Project TND includes 12 classroom-based sessions. Each session is 45 to 50 minutes in length. Each session includes a review of the previous session, a primary activity, and a review of the activity. The method utilized for reviews and summaries is the TND Game, in which teams of students compete for points by answering questions about the curriculum material.
Overall, the sessions are highly interactive, with the use of the Socratic method, classroom discussions, skill demonstrations, role-playing, and psychodrama techniques throughout the curriculum.
We offer inclusion of an optional instructional format in sessions 1, 3 and 6. The optional format involves delivery of the same program content, but through the use of small groups rather than discussion with the entire class.
Session 1 Active Listening
Purpose
This session is designed to motivate students to communicate effectively and listen to program material with an open mind.
Description
Students are introduced to Project TND. The primary activity is a classroom discussion, in which students discuss the importance of active listening and having an open mind. They also learn skills for effective communication, using both verbal and nonverbal language in small groups, or as an entire class.
Session 2 Stereotyping
Purpose
The purpose of Session 2 is to make students aware that they:
- May put themselves more at risk for substance abuse by giving in to a self-fulfilling prophecy; and
- Can rebel against stereotyping by not abusing drugs.
Description
The primary activity is a classroom discussion in which students define stereotyping, discuss common stereotypes about high school students, and learn that believing stereotypes can lead to self-fulfilling prophecies that put one at risk for engaging in self-defeating behaviors. They also discuss the extent to which students overestimate the prevalence of drug use among high school students, which is an example of stereotyping. They learn that the actual rates of drug use prevalence are substantially lower than what students commonly believe.
Session 3 Myths and Denials
Purpose
The purpose of Session 3 is to examine and confront myths that may facilitate drug use.
Description
The primary activity is a classroom discussion in which students identify myths associated with drug use, learn how to distinguish truth from lies, and learn how people use various beliefs to deny or justify their drug use.
Session 4 Chemical Dependency
Purpose
Session 4 provides students with information about chemical dependency, and delineates the negative consequences of drug abuse related to the user’s family and social environment. The session also is designed to inform students about the availability of assistance for those affected by drug use.
Description
The lesson begins with a discussion of the stages of chemical dependency and their effects on various aspects of life, including the family. The students are presented with a scenario in which a family member is addicted to alcohol. They discuss ways that family members might be enabling a drug user to keep using drugs, and ways that the students might seek help for their peers or themselves.
Supplemental Teaching Materials
For an updated Self-help Assistance Toolkit visit this link: Self-help Assistance Toolkit_Session_4.pdf
Session 5 Talk Show
Purpose
Session 5 provides students with an understanding of, and empathy for the negative consequences of drug abuse.
Description
The primary activity is a talk show, a psychodrama in which some students play the role of guests who have been affected by drug misuse in a variety of ways. The teacher plays the role of host, and the remaining students play the role of audience members. Through the use of a question/answer format, the students learn about the physical, emotional, and social consequences of drug use.
Session 6 Stress, Health & Goals
Purpose
The goal of Session 6 is to emphasize the importance of health as a value for living a happy and healthy life. In addition, the session presents information about alternatives to drug use for coping with stress.
Description
The primary activity is a classroom discussion in which students define stress, examine sources of stress in their lives, and review strategies for dealing with stress (e.g., lifestyle alternatives, such as physical activity and relaxation; seeking social support; problem solving; and self-esteem building). The students discuss why drug use is not an effective way to deal with stress. They complete and discuss a “Quality of Life Questionnaire”, which assists them in identifying their goals in life and the value they place on health.
Session 7 Tobacco Basketball and Use Cessation
Purpose
The goal of Session 7 is to provide students with nicotine and tobacco cessation information.
Description
The primary activity is a “tobacco basketball” question and answer game that students play in order to review information about the consequences of tobacco use. In addition, the students review a brief quit manual that presents information on the physiological effects of tobacco use, symptoms of withdrawal from tobacco, and strategies for tobacco use cessation.
Session 8 Self-control
Purpose
The goal of Session 8 is to increase students’ awareness of different social contexts and how to match their behaviors to the social context they are in. Also, students learn the importance of exercising self-control and utilizing assertiveness skills, in order to improve their chances of making positive social bonds and achieving their personal goals.
Description
The primary activity is a classroom discussion and role play in which students define self-control, provide examples of contexts in which self-control is needed, and learn the consequences of having poor self-control. The students complete a brief self-assessment (“Behavior Checklist”) of the extent to which they exercise self-control in social situations. They participate in a demonstration of passive, aggressive, and assertive behavior, and role play assertive responses to hypothetical social situations. They conclude by discussing how drug use contributes to poor self-control.
Session 9 Marijuana Panel
Purpose
The purpose of Session 9 is to provide students with information about the emotional and social consequences of marijuana use.
Description
The primary activity is a psychodrama panel discussion in which panelists discuss the consequences of marijuana abuse from a variety of perspectives.
Session 10 Positive and Negative Thought and Behavior Loops
Purpose
The purpose of Session 10 is to increase students’ awareness of their patterns of thinking and emphasize the benefits of positive thinking. In addition, the session provides information about the reasons people get in violent situations and how to avoid violence.
Description
The primary activity is a classroom discussion and demonstration in which students learn how positive thinking, choices, and behavior, or negative thinking, choices, and behavior are tied together as process “loops.” The students discuss how negative thought and behavior loops can lead to stress and violence. They review and discuss methods for avoiding violence.
Session 11 Perspectives
Purpose
In Session 11, students examine their specific attitudes toward drug use in the context of their general views toward social problems, which may elicit a more moderate perspective about the misuse of drugs.
Description
The primary activity is a discussion/demonstration in which students discuss various views about social issues. They participate in a demonstration in which they state and briefly debate their views on three specific social issues (gun control, cell phone use while driving, and drug use). They learn that most people have moderate views about drug use.
Session 12 Decision-making and Commitment
Purpose
The goal of Session 12 is to motivate youth to think through the pros and cons of drug use and make a commitment regarding whether or not they want to avoid drug abuse.
Description
The primary activity begins with a discussion of steps in the decision making process. The students practice using the process by considering a hypothetical scenario involving alcohol use, completing a decision making worksheet, and discussing their choice. They complete a “Personal Commitment” worksheet in which they make a commitment regarding drug use (e.g., to think about the dangers of drug use, reduce or quit drug use, or continue to be drug free). They are asked to share their commitments with the class. The activity concludes with an optional video that shows testimonials from young people who made a commitment to stop using drugs.