8th Grade
EIGHTH GRADE
8.1 The student will relate stages of human development to his or her own developmental level.
Descriptive Statement: The student learns that people change as they age, according to their developmental level‑‑physically, mentally, and emotionally. Physical development and human anatomy are reviewed. Stages of mental and emotional development are presented in relation to the student's present developmental level with the goal of increasing his or her self‑understanding and self‑acceptance‑‑now and in the future. Commonly accepted theories of personal development are presented as they relate to the student's own development.
8.2 The student will recognize the development of sexuality as an aspect of the total personality.
Descriptive Statement: The primary factor to be presented is the development of one's own sexual identity.
8.3 The student will become aware of the need to think through decisions, to know how decisions impact their lives as well as the lives of others, and to take responsibility for the decisions they make.
Descriptive Statement: The impact of present decisions on future opportunities and personal development, and the well-being of others, is stressed. Instruction also includes support skills for the decision‑making process‑‑assertive communication, identification of personal conflicts, positive mental health practices, and conflict resolution. Lifelong educational, career, and personal development goals are examined in relation to present decisions and to options available to males and females at various stages of their lives. Students will discuss the impact of personal information and pictures/images posted on social networking sites on future goals. Criminal penalties for engaging in sexually explicit communications will be discussed.
8.4 The student will identify the issues associated with friendships.
Descriptive Statement: The student accomplishes this by reviewing the characteristics of appropriate and inappropriate friendships, by discussing the qualities of a good friend, and by relating the characteristics to changes as one continues to advance through the growth and development process.
8.5 The student will recognize the nature of dating during adolescence.
Descriptive Statement: Content includes the need for belonging, love, and affection, and the search for one's own identity. In addition, students examine the difference between love and infatuation and become aware that one learns about oneself from every relationship, and these experiences prepare one for the challenges and responsibilities of marriage. The student will also recognize warning signs and characteristics of potentially abusive dating relationships, and negative mental health practices.
8.6 The student will interpret the messages in society related to sexuality.
Descriptive Statement: Students continue to discover, identify, and analyze messages about sexuality found in advertising media, music and videos, television, films, the Internet, printed materials, and graffiti. Students also determine the impact of these messages on themselves and others and review how to counteract negative effects and report to parents/guardians and authorities. Positive alternatives to media immersion are discussed. Students will demonstrate how these messages affect mental health issues related to sexuality and are used by human traffickers to lure victims.
8.7 The student will describe strategies for saying "no" to premarital sexual relations.
Descriptive Statements: The emphasis is on strengthening self‑confidence and reinforcing assertive skills and decision‑making skills. Students learn why and how to say “no” to premarital sexual relations and to situations that challenge their own values, how to manage peer pressure, and how to manage their own sexual feelings.
8.8 The student will develop the coping skills needed to deal with stress.
Descriptive Statement: Students identify possible sources of stress (for example, parental, peer, and school pressures; teenage pregnancy; and fear of HIV); and the positive and negative ways in which individuals deal with these sources of stress. The point is made, however, that stress cannot be avoided and that it is not all negative. Information is provided to counteract negative approaches to dealing with stress, such as alcohol, drugs, and suicide. Students learn positive physical and mental techniques for coping with stress (for example, exercise and sports, creative arts, religious activities and youth groups, and career‑development and life‑management activities).
8.9 The student will identify the stresses related to changing relationships in the home, school, and community.
Descriptive Statement: Emphasis is placed on the grief and adjustment processes associated with loss or change resulting from such circumstances as illness, a disabling condition, death, separation, divorce, loss of friendship, loss of income, or coping with substance abuse. The point is made, however, that changes may bring new opportunities to form friendships and to engage in new activities; that some relationships contain normal amounts of stress, especially in adolescents; and that stress is usually only temporary. The student will utilize positive mental health practices in stress management.
8.10 The student will analyze the issues related to teenage pregnancy.
Descriptive Statement: The physical, social, emotional, legal, financial, educational, psychological and nutritional implications of teenage pregnancy are discussed. The roles of and impact on the teenage mother and father are identified.
8.11 The student will review facts about pregnancy prevention and disease control.
Descriptive Statement: Methods of contraception are analyzed in terms of their effectiveness in preventing pregnancy and the spread of disease. Abstinence is emphasized as the only method that is 100 percent effective in preventing pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.
8.12 The student will describe the effects of alcohol and drug use and abuse on families and peer relationships.
Descriptive Statement: The effects of substance use and abuse on judgment within the peer group in terms of social and sexual behavior are analyzed. The effects of such use and abuse within the family also are emphasized, including family and sexual violence.
8.13 The student will identify the effects and prevention of sexual assault, rape (including date rape), incestuous behavior, human trafficking, and molestation.
Descriptive Statement: Content includes developing assertive skills, resolving conflict, avoiding risk situations, and saying "no.” The meaning of consent in a relationship, characteristics of dating violence, electronic harassment, and abusive relationships will be discussed. Information on referral services and legal implications are also provided. Students will identify lures used in a trafficking situation, learn vulnerabilities traffickers target when selecting a victim, and understand choices they can make in their lives to stay protected from human trafficking.
8.14 The student will recall the ways in which the HIV virus is transmitted and prevented.
Descriptive Statement: This involves describing behaviors that put one at risk; dispelling myths regarding the transmission of the infection; and stressing abstinence from risky behavior. The use of condoms in preventing the spread of HIV is discussed.