Lesson video

Hello, my name's Ms. Willow, and I'm going to be your teacher for today's lesson.

Today's lesson is called "Drugs and their Risks," and it fits into the unit "Risky Substances: What do I need to know about illegal and prescription drugs?" During this lesson, we are going to be talking about mental health and sensitive content.

So for this lesson, we require you to have an adult with you.

If you don't have an adult with you at the moment, please return to this lesson when you have one with you.

If at any point you do feel worried or uncomfortable during this lesson, it's really important that you stop the video and that you speak to a trusted adult.

Okay, let's make a start on today's lesson.

By the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to explain what drugs are, why people might take them, and possible risks.

Before we get started with today's lesson, we need to go over some ground rules.

These help to make sure that everyone feels safe and comfortable during today's lesson.

First of all, Laura says that we need to listen to others.

It's okay to disagree with each other, but we should always listen properly before we make any assumptions or before we decide how to respond.

When we disagree with someone else, it's important to challenge the statement and not the person themselves.

Next, Andeep says that we need to respect each other's privacy.

We can discuss examples, but we shouldn't use any names or descriptions that could identify anyone, including ourselves.

If we want to share a story, we can refer to someone as "my friend." This means that we're not going to give away any identifying information.

Next, Izzy says that we can choose our level of participation.

Everyone has the right to choose not to answer a question or to join in with discussion, and we should never put anyone on the spot.

And finally, Jacob says no judgment.

We can explore any beliefs and misunderstandings that we have about a topic without fear of being judged by others.

We're now going to take a look at the keywords for today's lesson.

Our first keyword is drug.

This is a substance that changes the way bodies and brains work.

Next, we have illegal.

This is something that's against the law.

Next, we have risk.

This is possible negative consequences.

And finally, our last keyword is dependence.

In this context, this is a feeling of needing a drug to carry out normal daily activities.

Today's lesson is split into three learning cycles.

Our first learning cycle is called, "What makes a drug legal or illegal?" Our second learning cycle is called, "Why do people take drugs?" And our last learning cycle is called, "What are the risks of taking drugs?" Let's make a start on our first learning cycle.

What makes a drug legal or illegal? A drug is any substance that changes how the brain and/or the body works.

And drugs can take different forms. They can come in the form of a substance inside a syringe.

They can come in the form of tablets, or they could be a substance that's part of something else.

So for example, cigarettes.

Jacob asks, "Can you think of how someone might change if they have taken drugs?" Okay, we're now going to look at how drugs are categorized in the UK.

So drugs are categorized in three ways in the UK.

So legal, for example, caffeine; legal with age control, so for example, nicotine and alcohol; and illegal, so for example, cannabis.

Alex asks, "Can you think of anything that contains caffeine, nicotine, or alcohol?" Maybe you said that coffee and tea contain caffeine.

Nicotine can be found in cigarettes and some vapes.

And alcohol can be found in drinks like wine and beer.

Well done if your answers were something like this.

We're now going to do a check for understanding to see how you're doing with this learning cycle.

Which of the following is an illegal drug? Can you remember? A, caffeine? B, alcohol? C, nicotine? Or D, cannabis? Which of those is an example of an illegal drug? Pause the video, talk to the people around you, or have a think to yourself.

Well done if you said that cannabis is correct.

Cannabis is an example of an illegal drug.

Caffeine is a legal drug, alcohol and nicotine are legal, but they do have age restrictions.

Well done if you said the same thing.

Someone might be given a prescription for a particular drug from a doctor to treat an illness or a medical condition that they have.

So it's legal for this person to take the drug as it is their medication, but it is dangerous and illegal to take someone else's prescription drugs as they haven't been prescribed for you individually.

Police Officer Kofi explains that someone can get into trouble with the police if they sell or share prescription drugs.

Many legal drugs are available to buy over-the-counter, so without a prescription, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen.

When using any medication or drug, it's really important to read the label so that you take it safely and effectively.

Dr.

Elsie says that other drugs are prescribed by a medical professional, such as ADHD medication.

You should not take drugs which are not prescribed to you.

This is a high risk form of drug misuse and it can lead to a range of problems, such as headaches, dependency, and even allergic reactions.

Counterfeit or fake drugs are also becoming an increasing problem.

Police Officer Kofi says that with rising numbers of online suppliers, people could be tricked into thinking that they're buying real medication.

Counterfeit drugs are designed to look like medicines, but they rarely contain the active ingredient that makes it effective.

In actual fact, they may contain dangerous chemicals that could cause harm to the people that take them.

