Chronic illness
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe the symptoms of some common chronic illnesses.
Key learning points
- Chronic health conditions have symptoms that fluctuate and may last indefinitely.
- Cures for chronic illnesses are rare but some people do get better.
- Common chronic health conditions include heart disease, stroke, cancer, arthritis and diabetes.
- There are many symptoms of chronic illness; if these are noticed, you must seek medical help.
- There are many ways people can manage their symptoms and reduce the risk of developing a chronic condition.
Keywords
Acute illness - a health condition that may be sudden, or come on quickly, and is sometimes severe
Symptom - a physical or mental feature that indicates a condition or disease
Chronic illness - a health condition that lasts a long time, often for life, and can affect how your body or mind works, for example, diabetes or asthma
Fatigue - extreme tiredness, in this case, as a result of illness
Common misconception
People with chronic heath conditions just need to be more determined and get on with it.
Everything takes energy - seeing friends, exercising and pain management. When someone has a chronic illness, it can be very difficult to manage.
Teacher tip
Consult your RSHE lead and policy before teaching this lesson. Be mindful to pupils in the class who may have direct experience with chronic illness.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
Loading...
Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Complete the sentence: Regular sleep is an important part of a healthy
Q2.If someone has a chronic illness, they may need to see a __________ regularly to manage their condition.
Q3.Match the words to their definitions:
a state of feeling good emotionally
the amount of energy a person has
when part of the body or mind is experiencing sickness
Q4.Complete the sentence: The amount of sleep depends on someone's medical conditions, health, and .
Q5.A prescription is a ...
Q6.If you experience a sudden, life threatening condition or illness you should call the emergency services on ...
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the words to their correct definitions.
a health condition that may come on quickly
a change that could indicate the presence of an illness
a health condition that lasts a long time
extreme tiredness, in this case, as a result of illness
Q2.People with chronic illnesses may need to take every day to manage their condition.
Q3.Which of the following conditions are examples of chronic illnesses?
Q4.Complete the following sentence: People with chronic conditions may have extremely low levels which may make daily tasks difficult.
Q5.We can reduce the risks of developing a chronic condition by:
Q6.Complete the sentence: Heart disease is a heart condition that can cause irregular heartbeats, called .
To help you plan your 10 RSHE (PSHE) lesson on: Chronic illness, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 10 RSHE (PSHE) lesson on: Chronic illness, 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 4 RSHE (PSHE) lessons from the Physical health: How can physical health affect others? unit, dive into the full secondary RSHE (PSHE) curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.