Making Positive Choices for Healthy Living: Social Emotional Wellness

Social emotional wellness, including stress, and and peer pressure are situations that almost every child faces at some point in time in their life. Whether it is through introduction via peer pressure or through curiosity, harmful choices can make their way into a teenager's life. In this class, we will discuss the choices and consequences that come with making positive and non-positive choices for what we put into our bodies and their effects on the body. We will address the subject through the lens of what can happen "if" and develop the skills to help understand how to make intelligent choices, dealing with stress and recognizing the effects of social peer pressure and how we can make more positive choices to raise awareness of social emotional wellness. We will understand the choices and consequences of making positive choices on the human body, as well as work on instilling appropriate problem solving skills, including evaluation of the negative consequences on a person's social, emotional, physical, and psychological well-being. 

We want to instill a sense of safety and knowledge in getting kids to make intelligent choices, but at the same time, we want to EMPOWER kids to choose to make positive and healthy choices and get HELP if they are already involved in unhealthy choices or are affected by or know someone who is! Knowledge is EMPOWERMENT!

Through the use of live discussions, audio-video materials, writing assignments, readings and tackling real life situations (hypothetical and possible), students will learn about the effects and consequences of making healthy choices to empower social emotional awareness.  They will learn about the social, emotional, physical, and psychological effects of making healthy choices as well as some ways to combat peer pressure. They will be given matter of fact information involving consequences as well. 

This is an introductory class and no prerequisite knowledge is required, however, this material may be sensitive to younger students without parental support. 

Students will complete a weekly assignment that entails a reading, a writing, and a hypothetical scenario. They will have a final project at the end of the class that puts all the skills taught into a culminating project. 

Learner progress is evaluated through participation in class and discussions.