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We Will: Think about how we feel in certain situations and why we respond the way we do!

I will: I will identify emotions , describe situations that cause them, and understand how they are linked to behavior.

Lesson 1: Identifying Emotions

SELS: 1.A.E1.) Recognize and accurately label emotions/, describe the situations that cause them, and understand how they are linked to behavior.

I will: I will identify emotions , describe situations that cause them, and understand how they are linked to behavior.

We Will: Think about how we feel in certain situations and why we respond the way we do!

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Have students take three deep breaths. Say: I am so glad you’re here! Seeing your faces makes me feel so happy and excited, because I love you and I care about you! I care about your feelings, because your feelings matter. Today, we’re going to talk about feelings!

Guided Practice: Today, we’re going to look at some pictures (show slide 1) to see if we can guess how the person in the picture is feeling. Here is an example (teacher shows slide/printed card 2). How is this little girl feeling? (Allow for responses). I wonder what makes this girl feel this way. What could we imagine happened to make this girl give this face? I think this sweet girl is happy (show slide 3)! How about this one? (shows the next slide 4/printed card and allows for responses). I agree. This little boy is sad (show slide 5). I wonder what happened to make this boy feel sad. I like the way you are thinking, and I can tell you’re really great at this. I’m going to give you a really challenging one! How could this person feel (show slide 6 and allow for responses)? Hmm… this one is trickier, isn’t it? Could she be angry? Tired? Confused? Frustrated with her work? (show slides 7-9). Sometimes, feelings are very easy to spot. And sometimes, we have to be feelings detectives! You can’t tell sometimes with how a person’s face looks, so we have to ask people: How are you feeling? What made you feel that way? Take a look at this feelings chart called a mood meter! Do you see all the feelings faces on the squares? Maybe you can find a feelings face that tells the story of how you’re feeling!

We’re going to go around our circle and show our feelings colors. If there is a feelings-face in a colored square that matches your feelings right now, you call that color out. Then, you can tell us why you feel the way you do. So, if I am happy, I will say I’m feeling green, because the happy faces are in the green square. And then I’ll say “I feel happy because I got to see all your sweet faces this morning.” If I am feeling silly, or playful, or excited, I will say I’m feeling yellow and tell you why! If I feel sad or sick or lonely I might say I’m feeling blue and share why, unless it’s not comfortable for me to tell the group. If I am feeling frustrated or angry, I will say I’m feeling red. Let’s practice!

Materials: Mood Meter Printable Slides/Cards

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We will: create a treatment agreement together.

I will: think about how people in this class will treat one another and help create a treatment agreement for our class.

Lesson 2: Accurate Self-Perception

We will: create a treatment agreement together.

Direct Instruction: (Open and display treatment agreement. Either create a poster on butcher paper or be prepared to type onto the doc (be sure to make a digital copy first). A treatment agreement just explains the ways we will treat each other and our classroom environment. There are parts of this agreement from you to each other, from you to me, and from me to you. There is a part for how we will treat our physical space and then a relationship goal for our class - how we want our class to feel and look.

Guided Practice: (Either print out one for each person in your class or just allow students to share their thoughts and you write on the classroom copy alone) Let’s start with our relationship goal. What do we want our classroom to look and feel like? (Allow students to make suggestions and then put them together in a statement that includes those thoughts. An example: “We want our class to be a safe place for everyone to learn and be creative problem-solvers.”). Great. Okay, so if that’s our goal, each of the outside squares are the ways we’ll treat each other so we can meet this goal.

Let’s talk about how students will treat each other (the top-left square). We will use positive statements not negative ones, so instead of saying “don’t be mean,” we’d say something like “be kind.” Think about ways you want to treat each other in this class. Let’s share those out (the teacher records students’ thoughts on the document). Great.

Now, let’s look at the top-right square. This one's for me to fill out. These are all the ways I want to be treated by you all. I will also use only positive statements. (IMPORTANT for teachers: in this square, it can be tempting to refer back to rules, but it’s not about student compliance to a rule or standard - this is a relationship square only. Rather than writing “I want to be respected/I want students to show me respect,” think about what that would look like - something like “be honest with me, be patient with me, help me out when I need help, etc.) The teacher fills out this portion, thinking aloud during the process.

Now, let’s do the bottom-left square. This one is how you all want me to treat you. What are the positive ways you’d want me to treat you in the class? (Teacher records students’ thoughts). Awesome.

Now, let’s do the bottom-right square. What are ways you as students need to treat our environment - our classroom and our school? (Teacher records students’ thoughts).

We will put this classroom agreement on our wall. It will be our reminder of how we plan to treat one another and a reminder of our class goal.

Materials: treatment agreement

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We will: Draw ourselves doing things we love to do and think about how those strengths help us in class!

I will: Recognize that I have strengths and think about the ways I can use my strengths in this class!

Lesson 3: Recognizing Strengths

I will: Recognize that I have strengths and think about the ways I can use my strengths in this class!

We will: Draw ourselves doing things we love to do and think about how those strengths help us in class!

Direct Instruction: Come to our meeting spot and take three deep breaths. Last week, we talked about our class community.

