Lesson Plan: Teen Depression: A Hidden Agenda
II. While Reading Tasks
Vocabulary
Synonyms
- depression |diˈpreSHən| noun-severe despondency and dejection, typically felt over a period of time and accompanied by feelings of hopelessness and inadequacy. [Ans. b-unhappiness]
- Prozac |ˈprōˌzak| noun- a synthetic compound that inhibits the uptake of serotonin in the brain and is taken to treat depression.[Ans. a-medicine]
- glimpse |glimps| noun a momentary or partial view: she caught a glimpse of the ocean | a glimpse into the world of the wealthy. [Ans. c-a partial view]
- risk |risk| noun- a situation involving exposure to danger: flouting the law was too much of a risk | all outdoor activities carry an element of risk. [Ans. b-danger]
- adolescents |ˌadlˈesənt| noun- a young boy or girl (in the process of developing from a child into an adult.) [Ans. a-young persons]
- impersonal |imˈpərsənl| adjective-not influenced by, showing, or involving personal feelings: the impersonal march of progress. [Ans.b-unemotional]
- stigma |ˈstigmə| ( pl. stigmas or esp. in sense 2 stigmata |stigˈmätə, ˈstigmətə| ) noun- a mark of disgrace associated with a particular circumstance, quality, or person: the stigma of mental disorder | to be a nonreader carries a social stigma. [Ans. c-disgrace]
- anonymity ˌ/anəˈnimitē/ noun-the condition of being anonymous. most people who agreed to talk requested anonymity. [Ans. b-unknown]
- pseudonyms |ˈso͞odn-im| noun a fictitious name, esp. one used by an author. [Ans.b-false name]
- perspective |pərˈspektiv| noun- particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of view: most guidebook history is written from the editor’s perspective. [Ans. a-point of view]
Source: New Oxford American Dictionary
Reading Comprehension
Fill-ins
- Most of our closest friends didn’t know that we struggled with depression. [Ans. c-struggled]
- In the United States, for people between the ages of 10 and 24, suicide is the third leading cause of death. [Ans.a-people]
- As editors at our high school newspaper, we decided to fight against the stigma. [Ans.c-fight]
- We took a risk sharing our experiences with depression. [Ans. c-depression]
- We knew that discussing mental health in this way would be edgy. [Ans. a-edgy]
- Our school has a very tolerant atmosphere. [Ans. c-tolerant]
- The feeling of being alone is closely linked to depression. [Ans.b-linked]
- Depression does not indicate mental weakness. [Ans.a-indicate]
- It is a disorder, often a flaw of biology, not one of character. [Ans. b-flaw]
- By interviewing these teenagers for our newspaper, we tried to start small in the fight against stigma. [Ans. a- small]
Grammar Focus
Structure and Usage
I. 2- taken
II. 1-took
III. 1-found
IV. Listening Activity
True /False/NA-Statements
- T- According to professor Sapolsky, depression is crippling and pervasive.
- F- Professor Sapolsky stated that it is the worst disease you can get.
- NA-Depression is more evident among the poor.
- F- It is a common disease.
- T- Professor Sapolsky stated that about 15% of the people in the room (in the video) will have a major depression at some point.
- F- According to statistics depression is world wide.
- T-World health organizations state that depression is the number 4 cause of disability.
- F- The two sciences related to depression are biology and psychology.
- T- The three types of depression mentioned by professor Sapolsky were every day depression, a reactive depression, and a major depression.
- NA-One cure for depression is taking a trip.