Let's do another check for understanding to see how you're doing.

I'd like you to decide if the statement is true or false.

Legal drugs are safe to use with no risks attached.

What do you think? Is this true or false? Pause the video, talk to the people around you, or have a think to yourself.

Well done if you said that this is false, but why? You might have said that all drugs carry risks as they change the way your brain and body work.

Well done if you said the same thing.

We're now going to look at this scenario between Laura and her friend Victor.

So Laura's friend Victor has been prescribed medication to help him focus and to feel calmer.

Laura tells us that Victor was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, often called ADHD.

Laura notices that with the new medication, Victor is more able to concentrate and complete his work.

And she wonders, "I wonder if I would find it easier to do my work if I took his medication." For this first practice task, I'd like you to write a paragraph explaining what you would say to Laura in this situation.

I'd like you to answer the questions: What do you think? Would it help Laura to take Victor's medication? What might happen? And what would be a better choice for Laura? Remember that Laura's wondering, "I wonder if I would find it easier to do my work if I took Victor's medication." Pause the video and we'll go through a model answer in a few minutes.

Okay, let's see what you might have said.

You might have said that Laura should definitely not take Victor's medication.

There would be too many risks.

She could suffer headaches, become dependent on this drug, or have an allergic reaction.

It's also illegal to take someone else's prescription drug.

Instead, she could ask a trusted adult if they have any advice for helping her to concentrate in class.

Well done if your answer was something like this.

We're now moving on to our second learning cycle.

Why do people take drugs? There are a wide variety of reasons for people to take legal drugs, so people might use over-the-counter or prescription drugs to treat an existing medical condition.

There are a range of different reasons why someone might misuse drugs or use illegal drugs.

Let's do a check for understanding to see how you're doing.

I'd like you to decide if the statement is true or false.

There's only one reason why people misuse drugs or take illegal drugs.

What do you think? Is this true or false? Pause the video, talk to people around you, or have a think to yourself.

Well done if you said that this is false, but why? You might have said that there are a range of different reasons why people misuse drugs or take illegal drugs.

So one reason that people might take drugs is out of curiosity and experimentation.

So some people might misuse drugs or use illegal drugs because they want to experiment or they just feel curious.

They might also choose to take drugs because of peer pressure.

So some people might misuse drugs or use illegal drugs because of the influence of those around them.

They might feel like they have to say yes or do something that their peers are doing perhaps because they don't want to be judged or left out.

Some people also take drugs as self-medication, so some people might misuse drugs or use illegal drugs as they think that it might help them to manage their problems, such as difficult life experiences or find extra help for a medical condition.

Let's do another check for understanding.

This time, I'd like you to decide, why do people take drugs? Can you choose all the correct answers from this list? A, they feel pressured by their peers.

B, their lives are perfect.

C, they want to manage a medical condition.

Or D, they want to cope with difficult life experiences.

Can you remember why do people take drugs? Pause the video, talk to people around you, or have a think to yourself.

Well done if you said that A, C, and D are correct.

People take drugs because they feel pressured by their peers, because they want to manage a medical condition, or because they want to cope with difficult life experiences.

There are lots of different reasons why a person might take drugs.

So well done if you remembered these three reasons.

We're now moving on to our second practice task and well done for your hard work so far.

For this task, I'd like you to list different reasons why people might take drugs around the image of the person.

The first one has already been done for you.

So for example, someone might take drugs because they think that drugs make them feel better temporarily.

Pause the video and we'll go through what you might have said in a few minutes.

Okay, let's see what you might have said.

Some possible answers could be that they felt pressured into using drugs by their peers, that they use drugs to try to forget their problems, that they were prescribed by the doctor, and they think that drugs make them feel better temporarily.

Well done if your answers were something like this.

We're now moving on to our final learning cycle.

What are the risks of taking drugs? During this learning cycle, we're going to answer the question, what are some of the possible risks of misusing drugs or taking illegal drugs? Some of the risks include accidents and injury, STIs and unintended pregnancy, poor mental and physical health, dependency, legal risks, and even death.

Drug use can lead to a vicious cycle.

So by taking drugs, a person's mental and physical health can become poor.

However, this often results in further drug use, so the cycle continues.

A vicious cycle of drug taking might look like this.

Someone takes drugs and this makes their mental and physical health worse.

This then makes it more likely that they're going to take drugs again, and this continues to lead to poor mental and physical health, and continued drug taking.

