Resource Directory
Marijuana Awareness & Prevention Toolkit Exclusive Video
Educator Resource
In June 2018, Ralph Cantor presented to a group of high school students about marijuana/cannabis. This video serves as a useful resource for educators working with youth and is recommended viewing before implementing the Marijuana Awareness & Prevention Toolkit activities. This video is not intended to be shown directly to students, since the interactive materials developed and posted on this website will address many of the main points covered in the video. Please note, this video is 144 minutes long, so you may want to break it up in more than one sitting. In the future, we will be breaking this video up by specific topics and lessons to accompany them. Enjoy!
Cannabis & Mental Health
- “A NIGHT IN JAIL: A story about drugs and mental illness, inspired by true events” Heidi Swan
- As humans, we respond to storytelling because it creates an emotional connection that makes information memorable. A Night In Jail is the first Young Adult fictional story illustrating the mental health consequences of youth THC use. This gritty cautionary tale illustrates the data about psychosis and schizophrenia. It is inspired by the true life of K. Anderson, a formerly mentally ill homeless drug addict who went to jail eighteen times. Caution: swearing, some violence and discussions about drug use.
Addiction
- Videos
- “How Addiction Changes Your Brain” CNN
- “Addiction 101 | Raj Mehta | TEDxUofM” TEDxTalks
- “Understanding Addiction as a Disease” Wait21
- “Reward Pathway in the Brain” KhanAcademyMedicine
- “Tolerance and Withdrawal” KhanAcademyMedicine
- “The mysterious workings of the adolescent brain” TED Global
- Websites
- “The Science of Drug Abuse and Addiction: The Basics” (NIDA/NIH)
- “The Science Behind Drug Abuse For Teachers” NIDA for Teens
- “Drugs, Brains, and Behavior: The Science of Addiction” (NIDA/NIH)
- “Stress and Drug Abuse: The Brain Connection"
- “Teen Drug Use” Partnership for Drug-Free Kids
- “The Science Behind Drug Addiction” Coalition Against Drug Abuse
- “The Science of Addiction” Coalition Against Drug Abuse
- Addiction is a Disease
- “Adolescents Brains are Works in Progress” PBS
- "New insights into the adolescent brain" Medical X-Press
- PDF’s
- “Preventing Drug Use among Children and Adolescents” (NIDA/NIH)
- “Using Drugs to Deal with Stress and Trauma” The National Child Traumatic Stress Network
Resource 1
Resource 2 - Lesson Plans
- “Lesson Plans and Printables” Scholastic
Parents/Guardians
Agencies
Brain Science
- “Inside the Teenage Brain” PBS
- “Inside the Teenage Brain Program” PBS
- Quick Links
- Map of the Human Brain
- “Addiction and Brain Circuits” Brainfacts.org
- In-Depth Resources
- “The Brain: Our Sense of Self” NIH
Major Structures and Functions of the Brain - Neuroanatomy and Physiology of the "Brain Reward System" in Substance Abuse
- “The Pleasure Centers” The Brain from Top to Bottom. McGill University
- Neuroscience for Kids- Types of Neurons (Nerve Cells)
- Molecular Cell Biology- Overview of Neuron Structure and Function
- Khan Academy- Anatomy of a Neuron
- “The Life and Death of a Neuron” NIH
Youth Resources
- Websites
- Be Blunt: West Contra Costa Alcohol, Marijuana, and Prescription Drug Coalition
- Cannabis Decoded :County of San Mateo
- Let's Talk Cannabis: California Department of Public Health
- Let's Talk Cannabis- LA County: County of Los Angeles Public Health
- Truth (or Nah!?): San Francisco Department of Public Health