GAIL WHITE If you want to teach a kid, get a kid to teach

How do you convince a classroom of fourth-graders that smoking is bad for them?
A lesson from the teacher would be "just another lesson."
A talk from a parent would be "just another talk."
But fourth-graders might listen to a group of "cool" eighth-graders.
Six Volney Rogers Junior High School pupils, under the direction of their history teacher, Penny Wells, have developed a six-day program to teach fourth-graders about the dangers of smoking.
They presented their program to fourth-graders in Mary Ann Whiteleather's class at Kirkmere Elementary School.
Excitement
Walking into the classroom on the fifth day of the presentation, I see fourth-graders sitting at their desks in subdued excitement.
As the eighth-graders enter the room, the excitement heightens.
"Did you get a haircut?" asks one fourth-grade girl to Michael Lord as he passes out papers to begin the lesson.
"Yes," he responds, and the two engage in a short conversation about the program.
Michael walks to the next set of desks with a smile on his face. He feels good about helping his young friend.
The young girl is wearing a smile too. The "cool" older boy with the new haircut took the time to talk with her.
It is Ashley Koval's day to present to the class. The topic is "Ways To Say No."
The fourth-graders were asked to bring in a tobacco ad for the lesson.
Kayla Griffin is walking around the room with a bag of candy for all those who fulfilled that assignment.
"Wait, did you bring in an ad?" Kayla asks a fourth-grader who is reaching into the bag.
"No," the fourth-grader says, hanging his head.
"No candy," Kayla responds firmly.
She is as resolute in upholding the requirements of the program as she is about not smoking.
"Yesterday we talked about the pressures to smoke and the propaganda out there to make you want to smoke," says Ashley, holding up an ad. "The ads don't tell you everything."
Group discussions
In small groups, the class discusses their ads.
"They use pretty people," says Monica Miller. Pointing to an ad, she asks the pupils, "If she really smokes, would her teeth be so white?"
The fourth-graders shake their heads with disdain.
Across the room, Steve Bevan, holding up an ad with "pretty people," tells his group, "It makes it [smoking] look better than it is."
One insightful fourth-grader shares his theory that the cigarette companies and the makeup companies work together.
"One makes you ugly and one makes you pretty," he reasons.
Terra Koontz directs her group of pupils to the surgeon general's warning on the ads.
"Which stands out more?" she asks.
As the pupils read the various warnings, they find themselves asking why anyone would smoke.
After analyzing the ads, Ashley directs a role-playing session with the pupils on how to say no.
She tempts and taunts pupils to smoke.
All stand their ground and tell her no.
"But it's cool," Ashley says to one girl.
The fourth-grader stands up and tells Ashley, "I am cool without smoking."
As the lesson comes to an end, Michael jumps up to give the pupils one last instruction.
"Go to the last page of your workbook," he directs. "Read it. Memorize it."
The class reads, "Cigarettes are the only legal product that when used as directed, cause death."
When these six junior high pupils leave, Whiteleather will resume teaching her class math and reading.
But when it comes to matters of peer pressure, there is no better teacher than a peer role model.
gwhite@vindy.com