With the increase in rates of drug addiction and drug-related deaths in the United States, policymakers and leaders at the local, state and national levels have struggled to develop solutions to address this problem.

This lesson looks at the history of  drug policy in the United States and explores ways to solve the current problem by addressing the supply and demand of drugs and through harm reduction efforts like treatment and decriminalization.

Using this information, students will develop a plan to answer the question:  What are the best strategies to prevent drug addiction in the United States?

---

TEACHING ABOUT DRUG PREVENTION STRATEGIES

• Lesson Plan
• Vocabulary Preview
• Background Article Questions
• Background and Definitional Video Questions
• Note-Taking Chart
• Deliberation Activities

---

BACKGROUND ARTICLES

• Thirty years of America’ Drug War, A Chronology– PBS
  
  
• A new study shows America’s drug overdose crisis is by far the worst among wealthy countries– Vox

---