Recreational drug use: stimulants
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain how stimulants affect the body in both the short and long term.
Key learning points
- Stimulants make you feel more alert and can give you quicker thinking and reaction times.
- Caffeine is a legal stimulant present in some foods and drinks.
- Cocaine and ecstasy are examples of illegal stimulants used as recreational drugs.
- Substance abuse can cause physical and mental health issues.
Keywords
Drug - a medicine or other substance that has a physiological effect when introduced into the body
Recreational - something that is done for fun
Stimulant - speeds up the messages sent from the brain the nerves
Legal - allowed by the law
Illegal - not allowed by the law
Common misconception
Legal drugs cannot lead to addiction.
Nearly all drugs used for recreation, legal or illegal, can lead to addiction.
Teacher tip
Talk about the serious effects heroin can have on a person's life. They are likely to lose their job, friends and family. Many other types of opioids are just as addictive and devastating. Talk about Leah Betts who died in 1995 from drinking 7 litres of water in 90 mins after taking ecstasy.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of mental health issues
Supervision
Adult supervision required
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match up the key term to the definition.
Q2.Put these in the order of most dangerous drugs. Starting with the most dangerous.
Q3.Which two drugs are Class A drugs?
Q4.True or false? Depressant drugs slow down the messages from the brain to the rest of the body.
Q5. is the drug found in tobacco and most vapes.
Q6.What effect does nicotine have on the body?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which of these drugs is not a stimulant?
Q2.Which of these drugs are illegal?
Q3.Put the method in the right order, to describe how to test a person's reaction time using a ruler.
Q4.Which types of food or drinks contain caffeine?
Q5.If a person is addicted to a drug they may experience symptoms when they stop using it.
Q6.Which of the following are considered withdrawal symptoms when a person stops taking heroin?
To help you plan your 9 science lesson on: Recreational drug use: stimulants, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 9 science lesson on: Recreational drug use: stimulants, 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 science lessons from the Disease and drugs unit, dive into the full secondary science curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.