role models can exercise
that responsibility by being careful with what they say and do in front of other people,
especially younger or more vulnerable people. e.g. Not talk about drug use, not use
drugs (including cigarettes and alcohol) in front of younger children.
5. Hand out worksheets. Suggest to students that each of them is a role model for
someone or some others. Point out that we are often not aware when we are role
models for other people. Ask each student to write on their worksheet, 3 people
who they think they may be a role model for, e.g. younger brothers and sisters, cousins,
friends, younger students, etc. They do not have to write names. (2 minutes).
6. Conclude by asking students how they might exercise the responsibilities of a role
model in possible drug use or drug discussion situations. (4 minutes) Suggest that
they might write down their own ideas on the worksheet in their own time.
Student worksheet
Name:
PROTECTIVE BEHAVIOURS DRUG PROGRAMME YEAR 8
Unit 6, Rights and Responsibilities
Role Models
A role model is someone who we want to be like in some way. He or she
might have qualities or things in their life that we respect and want to have
ourselves. He or she is likely to be a person who seems to have an
enjoyable/exciting/ interesting life, perhaps someone who has a lot of friends.
We may not think of someone as a role model to us, but nevertheless he/she
has an influence on us, on the choices we make and on the way we behave.
Whether we know it or not, we are all role models to some other people,
usually younger or more vulnerable people. We are not always aware of who
looks up to us as a role model and whose choices and actions we influence.
I think I may be a role model to:
1.
2.
3.
I am responsible for my actions. We all have a responsibility to be careful of
what we say and do in front of others who are younger or more vulnerable
than ourselves, because they may be influenced by us.
Most young people will at some time find themselves in a situation where
drugs are being discussed or being used. I can take responsibility for my
actions and be a good role model by:
1.
2.
3.
4.
PROTECTIVE BEHAVIOURS DRUG PROGRAMME, YEAR 8
Unit 7 Lesson Plan – Thoughts/Feelings/Behaviours.
Purpose of session
By the end of the session, students will appreciate that both thoughts and feelings are
naturally employed in decision making and together affect subsequent behaviour and that
they provide a necessary balance for each other. Students will also have considered the
possible negative effect of drug use on our ability to think clearly and rationally and to be
properly in touch with our feelings so as to make reasonable decisions.
Activity
Interactive discussion.
Opportunity for reflecting on learning
Consideration of final questions.
Materials/handouts
Student handout
Lesson Plan
1. Introduce students to the idea that for each of us, our thoughts, feelings and behaviour
work together to determine the decisions we make – and every hour of every day we
are making decisions about our lives. Draw interlocking circles on the board, label them
‘thoughts’, ‘feelings’, ‘behaviour’ to demonstrate how they interact.
Thoughts: When we have a decision to make (a choice), we think of the options open
to us and weigh up the potential benefits and disadvantages of each of them.
Feelings: We consider how we feel about the different options and their possible
consequences. We balance our feelings/intuition against our thoughts and we come up
with a preferred option which takes both into account.
Behaviour: The attitude and/or action we take based on the decision we have arrived
at is our behaviour. Our behaviour affects the way we feel and so is likely to influence
future decision making. e.g. if we had decided not to come to school today, but to
skive off, then we might be feeling worried or guilty about getting into trouble or about
letting other people down. That feeling would be likely to affect what we did with the
day. (4 minutes)
2. If we make a decision without taking into account how we feel, then we are likely to
decide badly. The consequences of acting just on feelings and so without thought is
also likely to be unsafe. (2 minutes)
3. When making a decision about drug use, it is important that thoughts and feelings are
clear. Give some possible implications of drug use, e.g. legal, health, financial.
Consider the effects of drug use on the ability to make good decisions. Remind
students that a drug is ‘a substance which when taken into the body affects the
way we feel mentally, physically or emotionally’. Ask students to suggest ways in which
different drugs might affect our feelings and our ability to think clearly and rationally.
Prompt examples using alcohol, cocaine or another strong stimulant and a
hallucinogen. If necessary, remind students of the effects of stimulant and depressant
drugs.
drugs. (8 minutes)
4. Ask students how using drugs/alcohol might affect decisions about further drug
taking. Mention risks of mixing drugs. Can we be sure of making sound and safe
decisions, incorporating thoughts, feelings and behaviour, if we are under the influence
of drugs or alcohol? (1 minute)
Student handout
Name:
PROTECTIVE BEHAVIOUR DRUG PROGRAMME YEAR 8
Unit 7, Thoughts/Feelings/Behaviours
DRUG EFFECTS:
STIMULANT DRUGS
e.g. Amphetamine (speed), Cocaine, Crack cocaine, (tea, coffee, tobacco),
ecstasy
Increase alertness, reduce tiredness, delay sleep, reduce appetite, raise
confidence and lift mood. Except in tobacco, can cause nervousness and
anxiety. Excepting tobacco and caffeine, can cause paranoia. Some
stimulants have hallucinogenic properties (e.g. ecstasy). Some stimulants
have pain killing qualities (e.g. cocaine, crack cocaine).
Tolerance and psychological dependence can develop with frequently
repeated doses.
DEPRESSANT DRUGS
e.g. Alcohol, Cannabis, Tranquillisers, Barbiturates
Relieve tension and anxiety, promote relaxation, impair mental and physical
functioning and decrease self control. Can cause changes in behaviour
(drunkenness), drowsiness, stupor, sleep/unconsciousness. Depressant
effects may be dangerously increased if more than one depressant drug is
taken at a time or if depressant drugs are mixed with opiate type drugs.
Tolerance and psychological dependence is likely to develop with
frequently repeated doses.
HALLUCINOGENIC DRUGS
e.g. LSD (acid), Magic mushrooms, PCP, Salvia Divinorum, Mescalin, DMT,
Ketamine, Cannabis
Heightened appreciation of sensory experiences, possible disorientation
and confusion, possible perceptual/visual distortions, possible mild
hallucinations to intense visual or introspective hallucinations.
Tolerance and psychological dependence can develop with large or
frequently repeated doses.
ANALGESIC DRUGS (PAINKILLERS)
e.g. Heroin, Methadone, Morphine, Opium, Codeine (opiates, opioids,
narcotic analgesics)
Reduce sensitivity to and emotional reaction to pain, discomfort and anxiety.
Depressant effects may be dangerous if more than one opiate is taken at a
time or if opiates are taken with other depressant drugs.
Tolerance, psychological and physical dependence is likely with frequently
repeated doses.