Standard of Learning

8.1   The student will analyze and evaluate the relationship between health-risk behaviors and the onset of health problems that can impact health and wellness during the adolescent years. Key concepts/skills include

1. the pathogenic, genetic, age, cultural, environmental, and behavioral factors that influence the degree of risk for contracting specific diseases;
2. the roles of preventative health measures, immunization, and treatment in disease prevention;
3. the short- and long-term health issues related to alcohol abuse and tobacco use;
4. the impact of failing to recognize issues related to emotional and mental health;
5. the health risks associated with feelings of immortality and invincibility;
6. the consequences of involvement in potentially dangerous situations;
7. the health risks of a sedentary lifestyle;
8. the risk factors associated with communicable and noncommunicable diseases.

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Understanding the Standard

The student will understand the relationship between preventative health care measures, immunization, proper treatment, and disease prevention; and will recognize risk factors associated with communicable and noncommunicable diseases.

Essential Knowledge and Skills

The student will:

• define preventive health care measures. (treating a disease or injury so that it does not get worse, getting proper nutrition, physical activity, rest, etc.)
• define immunization. (a vaccine of dead or weakened germs that causes the immune system to produce antibodies)
• list examples of treatment for several diseases.
• list common noncommunicable diseases. (cancer, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, arthritis, etc.)
• list common communicable diseases. (influenza, mononucleosis, head lice, food-born diseases – e-coli, salmonella, trichinosis – tick-born diseases, bacterial infections, etc.)
• determine risk factors associated with communicable and noncommunicable diseases.
• list preventative measures for various diseases.  

Sample Lessons

Be a Germstopper
Encourages healthy habits to prevent the spread of illness in schools and at home. Provides links and resources for teachers on food safety, hand washing, the flu and nutrition.
Sponsor: CDC
Contact: http://www.cdc.gov/germstopper/index.htm
Free

Common Vaccinations
This lesson plans explains how vaccines work, the immune system and why is important to be vaccinated.
Sponsor: Discovery Channel
Contact: http://school.discovery.com/lessonplans/programs/vaccinations
Free

Fizzies Virus
This lesson plan simulates how disease spreads. Using a simple experiment students will describe how disease spreads and trace the disease to the first “infected” person.
Sponsor: Kidzone
Contact: http://www.kidzone.ws/plans/viewprint.asp?i=100
Free

It’s a Snap
A hands-on initiative for middle schools that's designed to help keep students in school and learning by improving overall health through promoting clean hands. Schools can use the SNAP program to increase student and staff hand cleaning and help them stay healthy. SNAP offers a free teachers toolkit to use to integrate hand hygiene into the curriculum and schoolwide activities.
Sponsor: CDC, Department of Health and Human Services and Soap and Detergent Association.
Contact: http://www.itsasnap.org/index.asp
Free

Polio Web Quest
Grades: 5-8
A WebQuest about polio. The activities are Internet based. In the 1950's one of the most terrifying words to any parent was "polio". As a child of the fifties, I remember my mother being very careful about things like playing with the garden hose, splashing in the rain and stomping in mud puddles. No one knew where polio came from and parents were terrified of their children catching this crippling disease. Do you know who Dr. Salk is? Have you ever seen an iron lung? Come with me on a journey into the past and listen to survivors tell about their experience with this debilitating disease.
Sponsor: Ask Eric
Contact: http://www.eduref.org (select lesson plans – health – health)
Free

Virus Encounters
This curriculum offers middle and high school teachers a comprehensive set of multimedia aids and activities for teaching units on infectious disease topics. Through the use video, text and interactive discussions students progress through real-life applications and simulations.
Sponsor: CDC and Turner Broadcasting
Contact: http://turnerlearning.com/fyi/virusencounters
Free

Additional Instructional Resources

• American Cancer Society – http://www.cancer.org
• American Heart Association – http://www.americanheart.org
• American Lung Association – http://www.lungusa.org
• American Medical Association
• American Museum of Natural History - http://www.amnh.org/nationalcenter/infection
• American Society for Microbiology - http://www.microbe.org/index.html and http://www.washup.org
• BrainPOP – http://www.brainpop.com/health
• Center for Disease Control and Prevention - http://www.cdc.gov/health/adolescent.htm
• DiscoverySchool.com – http://school.discovery.com/lessonplans/6-8.html
• Diseases – http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/LPview?core=7
• Epidemics - http://www.pbs.org/fredfriendly/epidemic/lessons/blueprints.pdf
• Food and Drug Administration - http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics
• Genetic Counselor Wonderwise Science Learning Series – http://www.wonderwise.unl.edu
• Genetics Education Center – http://www.kumc.edu/gec
• Get Smart Virginia - http://www.vdh.state.va.us/epi/getsmart/index.asp
• Health Web – http://healthweb.org
• Human Anatomy – http://www.innerbody.com
• The Human Body – http://yucky.kids.discovery.com/teachercenter/pg000064.htm
• Human Body Systems – http://www.si.edu/nsrc/stcms/access/humanbod.htm
• Illness & Disease – http://www.pbs.org/teachersource (health & fitness 6-8)
• Innerbody – http://www.innerbody.com/htm/body.html
• Internet Detectives – http://www.madison.k12.wi.us/tnl/detectives
• KidsHealth.org – http://kidshealth.org
• PBS Antibiotic Resistance - http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/survival/clock/index.html and http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/10/4/l_104_03.html
• School Nurse
• Teaching the Human Body – http://yucky.kids.discovery.com/teachercenter/pg000064.htm
• Virtual Museum of Bacteria - http://bacteriamuseum.org
• Your Body Systems – http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0774536.html

Assessment Ideas

The student will:

• explain how preventative health care measures, immunization, and proper treatment help to prevent diseases.
• research the differences in prevention techniques and available technology between one era in history and today. Project what medical resources may be available in the future.
• present findings on an individual who made a significant contribution to either the treatment or prevention of disease. After all reports are presented, students will rank the top five contributions.
• develop a poster presentation on a specific disease, comparing treatment of today with that of 50 years ago.
• research a famous person who died from a disease, and discuss the cause, progression, and treatment of the disease. Decide what the individual could have done differently, or how treatment has changed since that time.

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