Lesson 11.1: Alcohol Use, Effects, and Consequences

Overview

This lesson focuses on alcohol consumption by teens; signs of alcohol use and factors that influence use; the potential physical, mental, emotional, and social impacts of alcohol consumption; and the legal consequences of underage use.

Learning Targets

  • LO1: Describe standard drink sizes of alcoholic beverages.
  • LO2: Analyze specific components of the fetal alcohol spectrum disorders.
  • LO3: Illustrate how teen alcohol use has an impact on risk-taking behaviors.
  • LO4: Compare how alcohol consumption can affect school and job performance.
  • LO5: Examine the potential impacts drinking and driving has on a person’s life.

Preparation

Chapter Opener: Use the chapter 11 What Do I Know About Alcohol? self-assessment to introduce the chapter before moving on to Lesson 11.1 or assign the self-assessment as a homework task before starting this lesson.

For the Warm-Up Activity: Write the Journal Question on the board or identify (and copy as needed) the worksheets you plan to use:

For the Content Focus: Open the Lesson 11.1 PowerPoint slides or make copies of the Lesson 11.1 Note-Taking Guide.

For the Lesson Focus: Copy the Lesson 11.1 Skill-Building Challenge Worksheet: Promoting an Alcohol-Free Lifestyle.

Warm-Up Activity

Select a warm-up activity to help get your class focused and on task.

  • Self-Assessment: Have students complete the What Do I Know About Alcohol? self-assessment.
  • Journal Question: What do you know about the different types of alcoholic drinks? Do they all contain the same amount of alcohol? Is there a standard drink size?
    • Option: Write or project the question and have students respond in their journal or on their “bell ringer” sheet as they enter class.
    • Option: Have students discuss the question with a partner or in a small group.
  • Vocabulary Review: Have students work individually, in pairs, or in small groups to complete the Lesson 11.1 Vocabulary Review Worksheet.
  • Quiz: Have students complete the Lesson 11.1 Quiz to assess their prior knowledge.
    • Option: Collect the quiz and use it alongside a posttest to demonstrate student learning.
    • Option: Have students share their answers with a partner and then go over the answers together as a class.

Lesson Content

Review the content from the textbook lesson.

Lesson Focus: Advocacy

  1. Give each student a copy of the Lesson 11.1 Skill-Building Challenge Worksheet: Promoting an Alcohol-Free Lifestyle. Have students in groups of your choice work together to complete the worksheet.
  2. Advocate for your school to set up its own chapter of SADD. If your school already has a SADD chapter, have students find a cause, under the Initiatives tab on the SADD website, or another topic appropriate to your school for students to find information on an advocacy project.
  3. Have students use the four Advocacy Skill Cues on the worksheet to advocate for starting their own chapter of SADD or another appropriate topic.

Challenge Activity

Have students needing an additional challenge work on the following Thinking Critically task.

How are school-related work and employment similarly affected by alcohol consumption?

Reflection and Summary

Review the critical content from today’s lesson. Review the learning targets and ask students to answer each question posed.

Can you...

  • Describe standard drink sizes of alcoholic beverages?

    Standard drink sizes of alcoholic beverages are: 12 ounces of beer, hard cider, or hard lemonade; 5 ounces of wine; and 1.5 ounces of liquor such as tequila, vodka, or whiskey.

  • Analyze specific components of the fetal alcohol spectrum disorders?

    Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) refer to a group of conditions that can cause physical, behavior, and learning problems. These include Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder (ARND), alcohol-related birth defects (ARBD), and neurobehavioral disorder associated with prenatal alcohol exposure (ND-PAE).

  • Illustrate how teen alcohol use has an impact on risk-taking behaviors?

    Teen alcohol use affects risk-taking behaviors through needing to explore teens’ own limits and create their own identities. They tend to take unnecessary risks which can result in accidents, putting themselves in vulnerable situations by doing things they wouldn’t normally do if they were sober, using other drugs, becoming violent to themselves or others, and acting impulsively, which can result in injuries and even death to themselves or others.

  • Compare how alcohol consumption can affect school and job performance?

    Alcohol consumption can result in absences from school or work; poor grades or poor work performance; and a tendency to be confrontational with teachers, bosses, friends, and co-workers.

  • Examine the potential impacts drinking and driving has on a person’s life?

    Potential impacts of drinking and driving are short- and long-term and can lead to a permanent injury or death of you or someone else, a permanent criminal record, and a life of regret.

Assessment

Complete one or more of the following assessment tasks for this lesson.

Take It Home

Imagine you find yourself at a party where there is alcohol. Talk to a trusted adult about how you should get out of the situation without getting in trouble, regardless of your reason for being there. Have a conversation with the trusted adult about giving you a get-out-of-trouble-free card if you make the choice to call them and do the right thing by leaving.

Option: Assign the What Do I Know About Alcohol? self-assessment as a homework task if it was not used at the start of this lesson.