Getting Started

Dear Teacher

Welcome to Reach Out Now, a program developed for teachers and families to help prevent underage alcohol use. As an educator, you know it is not too early to start communicating with your fifth and sixth graders about the risks of underage alcohol use. This skills-based teaching guide is designed to give students the facts about alcohol, so they can make smart and healthy choices in the future.

Developed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Center for Substance Abuse Prevention in conjunction with Scholastic Inc., the program provides students with the scientific facts about the effects of alcohol on the brain and the body. Inside, you’ll find lessons and worksheets that build the scientific literacy and critical-thinking skills necessary to make informed decisions. Thank you for sharing this important program with your students.

Steven K. Galson, M.D., M.P.H.
RADM, USPHS
Acting Surgeon General
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Getting Started

• Hang the classroom poster to involve students in a discussion about the dangers of underage alcohol use. Before displaying the poster, be sure to make copies of all of the lessons and worksheets on the poster back.
• Lessons and worksheets inside support your science lessons with facts about the brain and the body. They also reinforce key skills such as reading comprehension, critical thinking, graphs, and persuasive writing.
• Worksheets in the teaching guide can be used individually or in sequence with each other. Bonus worksheets in the accompanying booklet build on the information in the lessons.
• Family Pages included in the accompanying booklet extend the discussion outside of the classroom.
• All materials are designed with flexibility to be taught throughout the school year, as well as part of a Reach Out Now Teach-In (see information below).

Additional Resources

FOR TEACHERS AND OTHER ADULTS

• http://www.samhsa.gov
• http://www.stopalcoholabuse.gov
• http://www.samhsa.gov/shin
• http://www.niaaa.nih.gov
• http://www.toosmarttostart.samhsa.gov
• http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/topics/underagedrinking/EducatorGuide.pdf

FOR YOUTH

• http://www.toosmarttostart.samhsa.gov/tweens
• http://www.thecoolspot.gov
• http://www.toosmarttostart.samhsa.gov/teens

PRINTABLE PUBLICATIONS

• http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/MakeADiff_HTML/makediff.htm

IN SPANISH

• http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/MakeADiff_SpanHTML/SpanDiff.pdf

Alignment with National Standards

See the back cover for alignment with:

• National Science/Personal Health and Reading/Writing Standards
• Goals of The Surgeon General’s Call to Action To Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking

What Is Reach Out Now?

Reach Out Now is a collaboration between the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and Scholastic Inc., to provide school-based, underage alcohol use prevention materials in time for Alcohol Awareness Month each April.

Reach Out Now National Teach-Ins are an opportunity for prominent national, youth, state, and local leaders to use evidence-based lessons and other helpful materials to teach fifth and sixth graders, parents, teachers, and the community about the dangers of underage alcohol use and encourage young people to make healthy decisions.

• For free printable copies of the Reach Out Now materials, visit: http://www.toosmarttostart.samhsa.gov/educators/teachin
• For more information about preventing underage alcohol abuse, visit: http://www.stopalcoholabuse.gov

Download the PDF