How to Apply Mental Health Knowledge: A Jack Talk Follow-Up

Before you teach, we recommend you review our supporting resources:

Mental Health 101

Safer Language

Classroom Discussion Guide

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Please note that this lesson is designed to accompany the Jack Talk: How to Apply Mental Health Knowledge module. Please visit Book a Modular Jack Talk to book your Jack Talk

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In this lesson, students will review key terms and concepts from the Jack Talk: How to Apply Mental Health Knowledge module. They will then discuss and practise the steps for developing effective inquiry questions. Building on their understanding of mental illnesses and addictions introduced in the Jack Talk, students will create their own inquiry questions focused on a specific mental illness or addiction.

The lesson includes detailed materials to support the initial stage of inquiry, known as Launching, by guiding students through the process of formulating inquiry questions. Additionally, an Extension Activity is provided for students who are more advanced in the inquiry process and ready to move on to subsequent stages.

We recommend you review the following resource created by our friends at OPHEA, Understanding Inquiry in Health and Physical Education | Ophea.net. Here, they outline the three stages to inquiry: Launching, Facilitating, and Making Sense Of.

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Your students will be able to:

• understand the question formulation technique (QFT)
• distinguish between effective and ineffective inquiry questions
• formulate effective inquiry questions

Slide Deck

edHUB Post 1.2 Jack Talk Slide Deck ⤓

Suggested Handouts

Grade 11 Student Handout - Inquiry Notes ⤓

Student Activity: Improving Questions ⤓

Grade 11 Post Jack Talk Self Assessment ⤓

Grade 11 Health Assessment: Formulating Questions ⤓

Grade 11 Health Assessment: Extension Activity ⤓

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Additional Materials

• Teacher computer, projector

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Part 1: Minds On (5–10 minutes)

Part 2: Action Tasks (40–50 minutes)

Part 3: Consolidation (5–10 minutes)

Part 4: Extension Activity (5–10 minutes)

Note: All parts of the lesson procedure can be found in the slide deck provided.

edHUB Post 1.2 Jack Talk Slide Deck ⤓

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Slide 2: Land Acknowledgement

In the slide deck, we have included Jack.org’s land acknowledgement. We encourage you to write your own, acknowledging the Nations, communities, territories and treaties upon which you live and work, and your calls to action for reconciliation / Self Pledge.

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Here are some resources to support you:

• Why Acknowledge?
• Territory Acknowledgement - Native-Land.ca.  

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Slide 3: Mental Health Supports

Inform students that today’s lesson will focus on how to apply mental health strategies. 

• Encourage students to reflect on their current mental health.
• Remind them to check in with themselves throughout the lesson. 
• Point out the mental health support available at your school/space.
• Discuss any policies/procedures specific to your school.
  • For example, if students prefer not to interrupt or draw attention when they need to take a break from the topic, they can visit the Guidance Office. There, staff can notify you of their whereabouts and confirm their safety.

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Part 1: Introduction (5-10 minutes)

Review:

What is the meaning of the mental health spectrum?

• Possible student response: “Mental health isn’t black or white; it’s not as though we’re either totally healthy or completely unhealthy at all times. Our mental health lies on a spectrum, which means how we’re feeling can fluctuate up and down.”

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What are the different points along the mental health spectrum? What do they mean?

• Possible student responses:
  • “Healthy means our thoughts, feelings, behaviours are not really affected (or minimally affected) by day to day challenges in life; you feel good overall.” 
  • “Stress means everyday challenges are impacting our thoughts, feelings, behaviours.”
  • “Struggling means that signs/symptoms are intense, long-lasting, and/or have a big impact on your day-to-day life.” 
  • “Crisis means there is risk of harm to self or others.” 

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Teacher prompt: We can also view our physical health as existing on a spectrum. For example, we might handle minor issues, like a headache, with self-care. However, more severe or urgent conditions, such as a debilitating migraine, necessitate professional help. The same applies to our mental health. While we may manage everyday stress with self-care strategies, more serious issues, such as persistent, overwhelming stress, may require external support. Both physical and mental health exist on a spectrum, yet many people perceive mental health in a more binary way, as if it were simply either “good” or “bad.”

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What is the meaning of the term mental illness?

• Possible student response: “Mental illnesses are clusters of symptoms that impact our lives”; “These symptoms are specifically irregular patterns in our thoughts, feelings, and behaviours, and these patterns can impact how our mental health may fluctuate.”

