High School Health

Course Description

Students in this class will join me in discovering the emotional, social, physical, and intellectual dimensions of their health in a life skills class designed to help develop healthy habits. We will also look at strategies to help minimize behaviors that contribute to disease and negative effects on our health. In this course, we’ll also introduce 4 of the 10 healthy dimensions. Students will develop their own goals and engage in behaviors to achieve them during the semester.

This class will provide lectures, note taking strategies, and assignments, along with skill-based activities that promote a healthy lifestyle.

We will cover the following topics in a factual and neutral manner, with respect for a broad range of perspectives among our students and families. The course is designed to give students tools to educate themselves and draw their own conclusions on matters affecting their physical, emotional, and social well-being. It is intended to help families fulfill the high school health credit requirement. Parental input/discussion is encouraged throughout the course and an integral part of most assignments.

Core values exploration and activities based on these core values:

1. Physical health: introduction to personal fitness/activities, body image, basics of nutrition – basic anatomy, physiology of digestion and metabolism, macromolecules, vitamins, and minerals, nutrition-linked diseases with personal responsibility for prevention, cross contamination in food, cooking skills, and hygiene specific to the teen years.
2. Emotional health: identifying, understanding, and communicating emotions, self-esteem, dealing with stress, and asking for help. Intellectual health: brain health for lifelong learning, growth vs fixed mindsets, learning myths, and introduction to evidence-based learning strategies.
3. Social Health: social influences inventory, identifying positive and negative influences, friendships, strategy development to develop positive and limit negative influences, how to be a positive social influence.

Course Structure

• One live Zoom class per week.
• Module assignments will focus on a dimension of health and may include applying health promoting behaviors, working through assigned videos, readings, online discussion forums, journaling, with quizzes, projects, and tests. As the course moves on, healthy behaviors will be combined over the weeks.
• A combination of handwritten incorporating different note taking modes and will vary in length, including a works cited pages when applicable.
• Students will upload assignments in pdf format and occasionally jpg.
• Students will utilize the Canvas classroom to submit assignments in compatible formats and communicate with the teacher and their fellow students.

Who should enroll?

Students in grades 9-12 may enroll in this course.

Technology Requirements and Required Materials      

• A reliable PC or laptop with High Speed Internet, webcam, microphone, speaker
• Scanner/camera phone
• Ability to download files for viewing, editing, and printing.
• Ability to scan and upload files pdf format.
• Lined and blank paper to take handwritten notes in a spiral pad or 3 hole punched for a binder.
• Highlighters – (4 colors) yellow, pink, orange, green, or blue
• Colored pencils – at least 6 colors
• Pens – black, red, blue
• Sticky note pads in at least 4 colors (like Post-its, but they can be any brand)
• Index cards – single pack of 100
• Permissions to access youtube.com, https://www.ted.com/talks, and varied other online resources.

Evaluation and Feedback  

• I will provide individualized grading and feedback to each student via Canvas classroom.
• Rubrics are available for some aspects of the course work.

Communication and Participation

• This is a hybrid course. Students are strongly encouraged to attend the live class with video/audio on as well as engage in the assortment of health activities. I emphasize class discussions and sharing of ideas. You will receive the most benefit from participating in the activities in class and communicating any questions and comments in Canvas.
• Parent support is highly encouraged in this class with previewing of assignments.
• Student and parent communication is vital for our success together

Contact: Please contact me with any course questions at [email protected]. New registrants will receive a welcome email with instructions.

Required Texts

 

• Infographic and mind map tool https://www.canva.com/ Note: You will need an email to create a free account.
• Quizlet account, set up at https://quizlet.com/
• A dictionary