In Lesson Two we use the D.A.R.E. Decision Making Model to identify harmful effects of tobacco on the body and compare and contrast normative beliefs about tobacco use. One of the activities describes the following scenario:

“Joe is in the sixth grade. His friend Billy is in the eighth grade. Billy tried to get Joe to smoke a cigarette while they were at a local park. He told Joe that all middle school kids smoke cigarettes. Joe wondered if that were really true?”

We then ask the students to guess how many 8th graders out of 100 they think have smoked cigarettes. We ask the students to think about it on their own and write down their guess. We then ask the students to pair up and discuss with their partner how many they think smoke. Each pair's guesses are shared with the class and discussed. We then provide the students with the results of a national survey (2000-2001) in which 1,154,646 youth between the ages of 12-14 years of age were asked if they smoked. The students often guess much higher than the results of the survey and are surprised by the fact that by far, the majority of 12-14 year olds do not smoke! In my classes I liken it to the show, “Myth Busters” as we have demonstrated that “everyone is doing it” is in fact, a myth!

We talk about the various known health effects of tobacco by reviewing the Tobacco Fact Sheet. The sheet contains the following information:

• Smoking causes breathing problems
• Smokers have more colds and upper respiratory problems
• Smoking causes heart disease
• Smoking is the number one cause of lung cancer
  • It is also the leading cause of cancer of the mouth, throat, bladder and kidneys
  • Smokeless tobacco can cause mouth cancer, tooth loss, and other health problems
• Tobacco affects your body’s development
  • This is important because your body is still growing and changing
• There are 200 known poisons in cigarette smoke
• Cigarettes contain nicotine - a powerfully addictive substance
• Smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in this country
  • More than 45,000 people die in Canada annually due to smoking (Health Canada)
  • Most of them began using tobacco before the age of eighteen
• Under Canada’s Tobacco Act (1997) it is illegal for Canadian retailers to sell cigarettes to anyone under the age of eighteen
• The poisons in cigarettes can affect your appearance. Smoking can:
  • Dry out your skin and cause wrinkles

Are these scare tactics? No, they are known health effects directly related to tobacco use.

Invariably, there will be a student who will speak to a relative who is 80 years old, smoked like a chimney for 65 of those years and is still alive and kicking! My response? Smoking increases the risk of getting smoking-related diseases. We don’t know how our individual bodies will react, what we do know, is the risk is greatly increased when a person chooses to smoke.

Warning labels on cigarette packages and on advertisements are discussed in lesson two as well.

We talk to the students about Health Canada, who they are and why they exist. We ask the students, keeping in mind the health facts they just learned about tobacco use, why Health Canada ordered the tobacco companies to put these warning labels on cigarette packages. We ask why they think tobacco companies target young people in their ads. What’s happening to their customers? Consider the health effect shared with the students earlier that 45,000 people a year die in Canada annually due to smoking (Health Canada). That would suggest they lose at least 45,000 customers per year, would it not? At ten dollars plus for a pack of cigarettes, that translates into a lot of consumer dollars lost! On that note, I have the students put on their math hats for a moment and calculate for me how much money is spent in a year by one person who smokes approximately a pack of day. The students will come up with $3,650.00 in one year, to which I ask how much does a computer cost? A trip to Disney land? Then I ask them to multiply that number by five and we brainstorm how that money could otherwise be spent! I mean, who wouldn’t like a new car? A boat? An RV? This gives me the opportunity to reinforce the health fact learned that cigarettes contain nicotine, which is a powerfully addictive substance. Although they may have loved ones who smoke who very much want to quit, or have tried to quit, nicotine holds them captive.

At the conclusion of each lesson, students are asked to reflect on what they learned in D.A.R.E. class that they felt was important. A the end of Lesson Two for example, they are asked to write in their D.A.R.E. Planner (journaling) “What are two important things that you can tell someone else about the harmful effects of tobacco?”

So, that gives you a look at what your young son or daughter would be learning in lesson two of the elementary D.A.R.E. Curriculum. Stay tuned next week for lesson three!

Should you have any questions about D.A.R.E. or Drug Awareness Education in St. Albert, do not hesitate to contact me directly at the St. Albert Detachment, 458-7700.

For even more information on D.A.R.E., surf to the D.A.R.E. website at www.dare.com.

(Lesson Three)