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There are different groups of mental illnesses. Which ones can you recall from the Jack Talk?

• Possible student response: “In the Jack Talk we learned about eating disorders, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, substance use disorder, psychotic disorders”

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Teacher prompt: Just as mental health exists on a spectrum, so does mental illness. It can vary in severity, with some individuals experiencing more intense and disruptive symptoms than others. A person with a severe mental illness might face challenges that are more persistent and impactful on their daily life compared to someone with a milder condition.

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What are the social and structural determinants of mental health? What examples can you recall of each?

• Individual environment - lack of access to health services, stressful home environment (family dysfunction, neglect, abuse), experiencing trauma, loss of a loved one, social isolation or loneliness 
• Culture - internalised/external stigma, negative beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours
• Society and structure - homo/bi/transphobia, racism, gender-based discrimination, Islamophobia, ableism (discrimination towards those with a disability)‍
• Biology and genetics - family genetics, misuse of drugs or alcohol, physical trauma/brain injury, chemical imbalances

Objectives:

Explain to your students the objectives of today’s class:

• discuss the steps involved in developing inquiry questions
• practise the process of developing inquiry questions together with an example
• explore potential topics and questions for their own inquiry project

‍Teacher prompt: What do you already know about inquiry questions?Note that student knowledge and experience with inquiry may vary widely. As such, you may wish to review OPHEA’s Educator Entry Points into Inquiry-Based Learning | Ophea.net.

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Part 2: Action Tasks (45–55 minutes)

The Inquiry Process: Question Development 

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Slide 6: Inquiry

Review the meaning of the term inquiry and what it means to inquire.

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Slide 7: The Inquiry Process

Prompt:

The inquiry process involves several stages. Today, we are just focusing on the first stage: formulating questions.

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Slide 8: The Inquiry Process: Formulating Questions

Prompt:

Formulating effective inquiry questions takes several steps. We are going to walk through them together today by looking at an example and giving you a chance to practise improving questions. 

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Slides 9-10: Clarify Your Topic or Goal

Clarify:

This is just an example you will be working through together as a class, not an assignment (That’s to come! Students will be selecting a topic related to mental health and formulating their own inquiry questions).

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Prompt:

Let’s say you were interested in why young people in Canada are not very active and how this affects their health. To guide your research, you need to start by asking meaningful questions. 

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Slides 11-13: Brainstorming Session

Walk your students through the image on the slide. 

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Prompt: In order to get a better understanding of the topic, we want to look at the causes, effects, and potential solutions. Let’s add some ideas to the subtopics here.

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Example Questions to Stimulate Thinking:

• What are some reasons young people might not be physically active?
• How might low physical activity levels impact a person’s health? 
• How might low physical activity levels impact the community?

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Prompt: What other questions come to mind when you see this topic?

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Slides 14-21: Question Development

Review the sample topics and questions with your students. Encourage them to think about what else they would need to know to get a better understanding of the topic (e.g. causes, effects, potential solutions).

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Slide 14: Step 3: Question Development

Prompt:

Step 3 is where you move from just thinking about a topic to asking questions about it. What would you like to know more about?

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Slide 15: Practice Topic: Low physical activity of young people in Canada

Clarify:

Students don’t need to answer these questions at this stage. If this were their chosen topic and you planned to have them complete a full inquiry assignment, they would need to research the answers after refining their questions. For now, the focus is on generating a list of potential questions to guide future research.

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Prompt: 

What is another question we could ask to learn more about this topic?

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Slide 16: Criteria for Effective Questions

Prompt: 

What makes the second question better than the first? What criteria for effective questions does it meet?

• Possible student answer: There could be a lot of reasons why young people aren’t exercising. The improved question is clear and specific; it would help you to focus your research on the most significant reasons only. It also specifies that you will be focusing on exercise on a regular basis as opposed to just exercising once in a while.

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Slide 17: Examples

Prompt: 

Ask students how the examples do or do not meet the criteria for effective inquiry questions.

• Open-ended nature
• Clarity and specificity
• Complexity and depth
• Exploratory

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Activity: Improving Questions (10-15 minutes)

Student Activity: Improving Questions ⤓

You might consider pausing here to give your students a chance to practise transforming closed questions into open-ended ones.

Optional: Have students draft closed questions and then exchange them with a classmate to work on refining and improving the questions.

