young people | A Journey Through Learning

Collect a bag of objects that could be used to introduce a topic on substance misuse in second level CFE. Consider how you could use active teaching strategies and write a lesson outline. (2 hours)

Evidence: Write a lesson outline complete with Learning intentions, success criteria and assessment strategies. Include activities that you would be using during the learning.

Personal Thoughts:

Following the input on this topic, it was interesting to consider how substance misuse could be discussed within the classroom. As this activity is aimed at second level, I believe that a lot of discussion with children can occur. They are at an age where they may/may not know about substances however may come across something and experience it in their life. Ensuring that children and young people are informed of substance misuse, and/or use, enables them to make informed decisions and positive choices.

The attached pictures show the lesson which was prepared:

The mind map picture suggests objects we may be use within a classroom context (real/picture etc.)

Experience & Outcome: I understand the effect that a range of substances including tobacco and alcohol can have on the body. HWB 2-38a

We decided to make this activity active and engaging, getting the children to fully participate in order to develop their knowledge & understanding further. As Education Scotland (n.d) state, ‘Active learning is learning which engages and challenges children and young people’s thinking using real-life and imaginary situations’. This activity through having opportunities to look at and touch real objects therefore enables the activity & learning to have a more ‘real-life’ context.

Through opening up the discussion with children about what they already know about substances enables the teacher to gain an understanding of the pupils’ knowledge and encourages open communication within the classroom. Throughout the activity, the children should be encouraged to discuss what they believe the specific substance (each group has a few) to be, how it may be used and what effect it may have on the body. Following this discussion, the children must collaborate their individual ideas, decide and create a body outline poster stating where & what the effects of each substance may be. This will then enable each group to feedback to their peers.

Once each group has had an opportunity to feedback their ideas, the teacher can then work with the whole class to identify and discuss each substance provided. This can then also be displayed as a body outline poster with all of the discussed substances and their effects being highlighted. As a wee round off to the lesson, a short video clip could be played to highlight that any form of substance misuse doesn’t only affect you as an individual but also your family & those around you – this could then be a link to any following lesson(s) regarding substance misuse.

A short clip which could be used:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/ztmxfg8

Reference:

Education Scotland (no date) About Active Learning. Available at: http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/learningandteaching/approaches/activelearning/about/what.asp (Accessed: 08 November 2015)

Organise a visit to The Corner in Dundee and find out about the work of the organisation, resources and how they link with schools.

Evidence: Write a reflective piece about the effectiveness of such an organisation for resources and teachers and find out how effective it is in meeting the needs of young people.

Unfortunately due to lack of time & staff, The Corner were unable to provide us with information about their service. After making initial contact through email to arrange a suitable time to go and visit we received a reply stating why this was not possible. This was understandable due to us recognising the pressures on such services during the current economic climate. We were informed that taking a look at their website should give us some quality information which we would likely get if popping down.

Link to website –

http://www.thecorner.co.uk/

The Corner Dundee

The Corner provides a variety of different health services, information & support for young people between the ages of 11 and 19 in the Dundee area. They offer a phone service (01382 206060) to a worker for those 20-25 years who can discuss the individuals needs and offer guidance to the most appropriate service. They provide a drop-in session to enable anyone with an issue they wish to discuss, to pop in at a time best suited for them. The opening times are:

Monday – Friday: 2pm – 6pm
Saturday: 1pm – 4pm

The workers recognise that every young person is different in how comfortable they are when they come through the doors, so it is really important that individuals understand the different services that are available and what happens when they go in. First, once you have “plucked up the courage to come through the doors, you’re welcomed by staff who will ask you to tick which service(s) you are in for. This is to protect the individual and keep their information confidential.”

The Drop-In Services provides support for issues such as –

Sexual Health
Mental Health
Support U/Individual Support
Drugs
Smoking
Alcohol
Housing
Youth Information
Exam Stress
Health Promotion
Sexting

Other services they provide:

Peer-led Services: principle that young people learn from and are influenced by their peers, both positively & negatively. Peer influence can have a huge effect on the lives of young people; how they act, how they feel about themselves and decisions they may make. The Healthy Transitions programme is delivered city-wide across Dundee and its contents is strongly influenced by young people. Healthy Transitions links with schools and also impacts on the wider community, with young people involved in passing on information and skills to fellow peers, family, friends & their communities. The programme also carries out peer-led interventions within the associated school cluster communities on a needs-led basis and this in turn has an impact on the community as a whole. Within this section, there are 3 aspects; Process, Accreditation and Peer-led Resources. More information about these can be found here.

Finally, The Corner offer an Outreach Service which enables practitioners working with young people to contact them to discuss the delivery of sessions on topics including sexual & mental health, drugs, alcohol, self esteem & body image. A request form can be completed and sent which enables a staff member to be allocated to give more information.

Recently, The Corner, which has about 150 new young people visiting every month, had an exciting Royal Visit whilst they were in Dundee promoting mental health.

The Website provides information for professionals and parents as well as young people and can be a valuable resource for those who feel that they want to seek some help or advice. Displaying their confidentiality policy enables the young people to feel they are in a safe environment in which they can share personal information.

As a professional, I feel encouraged that such a service is available for professionals to also seek advice on difficult issues which are important for young people. Having an awareness of this service enables me to feel confident in offering some guidance/support to any young person who I feel may find it beneficial. Furthermore, the work they do with other agencies and through their Outreach programme, is important in ensuring children and young people are provided with support for a wide range of needs.

I believe that having the opportunity to visit the Corner may have been more beneficial to my professional development, however it is just unfortunate that this was not available at this point in time. A possible visit in the future will be something I hope to do. This will enable me to have a discussion about all their services and what they can provide whilst asking questions to gain a better insight into The Corner’s Service.