Overcoming Obstacles
Giving and Earning Respect
Middle schoolers learn what respect means to them and their classmates with the opening exercise in a series of confidence-building lessons. Participants list people they respect and why they respect them. They generate a definition,...
Overcoming Obstacles
Perservering
Hang in there! To conclude the Goal Setting module, class members reflect on the importance of perseverance by engaging in an activity that asks them to revise a plan when faced with obstacles. They then review their stepping stone goals...
Overcoming Obstacles
Being Assertive
Passive! Aggressive! Assertive!. The activities in the fourth lesson in the Communication module teach middle schoolers the difference among these behaviors and how to develop assertive communication skills. After defining and offering...
Overcoming Obstacles
Controlling Emotions in Conflicts
"Stop! Think! and Cool Down!" Participants in the third activity in the Resolving Conflicts module learn how to pause and reflect in stressful situations rather than react. The class generates a list of strategies that could help control...
Nebraska Department of Education
Who Am I?
When people look in a mirror, they rarely see themselves as others see them. Tweens and teens can consider the significance of these disparities in a lesson that asks them to reflect on the kind of person they are and how they think...
Anti-Defamation League
Job Roles without Gender Boundaries
A instructional activity examines gender stereotypes and how they relate to career choices. Small groups look closely at job titles, identify gender bias, and brainstorm ways to add inclusivity. Individuals reflect on their interests and...
Overcoming Obstacles
Identifying Your Learning Style
How many different learning styles are there? Four? Five? Seven? Twelve? It depends on who you ask. But the point of this lesson is that people learn differently, and most have a way or ways that work best for them. To help identify...
Nebraska Department of Education
Communication Skills
It's not just what you say but how you say it! That's the take-away from a activity about verbal and non-verbal communication. An engaging activity has middle schoolers demonstrating how tone of voice and body language can totally...
Nebraska Department of Education
How Do You Define “Friend?”
Shared values are often the keystone in friendships. Class pairs use their "Values" handout from a previous lesson and interview one another to identify values they share and don't share. Then, consider how their differences contribute...
Overcoming Obstacles
Integrity
A lesson about integrity challenges scholars to define it, discuss why it's essential, and the benefits of having it. Class members brainstorm ways to show integrity at home, at school, and in the community. Pupils participate...
Overcoming Obstacles
Working In Teams
Working in teams can be a challenge but also offer many rewards. Developing the skills necessary to work effectively in teams is the focus of the third lesson plan in the Getting Started Module designed for middle schoolers. Participants...
Overcoming Obstacles
Identifying Emotions in Conflicts
The takeaway from the second lesson in the Resolving Conflicts module is that "conflict is like an iceberg" in that we only see a small portion of what's involved in conflicts. Participants learn to identify the many unseen feelings that...
GLSEN, Inc.
Ready, Set, Respect!
Instill the importance of respect in your classroom with a comprehensive unit that focuses on positive behavior in and outside of school. Three parts, each separated into four grade-specific lessons, cover bullying, bias, name-calling,...
Curated OER
Tribal (or Ethnic) Self Portrait
Students create self-portraits in which they represent themselves as a member of a tribe.
Curated OER
Understanding Self-Esteem
Students describe self-esteem and what it means to them. In this health related lesson plan, students work through 4 exercises to become more aware of what self-esteem means to them and others in the classroom. The lesson plan ends with...
Curated OER
Metaphoric Self Portrait
Students create 3D self-portraits using various sculpture materials that convey different meanings and emotions.
Curated OER
Expressive Self Portrait Montage
Young scholars create self portraits similar to the Andy Warhol Marilyn Monroe portraits using digital images.
California Department of Education
Who Am I?
Get in touch with your sense of self! The fifth and final lesson in a series of college and career lessons for fifth graders reinforces the relationship between interests and career choices. Pupils play a scenario-driven game, then dig...
New York City Department of Education
Myself and Others
Self reflection is an important skill to reinforce in our children, and it's especially helpful to help them realize who they are in the context of their environment. A collection of lessons about self image and community encourage...
California Department of Education
How to Succeed in Life
Is it possible that six simple traits lead to a happy, successful life? Part four of a six-part series of college and career readiness lessons examines the effects of character in determining success. Working groups discuss...
Idaho Coalition
The Hunger Games: Gender Empowerment
The odds are in your favor that your pupils will love this lesson that uses The Hunger Games to launch a study of gender empowerment, as well as the influence of social constructs of gender. Groups discuss how Katniss Everdeen and Peeta...
Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment
Feelings and Emotions
Eighth graders express their emotions with a set of activities about self reflection and feelings. With a set of emotion cards and a worksheet that details negative thought patterns, the resource empowers young learners to discover and...
Facebook
Different Perspectives
What do people's social media profiles say about them? Explore diverse perspectives and digital citizenship in an activity designed with self-identity in mind. Pupils reflect on their own profiles, then collaborate to examine...
Tean Truth
Leaders Are, Can, and Think
A great way to begin a discussion of leadership is to have learners reflect on their own experiences with leadership. A one-page activity asks individuals to list what they believe are the top characteristics, qualities, and beliefs of...