Content Area: Health and Physical Education

 

Index: 2.2B Grade 8 CPI 2

 

Standard: 2.2 - Integrated Skills

 

Strand: B -   Decision Making 

 

Cumulative Progress Indicator: 2 - The student will compare and contrast the influence of peers, family, the media, and past experiences on the use of decision-making skills and predict how these influences may change or conflict as one ages.

 

Grade: 8

 

Sample Activities:

 

·        LETTERS OF ENCOURAGEMENT - Each student writes a letter of encouragement and support to a pen pal who may be participating in at-risk behaviors such as sexual activity, substance use, or violence. The writer must identify the behaviors, support his/her ideas with facts about the at-risk behavior, and encourage the young person to make healthy choices and change his/her behavior. The letter should support responsible decision making, suggest positive and age-appropriate alternatives to at-risk activities, and promote a positive self-image.

 

·       DIET WISE - Present various weight loss ads seen in magazines or on television. Display books that promote various fad diets and allow students to examine them. Then have the students brainstorm the common messages found in each. Show magazine ads or slides of “the beautiful people”— people who are in the public eye and always appear to be very slender. Ask the students: “What do these people do to stay slim? Do they look healthy? How much do you think they weigh?” Compare the estimated weights with recommended weights from height/weight charts and body fat analysis. Ask: “Do you think they are healthy individuals? Why or why not?”

Variation: Divide the class into groups and assign each group a fad diet, weight-loss program, or weight-loss product. Students research the assigned topic and present the information to the class, outlining the positive and negative aspects of each program, the research that supports the program,
and the costs involved. Students discuss whether the program is medically sound, based on the information presented.

Variation: Both males and females use weight-loss and weight-gain products, even though females are the targeted audience. Students brainstorm why an adolescent would want to gain or lose weight. Outline the healthiest ways to gain or lose weight.

Variation: Students write poems or short stories about having a positive body image and how it contributes to wellness. The writings can include graphics or other illustrations and can be displayed as part of a class booklet.

 

·       TEEN MAGAZINE - Provide a wide variety of current magazines that appeal to teenagers. Ask students to identify common elements in each. Divide the class into several groups. Each group selects a target audience for a newly created teen magazine that promotes adolescent health (e.g., younger teens, males, high school females, college students, student athletes) Each group determines the topics for their magazine based on their review of magazines currently in print (e.g., advice columns; features on foods, makeup and fashion; real life stories; music and movie reviews). Groups write and design articles; put the magazine together; illustrate it with drawings, graphics or photos; and develop a marketing plan to reach the desired audience. Each group presents the finished magazine to the class.

Variation: Instead of designing a teen magazine, students develop a magazine for families or parents using the same preparation and format. Students might also design a magazine targeting elementary students.

 

·       FAST-FOOD - Divide the class into five groups. Give each group a “fast-food scenario”—a description of a teenager’s fast food eating habits. Each group discusses their assigned scenario and decides whether the teen made a wise food choice. Give the students information about the costs of the selections, and encourage the use of additional resources (e.g., pamphlets, articles, Internet sites) to investigate the nutritional content of the choices. Each group develops three to five recommendations to improve the teen’s food choices. Examples of fast-food scenarios might include the following:
-       Freddie stops at his favorite fast-food place every day after school for fries and a shake.
-       Sally is watching her weight; she selects a salad and lowfat dressing when she eats there with friends.
-       Harvey buys the largest cheeseburger they sell (according to the ads, Harvey has a “man-sized” appetite) and combines it with a super soda and giant fries.
-       Bonnie never chooses the same thing on the menu—sometimes she’ll eat a burger; the next day a fish sandwich.
-       Malik always orders his burger plain—no catsup, pickle, tomato, or secret sauce for him.

Variation: Students outline their typical fast-food diet, analyze the nutritional content and calories, and offer suggestions to improve selections.

 

·       THINK BEFORE YOU EAT - Ask students if they have ever gone to the store looking for something and couldn’t find it—only to discover that the label and packaging had been changed. (This happens with paperback books so use these as a visual example.) Talk about the importance of looking carefully at labels to determine what changes have occurred (e.g., size of can or package, serving size, directions, concentration, content). Show various serving sizes of products—especially things like one cookie, one piece of candy, or one cracker. Divide the class into four groups, and give each group a can of peaches (one generic brand, one light brand, and two regular brands). Each group completes a chart describing the cost of the product, the serving size, number of servings per container, number of calories per serving and nutritional content (including protein, fat, calcium, and other important nutrients). Students note if additives or preservatives have been added. After gathering all this information, the group votes on whether they would buy the product. Exchange products and repeat the exercise until each group has collected information on all four cans of peaches. The entire class discusses the results of the investigation and draws conclusions.

