Why smoking and vaping are risky
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can identify risky substances in cigarettes, vapes and illegal vapes, explain why they are harmful, and explain how to spot an illegal vape.
Key learning points
- Smoking introduces harmful and risky substances like tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide into the body.
- Vapes contain ingredients found in everyday items, but when inhaled through a vape can be harmful to health.
- Illegal vapes can be extremely dangerous and hard to spot.
Keywords
Nicotine - an addictive drug that cigarettes and some vapes contain
Tar - a substance in tobacco smoke that can cause cancer and damage to the lungs
Illegal vapes - vapes sold illegally in the UK that may contain banned substances or unsafe levels of nicotine that can seriously harm a person's health
Common misconception
Vaping is harmless.
Vaping is not harmless as vapes contain nicotine and other chemicals that can harm the lungs and cause addiction, especially in young people.
Teacher tip
Add localised support for young people surrounding smoking and vaping to the lesson and emphasise that pupils can speak to a trusted adult if they have concerns about their own or others' vaping or smoking habits.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of peer pressure or bullying
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is the definition of 'addictive'?
Q2.What is a cigarette?
Q3.Which statement about vapes is correct?
Q4.Which statements about smoking are correct?
Q5.At what age is it legal to buy cigarettes or vapes?
Q6.Like vapes and cigarettes, are highly addictive because they contain nicotine.
Assessment exit quiz
5 Questions
Q1.Match the words to the correct definitions.
an addictive drug that cigarettes and some vapes contain
a substance in tobacco smoke that can cause cancer
vapes sold illegally in the UK that may contain banned substances
Q2.Because they look the same as legal vapes, illegal vapes can be to spot.
Q3.Which of the following is found in vapes?
Q4.A legal vape in the UK can contain a maximum of nicotine.
Q5.Why is the statement 'vaping is harmless' incorrect?
To help you plan your 7 RSHE (PSHE) lesson on: Why smoking and vaping are risky, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 7 RSHE (PSHE) lesson on: Why smoking and vaping are risky, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 3 RSHE (PSHE) lessons from the Risky substances: What do I need to know about tobacco and vaping? unit, dive into the full secondary RSHE (PSHE) curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.