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5-8
Years Old
•
Now is the time to begin explaining what alcohol, tobacco and drugs
are.
• Discuss how anything you put in your body that is not food
can be harmful.
• Explain the idea of addiction, that drug use can become a
bad habit that's hard to stop.
• Praise your children for taking good care of their bodies
and avoiding things that might harm them.
9-11
Years Old
•
Children this age can handle more sophisticated discussion; use
their curiosity about traumatic events (such as car accidents or
divorces) to discuss how drugs could cause these events.
• Friends become extremely important at this time, and older
children may expose your child to alcohol, tobacco or drugs.
• Rehearse scenarios in which friends offer drugs.
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•
"Upsetting my parents" is one of the top reasons preteens give for
why they won't use marijuana; give them permission to use you as
an excuse, such as, "My mom will kill me if I drink a beer!"
12-14
Years Old
•
Adolescence is often a confusing and stressful time as teens try
to figure out who they are and how to fit in. Nearly nine out of
ten teens agree that "it seems like marijuana is everywhere these
days."
• Take advantage of a teen's concerns about social image and
appearance to point out immediate, distasteful consequences of tobacco
and marijuana use: bad breath, stained teeth, smelly hair and clothes.
Point out that drug use is not only dangerous, but can also lead
to broken friendships, even prison.
• Also point out long-term consequences, such as brain damage,
cancer, and the potential for accidents, coma or death.
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15-17
Years Old
•
Older teens have already made decisions about whether or not to
use drugs. Now is the time to help them continue to resist peer
pressure.
• Use specific reasons to reinforce why drugs are bad: addiction,
birth defects, car accidents, prison.
• These students are thinking about their futures; remind them
that drug use could ruin their chances of college acceptance or
embarking on their career choice.
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