Variation: Instead of using peaches, use fruit juice. Another option is to compare fruit juice and fruit drinks and develop a comparison-contrast chart.

 

·       TV VIOLENCE LOG - Brainstorm the names of TV shows the students watch most often. Ask: “How many of the shows feature violent behavior?” Students watch one TV show per day for one week and record the number of violent acts on the show. At the end of the week, students share the names of the shows they watched and the number of violent acts seen on those shows. Students total the number of violent acts seen per show, per night, per week or on one network. Students draw conclusions about the incidence of violence on TV and how it is portrayed. Do they feel this has a direct effect on people’s behavior? Students write letters to the local station, the network, or the show’s stars regarding some of the actions they think should not be shown on television.

 

      Variation: Students compare their findings with the TV ratings system. Does the system work? Students compare the TV rating system and the movie rating system.

 

      Variation: Students log incidents of sexual behavior on TV shows.

Variation: Students look through local newspapers for incidents of violent behavior, noting trends and comparing local crime statistics. Contact the local police department to obtain community statistics.
 

·       TV LOG - REVISITED - Using the TV log created in the previous activity, students answer the following questions:
-       What kinds of violence were portrayed?
-       How did the victims deal with it? the family members? the community?
-       Who was involved? age? gender? race or ethnic group?
-       Where did the violent acts occur? on city streets? in the home? in school?

Discuss the answers to the questions and compare with national trends and crime statistics. Show students excerpts from two or three TV shows where violent behavior was dealt with inappropriately. Then show examples of positive ways to deal with violence. Discuss alternative approaches to the
examples. Students list 10 things they can do to avoid violence.

 

·       THE INFLUENCE OF FRIENDS - Ask the class: “How many of you have done something just to go along with the crowd?” Tell students that even adults have trouble “thinking for themselves” at times. It takes lots of practice. Read aloud the following 10 questions that address ways students deal with their peers. Each student indicates on a sheet of paper a yes or no response to each question.

 

      THE INFLUENCE OF FRIENDS
Directions: Answer each question by indicating YES or NO. Tabulate the number of YES answers and NO answers.
1. Have your friends ever pressured you?
2. When you feel alone or lonely, do you have a problem making a decision?
3. Do you ever do some things just so your friends won’t make fun of you?
4. Do you sometimes act one way with one group and another way with your friends?
5. Do you have the same goals as your friends?
6. Have your goals changed or have you achieved fewer of them since you started hanging out with your current group of friends?
7. Is it hard for you to make new friends?
8. Do you spend most of your time with one group of people?
9. Do your parents disapprove of your friends?
10. Would you feel guilty if you stopped seeing a friend who no longer shared your values?

Scoring: If you have more NO answers than YES answers, you are in better control of your life and the decisions you make. The more NO responses, the more likely you are to be able to resist negative peer pressure.

Conclude the activity with a journal writing exercise focusing on strategies to handle peer pressure.

 

·       BRAND-NAME MATCH GAME - Divide the class into teams of five. All participants need paper and a pencil. Each team plays the Match Game, in which they are asked to match a product name with the choices of others. To do this, one team sits facing the class. Name a category of consumer goods, such as candy bar or shampoo and instruct the class to write down a favorite brand of the product (e.g., if the category is candy bar, students might write Snickers, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, Hershey Bar). While the audience completes this task, the first team predicts, in writing, the brand they think classmates will select as their favorite. Team members who guess the same brand as the majority of their classmates win team points. After a prescribed number of questions or time, teams switch. After all teams have had a chance to play, ask a few volunteers to justify why they choose particular brands. Explain that it is important to have a good reason to buy and use a particular product, not just because the rest of the class or an ad tells you to choose it. Students list information needed to become a better-informed consumer.

Variation: Team members who guess correctly remain on the panel to earn points. A member of the audience replaces team members who do not guess correctly. Students develop a checklist of things to consider when making a purchase of goods or services.

 

      Variation: Students list the top 10 reasons why people buy certain products. Create a class list on the chalkboard. Students rank the reasons from highest to lowest priority. This assignment creates much discussion as students justify their answers. After the rankings are complete, ask if the rankings
might change with different kinds of products. Assign each student a specific product (e.g., a car, home, appliance, TV). Each student asks an adult what factors they consider when making such a purchase. Share the results with classmates and compare with the original list.

 

·       PEER PRESSURE IN THE MEDIA - Show excerpts from movies or TV shows that clearly illustrate decisions made by teenagers (e.g., Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, The Wonder Years). Discuss the influences that contributed to the characters’ decisions and prioritize those influences.