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Sleep, Sleep Disorders, and Biological Rhythms
Photocopies
Pre-lesson
Master 0.1, Sleep Diary (Make 1 copy per student.)
Master 0.2, Recording Bedtimes and Wake Times
(Make 1 copy per student.)
Master 0.3, Sleepiness Scale (Make 1 copy per student.)
Master 0.4, Calculating Average Bedtime and Wake Time
(Make 1 copy per student.)
Materials
Pre-lesson
For each student: calculator (for use on last day of activity)
Preparation
Plan to have calculators available for students, or ask them to bring their
own, for the last day (day 10, the second Monday) of this activity. Consider
copying Masters 0.1 and 0.3 back-to-back so that students have just one
piece of paper to keep track of.
Plan when you will teach the lessons. Students will need 10 days to complete
this pre-lesson activity before beginning Lesson 1. We recommend
that students begin their sleep diary on a Friday. This schedule allows students
to collect data about their sleep/wake cycles and daily rhythms over
two weekends and one full weekday period before you begin the module
on a Monday. On the Friday after students begin completing their sleep
diaries, remind them that they will need to bring their diaries to class on
Monday to begin Lesson 1.
Students will need their completed sleep diary and the sleepiness scale in
subsequent lessons.
Procedure
1. Inform the class that students will be collecting data about their
own sleep habits over the next 10 days. Explain that sleep medicine
specialists use similar information to provide insight into a
patient’s sleep patterns.
The sleep diary in this activity is simplified and deals only with
sleep/wake times and the consumption of caffeine-containing beverages.
From more extensive sleep diaries, scientists and doctors who
study sleep can also learn about how environmental factors, emo-
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