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Slides 22-23: Step 4: Reflect and Revise

Prompt:

Highlight the importance of taking a moment to reflect on the questions they’ve crafted. Encourage them to consider whether their questions will foster a deeper understanding of the topic or if they remain superficial. Are the questions specific and clear?

Remind them that reflecting on and revising questions is a key part of the inquiry process and serves as evidence of their critical thinking and learning progress.

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Slides 24-25: Step 5: Peer Review

Prompt:

You will share your questions with peers and provide feedback. You will be provided with some prompts to support your feedback.

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Slides 26-27: Step 6: Refine Questions Based on Peer Review

Prompt:

Example of a policy - Daily Physical Activity (DPA) requirements in Ontario

‍Daily Physical Activity in Ontario

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Example of a program - PALS (Playground Activity Leaders in Schools) program in Niagara Region

‍Playground Activity Leaders in Schools (PALS) - Niagara Region, Ontario

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Prompt:

You will be given time to do peer review after you have selected your topic and developed your questions. 

You don’t have to accept peer suggestions, but they might help you to think more deeply about how you could focus your research.

For now, just know that you’ll have support with developing good questions. 

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Slides 28-32: Final Guiding Questions: Example

Prompt:

After following all of these steps, we might end up with final guiding questions that look like this: (next slides)

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1. Causes
   • What are the most significant barriers preventing young people in Canada from engaging in regular physical activity?
   • How do school policies and programs influence physical activity levels among young people in Canada?
2. Consequences
   • What are the long-term health impacts of low physical activity levels among Canadian youth?
   • How does low physical activity affect the mental health and academic performance of young people?
3. Solutions
   • What initiatives have been effective in increasing physical activity levels among young people in Canada?
   • How can communities create environments that encourage physical activity among youth?

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Activity: Exploring Mental Health: Causes, Manifestations, and Effects 

In this inquiry-based task, your students will build upon the introduction to mental illnesses and addictions presented in the Jack Talk by selecting a specific mental illness or addiction to explore further. 

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They will follow the Question Formulation Technique (QFT) to develop several inquiry questions that could be used to guide research and on the topic. 

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This time for completion and specific requirements of this task can be adapted to the needs of your students.

Grade 11 Health Assessment: Formulating Questions ⤓

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Part 3: Consolidation  (5–10 minutes)

Ask your students to reflect upon their learning using the self-assessment tool:

Grade 11 Post Jack Talk Self Assessment ⤓

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Extension Activity 

Grade 11 Health Assessment: Extension Activity ⤓

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You may want to offer students the chance to continue their inquiry process by seeking answers to their completed questions, depending on their readiness and your course requirements.

Check out Understanding Inquiry in Health and Physical Education | Ophea.net for more information on Inquiry-Based Learning in Health and Physical Education.

Ontario

Healthy Active Living Education, Grade 11 (PPL3O)

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Specific Expectations

C1.4 demonstrate an understanding of a variety of mental illnesses and addictions (e.g., eating disorders; major depression; anxiety disorders; psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia; obsessive compulsive disorder [OCD]; bipolar disorder; tobacco, alcohol, drug, gambling, gaming, or Internet addictions), their causes and manifestations, and their effects on personal health and wellbeing (e.g., effects of stigmatization, underachievement at school, strain on social relationships, loss of employment, increased risk of physical injury or illness)

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Personal Skills (PS)*

1.1 use self-awareness and self-monitoring skills to help them understand their strengths and needs, recognize sources of stress, take responsibility for their actions, and monitor their own progress as they participate in physical activities, develop movement competence, and acquire knowledge and skills related to healthy living

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1.2 use adaptive, management, and coping skills to help them respond to the various challenges they encounter as they participate in physical activities, develop movement competence, and acquire knowledge and skills related to healthy living

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Interpersonal Skills (IS)*

1.3 communicate effectively, using verbal or non-verbal means, as appropriate, and interpret information accurately as they participate in physical activities, develop movement competence, and acquire knowledge and skills related to healthy living

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1.4 apply relationship and social skills as they participate in physical activities, develop movement competence, and acquire knowledge and skills related to healthy living to help them interact positively with others, build healthy relationships, and become effective group or team members

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Critical and Creative Thinking (CT)*

1.5 use a range of critical and creative thinking skills and processes to assist them in making connections, planning and setting goals, analysing and solving problems, making decisions, and evaluating their choices in connection with learning in health and physical education

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