 |
Health Education
Health classes in grades 3-5 meet once a week for one trimester. The Health program coordinates with the Life Skills program in teaching wellness concepts. Through a combination of approaches (hands-on activities, role playing, interactive discussions, partner and small group activities), the students learn to communicate with others, deal constructively with feelings (especially anger), resolve conflicts, and make positive decisions for their well-being. The program emphasizes effective behaviors and practices that influence wellness. Some of the topics used to inter-relate the positive wellness choices include: nutrition, basic body systems and functions, fitness-diet connection, conflict resolution, drug awareness and interpersonal relationships, disease prevention and personal hygiene.
3rd Grade: Several lessons relate the basic body systems: muscular, skeletal, digestive, circulatory, nervous and immune system. Personal wellness practices and identifying poor health choices as they relate to age appropriate decision-making are emphasized.
4th Grade: Nutrition is a major topic: reading food labels, basic nutrients, the food pyramid. The effects of drug use and abuse are discussed for illegal, prescription and over-the-counter medications. Tobacco and inhalants are the drugs discussed in greater detail.
5TH Grade: Examples of topics include: changes during puberty, the effects of alcohol use, athletic enhancing drugs, bullying and gossiping.
LIFE SKILLS
The Life Skills program is included in grades two through five. This program encompasses social, emotional and cognitive aspects of a child's development. Each grade level has lessons designed to teach children critical inter/intrapersonal skills at their age appropriate level. The topics include celebrating individuality, increasing a “feelings vocabulary,” friendship skills, assertiveness, conflict resolution, bullying prevention, and the concepts of differing perspectives, and short and long-term consequences. Messages about how these skills apply to the prevention of risky behaviors such as adolescent use of tobacco, alcohol or other drugs are interspersed throughout the lessons. The “Feeling Safe Program,” addressing personal/physical safety, is brought into the second and fourth grade classrooms. The life skills classes meet one time per week for two trimesters.