28.2 Mental and Social Health, Substances, Growth & Consumer Health

Overview & Exam Relevance

Competency 003 (Health) includes much more than nutrition and safety. Teachers must understand:

• stages of human growth and development, including the changes of adolescence;
• substance use and abuse;
• types of violence and abuse;
• coping with unhealthy behaviors in the family;
• the types and symptoms of eating disorders;
• social and communication skills for healthy relationships;
• the influence of media, technology, and peers on health;
• sources of health information; and
• the roles of health care professionals and consumer health skills.

This section covers mental, emotional, and social health, bullying prevention, substance use, growth and development, eating disorders, family challenges, and consumer health. It ends with the structure of the health TEKS.

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Mental, Emotional & Social Health

Mental wellness equips elementary learners to manage affective states, form empathetic bonds, and resolve social tensions.

Emotional Regulation & Coping Mechanisms

Young children frequently experience dysregulation when cognitive demands or social conflicts overwhelm their developmental coping abilities. Educators scaffold emotional regulation through:

• Emotional Literacy: Teaching students to identify and label precise feelings (distinguishing frustration from sadness or embarrassment) rather than reacting with behavioral outbursts.
• Physiological Calming Techniques: Teaching deep diaphragmatic breathing (such as "belly breathing" or the "square breathing" protocol: inhale 4 counts, hold 4, exhale 4, hold 4), progressive muscle relaxation (tensing and releasing muscle groups from toes to face), and sensory grounding (the 5-4-3-2-1 technique: identify 5 things you see, 4 you feel, 3 you hear, 2 you smell, and 1 you taste).
• Cognitive Reframing & Calming Corners: Providing dedicated quiet spaces within the classroom equipped with tactile sensory items, reflective emotion charts, and guided self-reflection prompts.

Interpersonal Communication & Conflict Resolution

Social problem-solving relies on two core communicative skills:

1. "I-Messages": An assertive communication formula that allows individuals to express needs without triggering defensiveness. An effective I-message follows a four-part structure:

   • "I feel..." (state the specific emotion cleanly without blame)
   • "when you..." (describe the specific, observable behavior objectively)
   • "because..." (explain the tangible concrete impact or consequence)
   • "and I need / would like..." (request a constructive, forward-looking action) Example: "I feel frustrated when you talk over me during group work because my ideas aren't heard, and I need us to take turns sharing."

2. Active Listening: Concentrating fully on what a peer is communicating rather than planning a rebuttal. Active listening components include: maintaining open body language, making steady eye contact, nodding, paraphrasing the speaker's message ("What I hear you saying is..."), and validating feelings before proposing solutions.

Bullying and Cyberbullying Prevention: David's Law

Texas Education Code §37.0832 defines bullying as "a single significant act or a pattern of acts by one or more students directed at another student that exploits an imbalance of power" and involves written or verbal expression, electronic expression, or physical conduct. To count, the conduct must physically harm the student or the student's property, or place the student in reasonable fear of such harm. It also counts if it creates an intimidating, threatening, or abusive educational environment, materially disrupts the classroom or school, or infringes on the student's rights at school. Many general definitions require repeated behavior; Texas law does not, because one significant act can qualify. Bullying commonly takes four forms:

• Physical: Hitting, kicking, pushing, tripping, spitting, or destroying property.
• Verbal: Name-calling, insults, teasing, taunting, or verbal threats.
• Social / Relational: Spreading rumors, purposeful social exclusion, public embarrassment, or alienating peers from a peer group.
• Cyberbullying: Bullying conducted through electronic communication devices, social media platforms, texting, gaming networks, or digital forums.

Texas Mandate — David's Law (Texas Senate Bill 179 / TEC §37.0832): Enacted in memory of David Molak, David's Law significantly strengthened Texas anti-bullying statutes:

• Requires all Texas school districts to adopt formal policies prohibiting bullying, harassment, and cyberbullying.
• Mandates that schools establish an anonymous reporting system for students, staff, and parents to report bullying incidents.
• Expands school authority to address off-campus cyberbullying if the electronic conduct interferes with a student's educational opportunities or substantially disrupts the orderly operation of a classroom, school, or school-sponsored activity.
• Mandates that campus administrators notify the parents of an alleged victim on or before the third business day after the incident is reported, and notify the parents of the alleged aggressor within a reasonable time.
• Encourages peer intervention through Upstander pedagogy: teaching children that passive bystanders enable bullying through silence, whereas active upstanders intervene safely, comfort the victim, or report the behavior to a trusted adult immediately.

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Substance Abuse Education & Refusal Skills

Early childhood and elementary health education builds foundational resistance against chemical substances before peer pressure intensifies in middle school.

