Health Middle School

Acceptance of Personal Responsibility for Lifelong Health

Standard 1 The student understands and demonstrates ways in which his or her health and well-being can be enhanced and maintained. Students in middle school who meet this standard will be able to:

Analyze the immediate and long-term effects of personal health habits on body systems.

Explore the wide variety of healthful food choices available in all cultures.

Analyze the ways in which physical activity contributes to their physical, mental, emotional, and social health.

Set personal goals for developing and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Explain emotional development during adolescence.

Standard 2
The student understands and demonstrates behaviors that prevent disease and speed recovery from illness. Students in middle school who meet this standard will be able to:

Describe current major chronic and communicable diseases prevalent at different stages of life.

Explore how good health behaviors, such as aerobic exercise and proper nutrition, influence disease.

Understand the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including HIV.

Participate in regular health screenings, including scoliosis, vision, and hearing.

Standard 3
The student will understand and demonstrate knowledge of behaviors that reduce the risk of becoming involved in potentially dangerous situations and know how to react to situations in ways that help to protect his or her health. Students in middle school who meet this standard will be able to:

Recognize the role that drugs and alcohol play in contributing to high-risk situations.

Analyze emergencies and respond appropriately.

Analyze appropriate strategies to avoid, resolve, and cope with conflicts.

Identify behaviors that decrease the risk of becoming involved in potentially dangerous situations.

Explain the need for using protective equipment in sports and physical activity or practicing behaviors that protect the body.

Demonstrate proficiency in basic first aid, abdominal thrust maneuver, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Recognize and avoid situations that can increase risk of abuse.

Respect for and Promotion of the Health of Others

Standard 4
The student will understand and demonstrate how to play a positive, active role in promoting the health of his or her family. Students in middle school who meet this standard will be able to:

Understand the changing roles of family responsibilities.

Recognize the skills needed for good communication between adolescents and parents.

Understand his or her role in supporting positive health practices of younger family members.

Identify effective strategies to cope with change in the family.

Understand the responsibilities of parenting, including legal, financial, social, and moral.

Identify the difficulties and challenges of being a teenage parent.

Recognize the diversity of family structures.

Standard 5
The student will understand and demonstrate how to promote positive health practices within the school and community, including how to cultivate positive relationships with peers. Students in middle school who meet this standard will be able to:

Interact effectively with people, including both males and females and members of different ethnic and cultural groups.

Recognize his or her role in promoting positive health behaviors among peers.

Know appropriate ways to make new friends.

Know how to help friends recognize when they should seek help from a trusted adult.

Understand and follow school rules related to health.

Join in community efforts to address local health and environmental issues.

Identify agencies that provide protection against fraudulent health products, services, and misinformation.

Understand how HIV can spread throughout a community.

Standard 6
The student will understand the variety of physical, mental, emotional, and social changes that occur throughout life. Students in middle school who meet this standard will be able to:

Identify the changes associated with puberty.

Understand the function of the male and female reproductive systems.

Understand and describe how choices made during pregnancy directly affect the health of the mother and the fetus.

Identify strategies for coping with physical changes and emotional changes, including isolation and depression.

Standard 7
The student will understand individual differences in growth and development. Students in middle school who meet this standard will be able to:

Understand that each individual changes at his or her own pace.

Understand the harmful effects of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs, including performance-altering substances, on the body.

Identify consequences of not having a realistic body image, such as dieting and eating disorders.

Standard 8
The student will understand his or her developing sexuality, the benefits of abstinence from sexual activity, and how to be respectful of the sexuality of others. Students in middle school who meet this standard will be able to:

Understand personal responsibility and the consequences of sexual activity.

Identify appropriate ways to show affection.

Recognize that abstinence from sexual activity is the healthiest choice for young people.

Recognize situations that place them at risk of participating in sexual activity.

Identify methods of contraception.

Understand how to be respectful of the sexuality of others, including the personal and social characteristics of sexual harassment. Informed Use of Health-Related Information, Products, and Services

Standard 9
The student will know how to identify products, services, and information that may be helpful or harmful to his or her health. Students in middle school who meet this standard will be able to:

Identify a variety of consumer influences and analyze how those influences affect decisions.

Identify reliable sources of nutrition information.

Identify a variety of low-cost foods that provide nutritionally adequate diets.

Explore a variety of health-related careers.

Identify health services in the community that seek to prevent and treat disease.

Distinguish health concerns that they can manage from those that require professional care.