1. Student Name: __Jessica Mills____________________ HSC 350 Section #__3_
Content area: Chapter 12 (Promoting an Alcohol and Other Drug-Free Lifestyle)_
Grade level: K-2 NHES: __7 (Self-Management)____ HBO: #1: Avoid misuse and abuse
of over-the-counter and prescription dugs
Teaching Strategy (or modified strategy):
-Games/Situations: The students will be going through a checklist around their home with their
family. They will have to make sure they either performed the task asked or that the need is
already accomplished before the item can be checked off. Each checkpoint has a certain number
of points, so that adds to the game aspect, because kids want to win. Once the checklist is done,
the activity is halfway done. This is a fun and interactive way to do this type of health-related
issue, such as drugs/poisons in the home. For younger children, this is a nice hands-on-activity
that will help them learn the information in a better way for them.
Description of the family involvement activity:
Students will be taking home a checklist to complete with their parents/caregivers. The checklist
will serve as a guide to ‘drug/alcohol/poison proof’ their home. This gives an opportunity for
families to reinforce medicine, drug, alcohol, and product safety around the home. Families can
then discuss what precautions were already met/not met, why these precautions should be taking
place, and what actions should be taken if an emergency should occur with medicine, drugs, and
other products.
Purpose and connectedness:
There has been research to prove that people connect to people before they can connect with an
institution, such as a school. Family connectedness helps support school connectedness and
strengthens the relationship among family members. If you bond the family and the student
together over their schooling, we are doing just that. Family involvement helps support learning
in the home, helps the whole family feel more engaged with the student’s education, and their
academic performance goes up. With school connectedness, students are more likely to attend
school regularly and before better academically. The purpose of this activity is to promote family
and school connectedness while giving a family an opportunity to learn, discuss, and relate to a
health-related topic.
Resources used(even if adapted; include course textbook):
Poisoning: Symptoms, treatments, and prevention. (2013, April). Retrieved February 19, 2015,
from http://www.babycenter.com/0_poisoning-symptoms-treatments-and-
prevention_1008.bc
Telljohann, S. (2012). Health Education (9th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
2. Dear 1st grade Parent/Caregiver.
In class, we have been learning about how to promote having an alcohol and drug
free lifestyle and prevention. An important topic we have been focusing on is identifying the
drugs and products most common in the home and making sure we have no access to them that
could cause us harm. In class, we have discusses most of the common drugs and products found
around the home and the major effects they can have. We also checked around our classroom to
make sure it was alcohol and drug free, with much success to find out it was! However, when I
asked the children if their own homes were drug free, the students were uncertain and just
assumed that they were drug free.
As a parent, I am sure you can agree that all children should feel safe in their home and
know that they are alcohol and drug free. To continue with our lesson and for the children to
answer my question, I am giving you an opportunity to help your child realize just how safe their
home is. Perhaps it can be an eye opener for some of you, who might not realize that some part
of your home could be a harmful zone for your family. I will be attaching a short Poison/
Drug/Alcohol Proof Checklist for you and your family to fill out. It can be a game for the whole
family to play as you earn points for each checkpoint you fulfill. It helps you learn what types of
harmful items are in your house, where they are being stored, if they are being stored away
properly, and if the children know they aren’t safe. The checklist helps you find and evaluate
‘unsafe’ areas.
After going over the checklist, discuss with your family where you excelled on the checklist, but
also where you had some problems, if any. After completing this activity, also discuss why these
checklist precautions should be taken place, and what you as a family can do in case of an
emergency.
3. If you have any concerns, questions, or if I can be of any further assistance, please feel
free to contact me by calling 777-777-777 or emailing me at jnmills@bsu.edu.
To a drug free home,
Jessica Mills
Miss Jessica Mills, teacher
Insertname Elementary School
4. Alcohol/ Drug/ Poison Proof Your Home
Checklist:
Directions: As a family, go through these checkpoints to see how safe your home is. Each
checkpoint is worth a certain amount of points. How many points did you earn? See if
you can earn the title of Safety Masters? Let’s find out! Earn at least 65 points to win!
After filling out the checklist, discuss what areas were safer than others and why these
precautions are helpful.
First check areas where alcohol is located, and see if the containers
are in the child’s reach. If so, locate them to a higher shelf or another
location where the child would have no access to it at all (perhaps a
separate storage with a lock?) Award 15 points when this task is
completed. Award an extra 10 points if no alcohol is present in the home
Next, check areas with toxins, poisons, and poisonous products
(paint, lighter fluid, gasoline, cleaning supplies, and pesticides).
Were they in reach of children or open areas? Relocate them to a high
cabinet out of reach. If possible, make it a locked cabinet too. Award
25 points for completing this task. Award an extra 10 points if this task was
already done prior to this checklist.
Lastly, go through the medicine cabinet. Throw out any out dated
medicines by flushing them down the toilet or discard in containers.
With any leftover medicines, label the ones not meant for children
and put them either on the highest shelf out of children’s reach, or in
a separate cabinet or storage. On the ones that are for the children,
label them “Ask first”, so they know they have to ask first before
taking the medicine. Award 20 points for completing this task. Award
yourself an extra 5 points for completing the checklist.
