Title: The Brain and Mental Illness (3 day mini-unit)
Grade Level: 6th
Teacher: Alexandra Johnson
Standards:
National Standard 2: Students will analyze the influence of culture, media, technology, and other factors on health behaviors.
Minnesota Benchmark 1: The student will analyze how information from peers influences health.
Objectives:
-Students will identify the parts of the brain by filling out a worksheet.
-Students will recognize that peers are not always an accurate source of health information by discussing what they have heard from peers with the class and looking at myths and facts on a reliable website.
-Students will demonstrate knowledge of a specific mental illness by creating a poster.
-Students will demonstrate the ability to summarize what they have learned by writing in their journal.
Materials:
- Human brain charts for the students to label
- A computer or ipad for each pair of students
Resources:
Snappy Launch: Show National Geographic interactive brain model, and talk about the different parts of the brain.
Day 1 Procedure:
-Have the students label a picture of the human brain.
-Show the students the interactive brain stimulation on National Geographic.
-Tell the students that not all brains are the same, and that brains can get sick the way the rest of our bodies do. Sometimes this sickness is due to germs and sometimes it is just the way we are born.
-Define mental illness.
-Ask if students if they have ever been given information about mental illness from their friends. (Make sure students do not name names). Discuss whether information from our friends is always completely valid. Where can we go to make sure we get the correct information?
-Have the students work in partners and explore the mental illness: myths and facts section of the What a Difference a Friend Makes website.
-Assign each pair of students a mental illness to read about on the What a Difference a Friend Makes website. (More than one pair will most likely be assigned to each illness)
-Each pair of students should create a poster about the mental illness they read about. The poster should include the name of the illness, some sort of picture, and one myth/fact that the students feel applies to their assigned illness.
Days 2 and 3 Procedure:
-The teacher will define each mental illness that was studied (anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, eating disorder, schizophrenia).
-Students will copy the definitions in their journals.
-After each definition, all of the pairs of students that were assigned that mental illness will present their posters to the class.
-As a class, we will brainstorm a list of people that students could go to if they ever think they might have a mental illness or have any other problem that they want to talk about. Students will copy this list in their journals.
Wrap Up: Students will write in their journals about what they learned about mental illness.
Assessment: Students will turn in their posters and journals to be assessed.
Adaptations: Students will be paired heterogeneously - a high student with a struggling student. Students who are unable to take notes will be provided with handouts. Students who are unable to write in their journals may share their thoughts with the teacher verbally.
Grading:
-Posters - 15 points possible:
10 points for the inclusion of the required elements
4 points for neatness
1 point for a Wow!
-Journals - 10 points possible:
5 points for thoughtfulness of response/summary of learning
3 points for grammar and spelling
2 points for copying all definitions and the list of resources