K-12 Health Lesson Plans and Curriculum
Alignment Tables
South Carolina Alignment Documents

Content Area I: Personal Health and Wellness
Standard 1: Comprehend health promotion and disease prevention concepts.
South Carolina Performance Criteria K-5 HealthTeacher Lesson Guide Synopsis of Lesson
identify personal practices that promote health and safety (e.g., hand-washing and other forms of personal hygiene and preventive health behaviors); Wash Away the Germs. Students learn that germs can also be spread by touching using a simulation with stickers. Students practice the correct way to wash their hands.
How Teeth Change Students learn that everyone normally gets two sets of teeth and that they soon will be losing their first set of "baby teeth". A classroom chart is made to record each student't loss of a tooth throughout the school year.
How Immunizations Help Using a story and a "doctor's kit" students learn the importance of immunizations, then draw pictures that show who gives them immunizations and where they go to get them. Students are asked to explain the importance of immunizations.
Well Care Visits Students learn about the purpose of well-care visits then write and illustrate books to share with younger children about well-care visits
identify the structure and functions of the major systems of the human body; How We Breathe Students learn where to find valid information about the respiratory system through class presentations.
The Digestive Process Students write stories about the process of digestion from the perspective of the food being digested, stressing the importance of fiber for the digestive process.
The Changes of Adolescence Students explore the physical, emotional and social changes of adolescence through viewing a video of physical development, interviewing adults about their adolescent period, and writing a letter that explains what to expect during adolescence.
identify health problems that should be detected and treated early; Managing Diabetes, Asthma and Allergies Students learn about diabetes, asthma, and allergies through becoming "disease detectives", participating in classroom centers, doing individual research, and working with student handouts.
give reasons healthy behaviors prevent disease Wash Away the Germs. Students learn that germs can also be spread by touching using a simulation with stickers. Students practice the correct way to wash their hands.
Covering Coughs and Sneezes Students discuss germs that spread illness. Using a demonstration with a spray bottle of water, the teacher illustrates how germs can travel from person to person through coughing and sneezing. Students then demonstrate how facial tissue can limit the spread of germs through the air.
explain how the environment affects health. Clean Water Students discuss ways communities can keep water clean and safe then design posters to advocate keeping water clean and safe.
Standard 2: Access valid health information, products, and services.
South Carolina Performance Criteria K-5 HealthTeacher Lesson Guide Synopsis of Lesson
· find health information, products, and services that promote personal hygiene, wellness, disease prevention, and environmental health Using Medications Appropriately Students discuss ways to identify valid sources of information about medicine safety. They study medication labels then create a product information sheet that includes essential information about safe use of a particular medication.
· cite ways of knowing whether or not health information, products, and services are valid and reliable. Using Medications Appropriately Students discuss ways to identify valid sources of information about medicine safety. They study medication labels then create a product information sheet that includes essential information about safe use of a particular medication.
Standard 3: Demonstrate the ability to practice behaviors that enhance health and reduce risks.
South Carolina Performance Criteria K-5 HealthTeacher Lesson Guide Synopsis of Lesson
· demonstrate strategies for accepting responsibility for personal health behaviors Covering Coughs and Sneezes Students discuss germs that spread illness. Using a demonstration with a spray bottle of water, the teacher illustrates how germs can travel from person to person through coughing and sneezing. Students then demonstrate how facial tissue can limit the spread of germs through the air.
Looking at Medicine Labels Students learn about medicine labels and the importance of following label directions in order to use medicine safely. Students also learn the difference between prescription and OTC medicines.
Yikes! Lice Students learn about lice and the ways they "travel" from one person to another they then write short stories, describing a situation where one person has lice and how the lice infect another person.
Riding in the Back Seat Students discuss ways to stay safe while riding in cars. They create collages and practice a rhyme about sitting in the back seat.
· demonstrate strategies to improve or maintain personal health, dental care, hygiene, wellness, fitness, and disease prevention. Brushing Teeth Students view a demonstration of cleaning a tile using various methods and substances. Students also view a demonstration of a tooth model and steps for proper cleaning.
Caring for Our Skin Students use construction paper dolls to do an experiment demonstrating how the sun can effect the skin. Students then discuss ways to protect their skin from sun and cold exposure.
Looking at Medicine Labels Students learn about medicine labels and the importance of following label directions in order to use medicine safely. Students also learn the difference between prescription and OTC medicines.
Care of Eyes and Ears Students learn about the importance of caring for their sight and their hearing through classroom activities or through a visit with a professional care giver. Students experience using Braille and sign language.
Skin Care and Hygiene Students discuss body changes that occur during puberty and the resulting need for good hygiene. Students also learn ways to protect their skin from UV rays.
Dental Hygiene Students learn how good dental hygiene helps prevent disease through an object lesson using a decaying apple. Students return demonstrations of correct proceedures for brushing and flossing teeth.
Preventing Infectious Illness Students work in groups to research a type of infectious disease (food-borne, air-borne...) then present their findings in classroom news conference. They also develop comic strips to depict how germs are spread and ways to limit their spread, including immunization.
