Alcohol Lesson Plan

Learning outcomes:
Students will have an understanding of standard drink sizes
Students will understand what a standard drink means
Students will be able to read a label of an alcohol bottle and determine/pour a
standard drink size
Students will know what alcohol volume means and how that impacts a serving size

I will need:
There are 6 different strengths (alcohol volumes) we will be looking at for activity one, so I
need 12 identical glasses. Need cordial. Glasses for students to use in activity two.
Measuring cups, able to measure up to 425mL.

12 identical glasses
cordial (maybe 3 jugs for all classes) red or blue only one colour
enough glasses for students maybe 16 for each class? Could get plastic
cups just needs to be able to hold 425mL
8 measuring cups, able to measure up to 425mL
a syringe to measure the 12mL in each drink.

Discussion (5-10 minutes)

Discussing the topic of alcohol
What is alcohol?
a colourless volatile flammable liquid which is the intoxicating constituent of
wine, beer, spirits, and other drinks, and is also used as an industrial solvent
and as fuel.
What does it do?
Alcohol is a depressant; it slows the function of the central nervous system
and alters a person's perception, emotion, movement; vision and hearing.
Small amounts can make a person feel more relaxed or less anxious. Bigger
amounts lead to intoxication by causing greater changes in the brain.
How does it make you feel when you consume it?
youre less sensitive to pain, and you dont hear, see or taste as well. The
sedative effect also applies to your feelings and emotions. In addition alcohol
depresses brain functions, reducing your ability to judge situations, yourself
and others accurately. Thats why its often said that alcohol makes you lose
your inhibitions. Youll do things when under the influence that you wouldnt
normally do. This effect has its advantages. You make contact with people
more easily, feel more sure of yourself, are less bothered by guilt or shame,
worry less, get to sleep more easily
Why does drinking too much effect the way you behave?

What is a standard drink?

 A standard drink is a unit of measurement. In the same way one metre measures a
particular distance travelled, one standard drink measures a particular amount of
alcohol consumed.

A standard drink by Australian standards contains 12.5mL of pure alcohol

Drink Alcohol Volume (alc. vol) Standard Drink (mL)

Low strength beer 2.7% 425mL
Mid strength beer 3.5% 320mL
Full strength beer 4.8% 255mL
White wine 11.5% 100mL
Champagne 12% 100mL
Red wine 13% 100mL
Spirits 40% 30mL
Ready-to-drink beverage 5% 250mL

Vodka

Activity One (25 mins)

Looking at what the different percentages of alcohol looks like in drinks using cordial.
Looking at what a standard drink looks like
Go through the same amount of water and adjust the amount of cordial
Then go through a standard drink with the amount of alcohol and changing the
amount of water to reflect the different drinks.

Have students come up to measure and pour

Discuss the differences in colour of the cordial and what that might mean.

Standard glass holds 250mL or a beer glass 568mL

8 250mL drinks add correct amount of alcohol.

Drink total water alcohol

Low strength beer 250mL 243.25mL 6.75mL
mid strength beer 250mL 241.25mL 8.75mL
full strength beer 250mL 238mL 12mL
wine/champagne 250mL 220mL 30mL
spirits 250mL 150mL 100mL
ready-to-drink beverage 250mL 237.5mL 12.5mL

8 drinks with 12.5mL of alcohol add correct amount of water to make each a
standard drink.

Drink total water alcohol

 Low strength beer 425mL 412.5mL 12.5mL
mid strength beer 320mL 307.5mL 12.5mL
full strength beer 255mL 242.5mL 12.5mL
wine/champagne 100mL 87.5mL 12.5mL
spirits 30mL 17.5mL 12.5mL
ready-to-drink beverage 250mL 237.5mL 12.5mL

Activity Two (15 mins)

Reading the labels on the bottles of alcohol and learning what a standard drink looks
like with each bottle, pouring the water out into glasses.
Group students into small groups and give each group a number of alcohol bottles
(filled with water).
Get students to observe and read the label and to then pour a standard drink for
each bottle.

How are standard drinks calculated?

The formula for calculating standard drinks is:
Volume of Container in Litres multiplied by the percentage of alcohol volume
multiplied by 0.789, equals the number of standard drinks
0.789 is the specific gravity of ethyl alcohol

For example one stubbie of 375ml of full strength beer 5% alcohol by volume:
0.375 multiplied by 5 multiplied by 0.789 equals 1.5 standard drinks
0.375 X 5 X 0.789 = 1.5 standard drinks

mL = 1(standard drink) alc. Vol (%) 0.789

Write down results and then share as a class (5-10 mins) (Tuesday skip this on
Wednesday)

Reflection (5-10 mins)

Discuss what they have learnt and write a bit in their journal if time permits.