8th Grade

Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT)

Beginning in the spring of the 2017-18 school year, all 8th grade students participated in SBIRT, an initiative led by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, School Health Services. The school team, led by the school nurse, implemented SBIRT.

In March, 2016, the Massachusetts Legislature enacted an Act relative to substance use, treatment, education and prevention (STEP Act) which outlines the requirements for public schools in the Commonwealth to engage in substance use screening and education. Legislation can be found at https://malegislature.gov/Laws/SessionLaws/Acts/2016/Chapter52 (see Sections 15, 63, 64, 66).

Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) focuses on prevention, early detection, risk assessment, brief counseling and referral for assessment that can be utilized in the school setting. Use of a validated screening tool will enable school health teams to detect risk for substance use related problems and brief intervention strategies will help to address these concerns at an early stage in adolescents.

More information about SBIRT may be found here:

https://www.integration.samhsa.gov/clinical-practice/sbirt

Health and Wellness

All eighth grade students take Health and Wellness for one quarter of the year, meeting four times a cycle (every six days). The class uses a skill-based curriculum based on the National Health Education Standards. The goal of the course is to offer students information about how to live healthy lives but primarily focuses on helping students to develop the skills needed to use this knowledge in their daily lives. Units covered include (but are not limited to), Nutrition, Community Building: Empathy and Communication Skills, Bullying Prevention/Healthy Relationships, Emotion and Stress Management, Substance Abuse Prevention, and Human Sexuality. Our Health and Wellness teacher encourages parents to talk with their children about the topics covered in class and to infuse their own values as they relate to the curriculum.

Physical Education

As part of the Physical Education curriculum, all students participate in Project Adventure activities. These activities consist of group problem-solving activities that encourage students to take safe risks in a supportive environment. These activities are followed by teacher led debriefings that focus on interpersonal skills, leadership and group dynamics. Physical Education is a great setting for students to initiate teamwork, provide encouragement for their peers and to work though conflicts that can often arise in a fast paced, active environment.