Mind Over Matter - Teacher's Guide

Marijuana Activity One

Objectives
The student will understand the effects of marijuana on brain structures which control the five senses, emotions, memory, and judgment.

The student will use knowledge of brain-behavior relationships to determine the possible effects of marijuana on the ability to perform certain tasks and occupations.

Activity
Review the way in which marijuana use affects brain regions and structures that control the five senses, heart rate, emotions, memory, and judgment. Students then randomly select (for example, draw from a hat) an occupation and are asked to act-out, in front of the class, how marijuana use might specifically affect the performance of a person in that occupation. Examples of occupations can include: an airline pilot, a professional basketball player, a doctor, a defense attorney, a truck driver, a construction worker, a waiter/waitress, a politician, etc. Students will identify the brain regions and structures affected by marijuana use, and describe the link between these structures and behavior.