In this activity, students will review the health information that they learned in Activity Two and reinforce their understanding of the facts.

Before sharing the link to the activity, read the following scenario to your students:

Janelle’s parents are not home. Her friends call and ask her to go to the movies with them. Janelle knows her parents would not let her go, but her friends beg her to go with them. They tell her she could be back before her parents get home and they would never know.

Ask your students:

·      What choices does Janelle have? (Write their answers on the board.)
·      What are the possible risks and consequences for each of these choices?
·      Are there any negative consequences associated with Janelle’s options?
·      Can you think of any situations in which there are possible health consequences to consider when making a decision? (e.g., use of tobacco, nicotine, other drugs or alcohol)

Next, explain to your students that this example was used to get them to think about evaluating choices and consequences before making decisions. There are health risks to consider with some decisions (e.g., using tobacco and nicotine products), which you will discuss in this activity. Share the digital activity link below with your students. You can have students go directly to the activity on their computers. Have them work ingroups to assess the risks and health consequences for the scenario.

Note that they may navigate back and forth between the activity screens by clicking the “Page” tabs at the bottom of the activity.

Facts about the health consequences associated with using tobacco and nicotine use are important for students to understand. Before moving on to the “Take a Look” section, display the “Look what tobacco will do” poster with the images displaying health consequences associated with tobacco use (e.g., diseased gums and lung) and read it with your group. Students will see it on their individual computer screens and may click to enlarge it ina separate window. Ask them to keep the separate window open so they can refer back to the poster. The diseased images are included to bring the message home—using tobacco products can seriously impair a person’s health. Students will need to refer to the poster images to complete this part of the activity. Next, have students work in groups to complete the question in the “You Decide!” section. Have a class discussion to review student’s answers.

As a follow-up exercise, ask students to complete the “Choices and Consequences” digital activity below. You may share the link and ask students to complete it individually. During or after the activity, ask students to talk about their choices and the possible consequences. Next, use role-playing methods in class to help students think of healthy ways to respond when faced with making decisions about these behaviors. Remind students that the way a person reacts to a given situation will vary based on the individual. Use the supplemental “Summer Boredom” video to complement this section.

⁴ CDC. Guidelines for School Health Programs to Prevent Tobacco Use and Addiction. MMWR 1994; Vol. 43, No. RR-2; 1-18. Referenced 2017. www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/RR/RR4302.pdf

⁸ https://e-cigarettes.surgeongeneral.gov/knowtherisks.html#:~:text=Youth%20and%20young%20adults%20are,permanent%20lowering%20of%20impulse%20control.