How Drugs Work

Rationale

This unit was written for my eighth grade science class at a neighborhood (non-selective enrollment), public elementary school (K-8) on the far southeast corner of Chicago. According to the 2011 Illinois School Report Card, the school population was 13.7% White, 9.3% Black, 74.9% Hispanic and 2.1% other; of this population 92.6% are considered low income, 26.6% are Limited-English-proficient students, 11.1% have Individual Education Plans. ¹

The geographic information of our community includes several major industrial factories, both functional and abandoned. The area also includes several well-used natural resources long frequented by outdoorsman and fishermen. There are a large proportion of residents who actively use the resources, without regard for the dangers of potential mercury pollution in fishes. Currently there are additional proposals in the community to add new industries, which may potentially release lead into the environment. I want to make the students more aware of these more personal issues surrounding their community.

I want to demystify the chemical reactions that occur from the use of both alcohol and cannabis, so the students better understand the near and long range consequences of their actions. I want to make the students aware of personal exposure to toxic chemicals and what can be done to mitigate the problems. There is some recreational drug use in our community and additionally some students have relatives that have experienced cancer, asthma, heart disease and related illnesses. I regularly field questions about why people lose their hair when they should be trying to get better from cancer treatment, but when the child with the question is asking about their relative, it is too hard to get into detail about cell structure and toxicity levels. I want my students to be armed with the information themselves, before the questions arise, so they can have a more informed understanding of how drugs work.

There also seems to be more misconception about the other toxic substances. There are many fishermen in the community. Lead and mercury contaminants have been regular problems since the times when steel mills, factories and waste dumps interspersed with two major lakes and natural marsh in the area. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency regularly provides warnings about fish consumption, which are often ignored; many residents think that the fish is safe since they have not been sick yet. ² A current issue is a potential cement factory permit being issued which would either provide additional pollutants or meaningful economic opportunity. ³ By giving my students information, they will be able to weight the trade-offs and understand the issues better.