Help Is Just A Click Away- Lesson Four

Component: Social Studies

Objectives: 

• Explore online services as an information source

• Locates resources from home, school and community that provide valid       
  health information

Materials: Computer with online capabilities

Procedure: 1) Students and teacher discuss the problems associated with each of
                     the characters, i.e., Augustus Gloop's obesity

                  2) Working in small groups, the students will choose or be assigned
                      a character. They will then use a search engine such as Yahooligans
                      or Kids Click to search for sights that will "help" the character
                      with his/her problem; suggest search words: over eating, authority, addiction,
                      television, chewing gum...

                   3) After having researched and found websites, they will records the best web sites and  
                      determine why they are good using the Web Site Evaluation Form.

                    4) The students will read and decide what is the best "treatment" for the   
                       character and write a "doctor's report" on it.

                    5) Read reports aloud.

Evaluation:  Reports will be evaluated using the Report Rubric.

Homework: Write an essay on which addictive personality trait would be the easiest
                   to overcome and why.

Extension Activities: 

• Play "hot seat" by having a student play the role of one of the characters and the others asking pertinent questions about his/her character disorder.

• Write and produce a play using all the characters depicting their character flaws and having it end with all the of them "cured."

• Play "panel of judges" by having a "lawyer" for the defendant (character) and one against due to the character's annoying personality trait. The judges will decide the case and mete out either "punishment" or some sort of help.

Websites to visit: 
                          Family News
                                Read an article about television addiction

                         Cure for Obesity- Kill Your Television 
                         Background information for teachers to discover ways to cure obesity
                       
                            Wrigley 
                          Learn about chewing gum