Managing Diabetes, Asthma and Allergies Students learn about diabetes, asthma, and allergies through becoming "disease detectives", participating in classroom centers, doing individual research, and working with student handouts.
Lets Get Physical Students participate in several activity circuits, one group at a time, then identify the types of activities that contribute to the three main types of fitness. Students also create activity journals in which they include drawings of favorite activities in each of the three fitness categories.
Physical Activity Is Good for Me Students participate in different exercises and compare their heart beats for differences in rates. Students relate physical activity to a healthy heart by creating posters demonstrating their favorite heart-healthy activity.
Standard 4: Analyze the influence of personal beliefs, culture, mass media, technology, and other factors on health.
South Carolina Performance Criteria K-5 HealthTeacher Lesson Guide Synopsis of Lesson
· give examples of how various factors influence health choices (e.g., personal, cultural, mass media, technology, peer, family) and Choosing Friends Volunteers role play "The Pressure's On", then describe how it felt to be pressured or persuasive. Wearing labels, other volunteer students demonstrate how peers influence each other. The class brainstorms the negative effects of alcohol and other drug use and discusses the different influences on decisions to use or not use alcohol and other drugs.
Let's Go Shopping Students vote for the food package that is most attractive to them, then they discover the package contents. Using the Food Guide Pyramid, students decide whether or not the foods their bodies need can be chosen just by looking at the packaging.
Advertising and Food Choices Students consider influences on food choices including common advertising techniques. They work in groups to create a commerical for a food product and act out their commercials for the class which discusses the advertising techniques used.
· describe how physical, social, and emotional environments influence personal health and well-being. Role Models Students learn about role models through pictures and stories, then discuss the different kinds of role models - good and bad.
People We Admire Students write paragraphs to share with the class about who they would invite to dinner and why. Students then discuss qualities of people they admire and how they are influenced by these people. Students write letters to someone they see as a role model.
I'm Unique Students create posters using an acrostic of their name to identify unique qualities they possess. As a class, students then discuss that everyone has unique qualities and identify ways to care for their health because they are unique.
Influences on Activity Students discuss various reasons for participating in physical activities, including the influence of others. Students find magazine pictures of physical activities which they like because of a specific influence.
The Benefits of Physical Activity Students conduct a class survey about reasons for participating in sports or exercise, complete activity charts that track their individual activity, and create posters that reflect why physical activity is healthy. Students then become reporters to interview someone who makes physical activity an important part of their life to identify ways that activity has helped them.
Who Influences You? Students complete a handout "This Is My Life" and use a diagram of concentric circles to analyze key influences in their lives.
Standard 5: Use interpersonal communication skills to enhance health.
South Carolina Performance Criteria K-5 HealthTeacher Lesson Guide Synopsis of Lesson
· demonstrate the ability to ask for assistance in improving health and dealing with common health problems. Stay Safe and Healthy Students practice what to do and say if they find an unsafe object, including tobacco, or if someone else tries to get them to touch or use unsafe things.
Standard 6: Use goal-setting and decision-making skills to enhance health.
South Carolina Performance Criteria K-5 HealthTeacher Lesson Guide Synopsis of Lesson
· demonstrate the ability to apply a decision-making process to health issues and problems; Drugs and Goals Don't Mix Students play a decision-making game to learn about taking risks and making decisions. After the effects of drugs on their health, students play a mock hockey game to simulate how drugs can get in the way of achieving goals.
Hazardous to My Health Students attempt simple activities under a handicapping condition that simulates the effect of drugs on concentration, balance and memory.... Students think about the practical consequences of trying to solve problems using drugs, then review the steps for a healthful decision-making, problem solving process.
Biking Safety Students review bicycle safety and traffic rules after reviewing decision-making steps, they create cartoon strips showing characters making decisions that promote bicycle safety.
· determine when health problems require adult assistance; Stay Safe and Healthy Students practice what to do and say if they find an unsafe object, including tobacco, or if someone else tries to get them to touch or use unsafe things.
· set a personal health goal, track progress, and assess achievement. Let's Feed Our Bodies Students review the recommended servings of each group of foods on the Food Guide Pyramid and set a goal to achieve the recommended level foods for a group which they now eat too little or too much of.
The Fruit Group Fruit samples are served at a class tasting party. Students set goals to eat more fruit each day.
Standard 7: Demonstrate the ability to advocate for personal, family, and community health.
South Carolina Performance Criteria K-5 HealthTeacher Lesson Guide Synopsis of Lesson
· explain ways or strategies to influence and support others in making positive health choices. Real Friends Protect Us A cake "decorating" demonstration and brainstorming characteristics in friends that would help them stay healthy are teaching techniques used to help students learn that tobacco harms the body and that friends can support each other to be tobacco free.
Healthy Habits Students develop signs to post throughout the school that describe good hand-washing technique and encourage hand-washing..
Use Your Head - Use Your Helmet Students learn about the importance of wearing a helmet properly through a demonstration, an object lesson (using an egg), and use of a student handout.