Poison Prevention Curriculum

Grades K-3

Co-Authors

History

   Poisoning continues to be one of the leading causes of injury and death in the United Sates. Every year, over four million people are unintentionally poisoned. Children are at greatest risk for poisoning. In 1994, over one million childhood poisoning cases were reported nationwide. The Georgia Poison Center received over 43,000 poisoning calls involving children under the age of thirteen in 1994. Although the number of childhood poisoning deaths has decreased in recent years, poisoning remains a major cause of hospitalizations, emergency room visits and calls to regional poison centers.

   The Georgia Poison Center recognizes the problem of childhood poisoning in Georgia and is committed to educating children and families across Georgia about the dangers of poisons. As part of this commitment the Poison Center has spent nearly two years designing the Poison Prevention Curriculum. The Poison Prevention Curriculum is a comprehensive program designed to increase the ability of children, kindergarten through third Grades, to protect themselves and others from the harm of poisons. By teaching this age group how to prevent poisonings, they learn to be safe sitters, safe siblings, and eventually, safe adults.

   The Curriculum is built on a foundation of epidemiological data, health behavior and health education theory, early childhood education theory, and knowledge of childhood development. Data on poisoning in Georgia was collected and analyzed by health educators at the Georgia Poison Center. The analysis revealed epidemiological information on poisoning including the extent, cause, and nature of poisoning. The data indicated that several substances are commonly involved with childhood poisonings, including household products, personal hygiene products, medications and plants. Further research was conducted to determine behavioral and environmental risk factors which increase the risk of a child being poisoned. Factors found to be significant include a child’s:

• Inquisitive nature
• Developing sills and maturity
• Desire to imitate adult behavior
• Inability to distinguish between food/drink items and poisons and
• Inability to properly use a poison.

   The epidemiological analysis provided a better understanding of the poisoning problem in Georgia. To address the problem, Georgia Poison Center Health Educators began the development of a Poison Prevention Curriculum to teach children to:

• Identify poisons
• Prevent poisonings and
• Respond appropriately in poison emergency situations.

    The Poison Center formed a partnership with the College of Education at Georgia State University to develop the comprehensive Curriculum. A variety of experts in the fields of pediatrics, toxicology, injury prevention and education were consulted throughout the development of the Curriculum. In August 1995, the Poison Center conducted a focus group to gather input on the content and usability of the Curriculum. Ten teachers, representing schools throughout Georgia, participated in the program.

    The Curriculum was further tested in a case/control pilot study with 426 students in an elementary school in Georgia. The study to was designed to assess the effectiveness of the Program as a means to change the student’s knowledge, attitude and behaviors about poison prevention. The results of the Pilot indicated that the Curriculum was effective in increasing the student’s level of knowledge and behavior intent regarding poison safety.

Philosophy

   Poisonings are preventable. Poison prevention is requires the modification of individuals’ attitudes, behaviors and environmental conditions. The Poison Prevention Curriculum was designed to encourage the adoption of long-term behavior change and safe and healthy environments. A great deal of time and effort went into the Poison Prevention Curriculum to ensure its success. Some additional key elements of the Curriculum include it’s:

• Adherence to QCC Guidelines. The Curriculum meets several Georgia Quality Core Curriculum(QCC) Health and Safety Standards for grades kindergarten through third.

• Age and Stage Appropriateness. Great care was taken to develop goals, objectives and activities that would be developmentally appropriate for each grade level. The Curriculum was designed with the knowledge that each student is different. It is responsive to these differences and can easily be modified to meet abilities, needs and interests of individual students.
  
• Integrated Structure. The Curriculum can easily be integrated into other subject areas or taught as a separate unit. Students are given the opportunity to develop language arts, social studies, science, math and art skills as they learn about poison prevention.

• Emphasis on modifying behaviors and environmental conditions. The Curriculum was designed to provide children with a foundation of knowledge and skills necessary to prevent poisoning. The lesson plans and activities provide students with the opportunity to respond to real-life situations and apply the knowledge and skills gained in the Curriculum.
  
• Promotion of self-efficacy. The Curriculum was designed to enhance the students’ self-efficacy, or confidence, in performing poison prevention behaviors. Self-efficacy is one of the most important prerequisites for behavior change (Bandura, 1986). Students are given the opportunity to interact with meaningful and relevant activities and materials that promote behavior change and result in the modification of their environment to a healthier and safer one.

• Involvement of the entire family. By teaching children about poisons, it is believed that we can influence other people in the children’s lives including parents, siblings and the families involved with poison prevention in their home.

• Provision of an interactive and fun learning environment. The Curriculum was designed with a variety of stimulation and challenging activities including puppet shows, songs, life-size board games and role-playing. Many of the activities can be incorporated into learning centers. The activities allow students to actively explore concepts and interact with a variety of materials and experiences. The Curriculum provides the  opportunity for students to work in groups or as individuals.

• Evaluation Component. The Curriculum’s objectives focus on measuring desired changes in the student. A portfolio-based evaluation was selected to assess these changes. Portfolios provide an in depth perception of student achievement (Cleary, 1993). They allow the instructor to assess progress through observation and artifacts, such as drawings, activity sheets and photographs. Portfolios serve as a type of resume of what the student knows and should be able to do.