Misuse of drugs or taking illegal drugs is always dangerous and the risks are increased depending on the following factors: the drug itself, the person, and the setting.

Let's do another check for understanding to see how you're doing.

I'd like you to decide if the statement is true or false.

Misuse of drugs or taking illegal drugs is always risky.

What do you think? True or false? Pause the video, talk to people around you, or have a think to yourself.

Well done if you said that this is true, but why? You might have said that there's always a risk when taking any drug, that it may affect you or your behavior in unexpected ways.

Well done if your answer was something like this.

First of all, we're going to talk about the drug itself.

So drug misuse and use of illegal drugs is always dangerous.

The type of drug and how it's consumed can make it even more dangerous.

So first of all, more frequent use of drugs increases the risks.

And the more of or stronger the drugs that someone takes, the greater the risk.

So the frequency and quantity that someone takes a drug can make drug taking even more dangerous.

Next, the method used to take a drug can also increase its risk.

So for example, someone who injects drugs risks infection.

Additionally, taking a mix of different types of illegal drugs increases the risk as well.

Sometimes synthetic, which means manmade drugs, might be added to illegal drugs as a substitute for other ingredients, and this can be extremely dangerous as synthetic drugs are often more potent or strong.

Let's do another check for understanding to see how you're doing.

Is the statement true or false? Someone who injects drugs is at risk of developing an infection.

What do you think? Pause the video, talk to the people around you, or have a think to yourself.

Well done if you said that this is true, but why? You might have said that due to breaking the skin with the sharp needle, the risk of infection is high, especially if a drug user shares needles and syringes with other people.

Well done if your answer was something like this.

We're now going to talk about the person themselves and how this can increase the risk of taking drugs.

As we've said before, drug misuse and the use of illegal drugs is always dangerous, but some people have an increased risk due to the following.

So a person's body weight and composition can affect how they react to drugs.

So this could relate to the amount of muscle that they have and the amount of fat that they have in their body as well.

Drug misuse and taking illegal drugs might also make existing health conditions worse.

Next, we're going to talk about the setting and how this can influence the risk of taking drugs.

So as we've said before, drug misuse and use of illegal drugs is always dangerous, but different settings or situations can make it even more dangerous.

So drug misuse and taking illegal drugs alone or in a remote place puts someone in even greater danger.

It might mean that if they need medical help, this is more difficult for them to access.

Driving or using machinery under the influence of drugs is also very dangerous and it's illegal as well.

Let's do another check for understanding.

Which of these is true? A, each drug will affect every person the same way every time they use it.

B, drugs can affect different people in different ways each time they use them.

And C, drugs have no effect on how people feel or behave.

Which of those is true? Pause the video, talk to people around you, or have a think to yourself.

Well done if you said that B is correct.

It's true that drugs can affect different people in different ways each time they use them.

Well done if you said the same thing.

We're now moving on to our final practice task and well done for your hard work in this lesson so far.

For the first part of this task, I'd like you to list all of the risks facing someone who misuses drugs or takes illegal drugs.

I've already completed one answer for you, which is accidents and injury.

Pause the video and we'll go through what you might have said in a few minutes.

Okay, and for the next part of this task, I'd like you to explain what factors make drug misuse and taking illegal drugs even more dangerous.

Pause the video and we'll go through some answers in a few minutes.

Okay, let's see what you might have said for the first part of this task where I asked you to list all of the risks facing someone who misuses drugs or takes illegal drugs.

You might have said accidents and injury, STIs or unintended pregnancy, dependency, poor mental and physical health, and even death.

Well done if you had listed some of these risks.

For the second part of this task where I asked you to explain what factors make drug misuse and taking illegal drugs even more dangerous, you might have said that drug misuse and using illegal drugs is always risky and dangerous.

Someone puts themselves in even greater danger if they take drugs more frequently or mix different types of drugs.

Well done if your answer looked anything like this.

We're now going to summarize the key learning from today's lesson.

In today's lesson, we've learned that drugs are substances that affect the way brains and bodies work.

We've learned that many different sorts of people take drugs for many different reasons.

We've learned that some drugs are illegal, others are controlled, for example, by age restrictions, and some are legal.

Risks from taking drugs are influenced by the drug itself, the person, and the setting.

And we've learned that taking drugs can increase the likelihood of accidents, drug dependence, unsafe sex, ill health, and even death.

During this lesson, you might have found that you've got some worries or questions.

And if you do, it's really important that you share these with a trusted adult.

There's also some resources on the screen that are there to help you too.

Well done for your hard work today.

I hope to see you again soon.