What your child is learning
In “Don’t Fall for the Hype!” students start with a whole-class This or That game, learn what nicotine is, sort myths from facts, explore how cravings can make quitting hard, estimate a yearly vaping cost with five team sliders and compare it with a hypothetical spending example and review the 3 C’s of decision-making.
Facts worth talking about
- Vapes produce an aerosol, not plain water vapor. It can contain nicotine and other harmful substances.
- Nicotine is addictive and can harm parts of a young person’s developing brain involved in learning, attention, mood and impulse control.
- A sweet flavor does not make a nicotine product safe. Nicotine pouches can also lead to addiction.
- In the 2024 U.S. National Youth Tobacco Survey, 3.5% of middle-school students reported vaping in the past 30 days. That means 96.5% did not vape. The 5.4% figure for any tobacco use includes additional products and is a different measure. This is national data, not a Delta County rate.
Start a conversation, not an interrogation
- Does seeing something online mean most people do it?
- How would you respond if someone said, “It’s no big deal”?
- Who could you go to if you felt pressured or worried about a friend?
Try it together: practice a way out
Pretend someone offers a vape. Clarify: What are they asking you to do? Consider: What are your choices? Choose: Practice a short response and an exit. “No thanks. Let’s get back to class” is one example.
Talk about the money
Choose a pretend daily amount and calculate one week, 30 days and a year. At $10 a day, the totals are $70, $300 and $3,650. Ask what your child would rather save for. This is a math example, not an estimate of what every person spends.
Help close to home
Public Health, Delta & Menominee Counties offers youth vaping education and cessation support. Contact the Escanaba office at 906-786-4111. Michigan’s My Life, My Quit offers free, confidential coaching; text START MY QUIT to 36072. DeltaHelp.org/tobacco brings local quit-support resources together.
If your child already uses nicotine
Thank them for telling you. Keep the conversation calm and make a plan to seek support. A healthcare professional or school nurse can help connect your child to appropriate care. Smokefree Teen offers quit-vaping tools. You can also browse local quit-support resources.
Questions about the lesson? Contact pbradway@glrc.org.