Am I Normal ? Teens and Emotional Health

Reviews

Highly Recommended   Human Relations Media has provided teens with yet another great learning opportunity. This DVD opens with a Menu including play, chapter selection and about HRM. The chapter selection is important because a teacher could just choose to play the segment relevant to the current issue being experienced by an individual student or use the entire video with an entire class. Choosing Play brings you to students explaining their concerns about high school. Authority is provided by Dr. Carrie King, Clinical Psychologist who explains that teens experience great hormonal changes causing extreme emotions and great societal pressures. Chapters include Anxiety and Stress narrated by student Hannah, Sadness and Depression featuring Annie, Sadness and Depression II featuring Alex and Anger and Rage featuring Emory. Some of their difficulties include problems with peers, pressure to perform at school, taking on too many activities, lack of friends and arguments with parents. There is a nice mix of races and genders amongst the teens featured. Healthy Techniques is the last chapter, outlining the typical suggestions of physical activity, journaling, a healthy diet, and speaking with a parent or other caring adult. Segments are short enough not to induce boredom and long enough to include plenty of relevant information. 

The binder and the DVD contain teaching materials. These include student activities with a pre and post test, essay quotes and research topics. Facts Sheets are found at the back of the binder about Warning Signs of Suicide, Tips for Managing Anger, Active Listening and others. It concludes with a bibliography and additional resources.

- Debra Ennen, Maple River Schools, Mapleton, MN 

Educational Media Reviews Online

Four articulate teens discuss the emotional difficulties they faced—anxiety, anger, sadness, and depression— and the steps they took to resolve their problems. After each segment, two teen hosts recap the situations, focusing on the positive measures that helped the healing process. A psychiatrist points out possible danger signs related to the issues that are raised. The film stresses the importance of communication. Viewers are reassured that emotional highs and lows are normal during the teen years and common sense advice about how to maintain emotional health is provided. While not innovative, the program would be a good addition to middle- and high-school libraries for use in health and wellness classes. 

- Barb Fecteau, Beverly High School, MA 

School Library Journal