Addictions Projects 2018

If you haven't seen the health promotion campaigns from last year that our students made, take a look at our blogposts. And get excited, because we are launching our 2018 projects! 
And the first one will be about addictions! Class 4E decided to take this important matter in their hands, to master and to inform. Which is the best way to start a project! Ask what you need! Ask what you always wanted to ask! Students were encouraged to ask their own questions, then they posted them on cardboards according to the focus and this week we are ready to start working in groups organized according to their inquiroes and motivations. Take a look at the list and realize how many things adolescents want and need to know about drugs and addictions!

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What means health?

Defining things are not easy. And it is even more difficult if we try to define health. Each one of us has his own ideas about what it means to be healthy. Trying to find a general concept is a challenge. Specially if you ask teenagers to do it! Adolescence is considered a period of your life without major health complaints. But habits you acquire and decisions you make when you are a teen, are definitely determinants for your health when you become older.
This is why we brainstormed ideas about health.
Using the placemat method, where each student writes its individual ideas and then the group comes to a general and consensual definition, we heard all voices.
The five sections of the Health Ed classes 2018 contributed with the definitions they formulated to our padlet. In this way, we were able to share the views of many groups of students, and not only the ones from one class. We voted for the ones that we liked most, but the great thing about this, is that there is never unanimous agreement. Each one of us values different aspects of health more than others, according to our own subjective experiences, family histories, values, prejudices.
And in the end, the formal definition provided by the WHO:

"Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity"

Who could say that you are in a state of COMPLETE physical, mental and social well being? Is health a STATE?

We loved many definitions of our students, that complete and enrichens the formal one.
Thank for your efforts!

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And what about nutrition?

Before approaching the nutrition unit, I thought it could be a good idea to survey the students in order to find out which are the myths and facts they are familiar with, which are their actual habits and their own perception about their nutritional requirements.
We used Google forms and these were the very interesting results.

GOOD NEWS! MOST OF THE KIDS THINK THEY EAT WHAT THEY NEED.

Not knowing is a very honest answer. How could you know if you get what you need if you´re not sure about what you really need? Adolescents have special nutritional requirements!

   

Yes, so common to see that many adolescents do not breakfast, or don´t do it in the proper amounts and composition. This is a task for the parents: care for your child´s breakfast, it is the most important meal to begin a day and be able to concentrates. Ideally high in proteins, low in carbs!

A hot topic, given that so many adults engage in extreme trendy diets. The soup diet, the no-carb diet, the paleo diet, the detox diets. But it is so simple: just avoid added sugars, fats and DO EXERCISE! Good to see that more than half of our students already know this. Perhaps greater awareness than adults?

Well, let´s talk about diabetes? Did you know how scaringly growing the child diabetes rates are?

The ONLY CORRECT ANSWER HERE would have been "avoid everything except water and natural fruit juices". Natural means natural: you make them yourselves. You don´t believe any marketing label on the tetrapacks! Read ingredients!

Wow, that was such a nice result to see. Seventy seven students surveyed, 87% of them share the meals with their families. Experts unanimously agree on this: sharing meals with family or beloved ones are the BEST protecting factor for eating disorders and nutrition disorders! Please, share you meal with your child (and put the cell phone and netflix away from the table!)

Well, there were many more questions, but in the end it was great to perceive the self-awareness of our students about their eating habits. They know they are ok, but there are many things they could do better and avoid. Like candies. Or excessive soda drinks.



Let´s hope this exercise and the information that was provided in the following lessons, makes some change for better! 

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Dyslexia, so present, so challenging

Dyslexia is a learning disability which challenges students, parents and teachers. It is just part of the human diversity, its different and unique ways of learning, processing. Understanding our differences and knowing how to managing and integrating them, smoothens the way for kids that were not fully understood. Still, there are many prejudices and misconceptions about this condition that affects so many of our friends.
This campaign, created by Olivia Holze, Marina Mey Facciotti, Julieta Müller and Agustín Danguise, was intended to provide information and awareness, inclusion and understanding.

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Scleroderma, autoimmune and lethal

Autoimmune diseases are not easy. Not easy to understand, not easy to treat, almost impossible to cure. Scleroderma is a progressive autoimmune disease that heavily affects the quality of life of the patients, with uncertain prognosis and multiple symptoms, difficult symptomatical treatment and a lot to know and care and understand.
This is why Renata Leone Dodero, Natalia Estrugo, Agustina Bolatti and Olivia Solessio (4E), have been struggling with bringing all this complexity together in this clear infographic to spread the information.

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Ever heard about ANISAKIASIS?

Neither did the group that had this infectious disease assigned: Ivana Saggion, Carolina Kramer and Franco Barrera. 
A parasitic disease,transmitted by uncooked fish, that can cause such severe painful symptoms that you can even take them for an ulcer or a cancer. It´s only about worms.
Finding the information was a difficult task, but this group was able to produce a nice and appealing infographic.

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Sindrome Urémico Hemolítico-a campaign that impacted the community

The entherohemorrhagic E.coli syndrome is unfortunately a highly prevalent and preventable disease in Argentina. Produced by a strain of E.coli that causes severe renal failure and even death in children population below 5 years old.
Catalina Papini, Lucía Nogales and Delfina Ernst were totally engaged with this disease. At first, they found it cool to have a disease assigned with such a difficult name. They had never heard about it. They were intrigued by it, why is this happening? What can we do about it?

Unfortunately, it was coincident with real life: in San Isidro, two kids were hospitalized in Clínica La Trinidad because of an enterohemorrhagic E.coli intoxication at a school. Luckily, they overcame it and are ok. But the pediatrician in charge was coincidently Matías Sokiransky, our school doctor. He suggested our authorities to organize a meeting with parents, reinforcing the precautions in hygiene habits at our kitchens, to protect our own community.

And guess who were invitied to the talk? Yes, our students of 4A: Cata, Delfi and Lucy. They attended the meeting, showing their infographic, explaining what they found out, what they were still wondering. The parents were happy to see how students work for other students. Productive work  and mastery that goes beyond classroom walls. A moment to be proud!
Here goes the campaign:

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