Substances & Pediatric Hazards

• Tobacco & Nicotine (Electronic Cigarettes / Vaping): Electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) heat e-liquids containing concentrated nicotine, propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, volatile organic compounds, heavy metals (lead, nickel, tin), and flavoring chemicals like diacetyl (linked to bronchiolitis obliterans, commonly called "popcorn lung"). Nicotine is neurotoxic to the developing brain, disrupting synaptic pruning in the prefrontal cortex and impairing executive attention, mood stability, and impulse control.
• Alcohol: A central nervous system depressant that slows neuromuscular reaction time, impairs judgment, alters sensory perception, and disrupts emotional equilibrium.
• Prescription & Over-the-Counter (OTC) Medication Safety: Elementary students must learn that medicine is beneficial only when prescribed specifically for them and administered by a trusted parent, guardian, or school nurse. Rules: Never consume medication from a peer, never take unlabeled pills, never exceed prescribed dosages, and recognize that misuse of cough syrups or painkillers is dangerous and illegal.

Refusal Skills & The STOP Strategy

Effective drug education focuses on assertive communication routines that empower students to reject peer pressure while preserving social standing. The STOP Model provides a memorable sequence:

• S — Say NO firmly: Use clear, unequivocal language, maintain eye contact, and speak in an assertive, steady vocal tone without smiling or apologizing.
• T — Tell why: Give a concise, factual reason ("No, that's dangerous for my health" or "No, that breaks our school rules").
• O — Offer an alternative: Pivot the social dynamic toward a positive, healthy activity ("Let's go shoot hoops on the blacktop instead").
• P — Promptly leave: If the peer persists in pressuring, exit the situation immediately and seek a trusted adult.

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Human Growth and Development

• Children grow through predictable stages, but at individual rates. Puberty typically begins between about ages 8 and 13 in girls and 9 and 14 in boys, so some upper-elementary students are already experiencing it.
• Physical changes include growth spurts, body hair, changes in body shape, skin changes, menstruation in girls, and voice changes in boys. Good hygiene (daily bathing, deodorant, clean clothing) becomes more important.
• Emotional and social changes include mood swings, a growing desire for independence, increased peer influence, and concern about appearance.
• Under the 2020 health TEKS, students in Grade 4 and above study puberty and adolescent development in the reproductive and sexual health strand. Texas law requires a parent's written consent before a student receives instruction in human sexuality.

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Eating Disorders and Body Image

• Anorexia nervosa: Severe food restriction, intense fear of gaining weight, and a distorted body image.
• Bulimia nervosa: Repeated cycles of binge eating followed by purging or other behaviors to prevent weight gain.
• Binge-eating disorder: Repeated episodes of eating large amounts of food with a feeling of loss of control, without purging.
• Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID): Extreme picky eating or avoidance of food not driven by body-image concerns, sometimes seen in young children.
• Warning signs: Skipping meals, preoccupation with weight or calories, secretive eating, frequent trips to the restroom after meals, excessive exercise, and rapid weight change.
• The teacher's role: Share concerns privately with the school counselor or nurse, who can involve the family. Avoid comments about students' body size, and promote a healthy body image. Help students recognize that media images are often edited and that unhealthy weight-loss plans are harmful.

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Coping with Unhealthy Behaviors in the Family

Children may live with a family member's alcoholism or drug use, domestic violence, neglect, anxiety, divorce, or the death of a loved one. Teachers can help them by:

• teaching coping strategies: talking to a trusted adult, naming feelings, deep breathing, journaling, and staying involved in healthy activities;
• referring students to the school counselor, and to support groups such as Alateen for young people affected by someone else's drinking;
• keeping classroom routines predictable and supportive, an important trauma-informed practice; and
• remembering that suspected abuse or neglect must be reported, as described in the safety section.

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Consumer Health, Health Information, and Media Influences

• Health care professionals: Pediatricians, school nurses, dentists, optometrists, pharmacists, and counselors. Students learn when and how to seek their help and the value of regular checkups and screenings, such as vision, hearing, and dental exams, for early detection of problems.
• Warning signs of illness: Persistent fever, unusual tiredness, sudden changes in vision or hearing, and pain that does not go away should be reported to a parent or the school nurse.
• Medicines and supplements: Over-the-counter and prescription medicines must be used only as directed by an adult and the label. Herbal supplements are not tested and approved like prescription medicines and can be harmful.
• Evaluating health information: Reliable sources include health professionals and government or university health websites (.gov and .edu). Students learn to question claims that promise quick results.
• Advertising techniques: Bandwagon ("everyone is buying it"), testimonials and celebrity endorsements, and "glittering generalities" (vague, positive words) are designed to persuade, not to inform.
• Media and technology: Screen time, food advertising, and idealized body images influence health choices. Digital citizenship includes protecting personal information and responding appropriately to online bullying.

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The Texas Health Education TEKS

The health TEKS adopted in 2020 organize kindergarten through Grade 3 into five strands: physical health and hygiene; mental health and wellness; healthy eating and physical activity; injury and violence prevention and safety; and alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs. Beginning in Grade 4, a sixth strand, reproductive and sexual health, is added. Skills repeated across strands include decision making, problem solving, goal setting, maintaining healthy relationships, seeking help, and recognizing influences on health. Health instruction connects naturally to science (body systems), physical education (fitness), social studies (community health), and ELAR (analyzing advertisements).