Guided Practice: Today, we’re going to draw ourselves doing something we love! What do you love to do? Do you love to play outside, or read with a friend, or ride a bike? Do you love to play video games or with a special toy at home? Whatever it is you love to do, you do it with your own special style. When you’re done drawing, I’ll put our drawings all around the room. They will remind us that we are all different and we all matter to this class!

Independent Practice: Students spend most of their SEL time today drawing.

Closure: Now, let’s take a look at those drawings. They may not be finished yet, and that’s okay! You can finish them later if you’re adding details or finishing up. Right now, I want you to think about the strength you chose to draw. Then, I want you to think about how the same skills you use when you’re doing this thing you’re great at are skills you bring into this class every day. For example, if you’re a great soccer player - and you’re a really fast runner, maybe you can use those quickness skills to quickly start when we begin a new assignment. Maybe, if you’re a really talented artist, you could use your attention to detail that you use when you draw or paint in your writing, adding fantastic details in your writing, too. Take a small moment to turn and talk to a shoulder partner about your chosen strength and how you might think about using that skill in our class.

Materials: “I am” paper (or a blank sheet of paper) Optional: “I am” strengths picture

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We Will: learn what “assertive” means and practice using our assertive voices.

I will: define “assertive” and think about ways I can use an assertive voice when I need to.

Lesson 4: Self-Confidence

I will: define “assertive” and think about ways I can use an assertive voice when I need to.

We Will: learn what “assertive” means and practice using our assertive voices.

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Have students take three deep breaths. Say: Have you ever heard the word “assertive?” Assertive means that you are kindly but courageously honest. Have you ever had a time you wanted to tell someone something but you were afraid they’d be upset? Like, maybe your friend wants to play a game you don’t want to play, but you’re afraid to speak up because they might get angry with you? Or, have you ever responded to someone unkindly just because you disagreed? When we are courageously honest but also kind, that’s called being assertive.

Guided Practice: Let’s take a look at this assertiveness poster. We’ll read each part of being assertive, and I’ll ask you to give a thumbs up if you feel like you can do this with your friends and a thumbs down if you don’t feel like you could be assertive in a courageous and kind way:

Say no: Could you say “no” to a friend who wants you to play a game you don’t like to play at recess. (Thumbs down or thumbs up?)
Make mistakes: You can tell your friend when you have accidentally broken a crayon from her box and apologize. (Thumbs down or thumbs up?)
Change my mind: You thought you wanted to go to a friend’s house after school, but that morning, you feel overwhelmed about it and want to go home instead - Do you feel like you can tell your friend the truth and change your mind? (Thumbs up or thumbs down?)
Make my choices: It’s picture day and you have to figure out what to wear. Can you choose on your own? (Thumbs up or thumbs down?)
Ask for help: You are confused about a math problem and need some help. Can you ask a friend to explain it to you? (Thumbs up or thumbs down?)
Be different: All your friends decide to wear green on Fridays, but you don’t like green Could you wear another color without feeling left out? (Thumbs up or thumbs down?)
Express my opinions respectfully: Your friends ask you about your favorite sport. You know they all like soccer but you love baseball. Could you express your opinions in a respectful way? (Thumbs up or thumbs down?)
Dislike something: Your friends all like to talk about a YouTube channel that you don’t like at all. They ask you if you watch it and if you think it is funny. Could you respectfully tell them how you feel about the show? (Thumbs up or thumbs down?)
Your friends are all talking about a problem they’re having: two friends are fighting and they want to know your opinion about their argument. Could you think about it instead of choosing sides? (Thumbs up or thumbs down?)

Independent Practice: Each of these parts of being assertive may be easy or challenging to you. But we’re going to practice using our assertive voices this week. I want you to think of one way you could use your assertive (remember, that means courageous but kind) voice with a friend this week. When you do, let me know! I will be happy to celebrate with you!

Materials: assertiveness poster

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We will: Celebrate things we’re really great at.

I will: Think about how my strengths make me wonderful and how being responsible for myself and my actions make me dependable.

Lesson 5: Self-Efficacy

I will: Think about how my strengths make me wonderful and how being responsible for myself and my actions make me dependable.

We Will: Celebrate things we’re really great at.

Direct Instruction: Come to the meeting spot and take three deep breaths. In order to believe you can do great things in your future, we really need to celebrate all the great things you do right now. Let’s think: what are some things you do at home or at school as helpers, as scholars, and as friends? You’ll have two minutes to talk: one minute each. The person in your pair that has the shortest hair will go first. I will tell you to switch speakers after one minute. (Give the students about 2 minutes to talk about great things they do every day. About halfway through, ask the students to switch speakers. If you need to model this, do so!).

Independent Practice: Now, let’s go back to our seats. Let’s record some really great things we do every day on our I’m Really Great! Sheet. You can write school things, like “I’m really great at getting my independent work done.” Or, you can home things, like “I’m really great at feeding my pet.” You can write about great things you do every day.

Materials: I’m Really Great!

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We will: Practice getting permission before touching others or their belongings and practice accepting the answer “no.”

I will: ask for permission before touching others or their belongings.

Asking Permission!

NO Permission:

No!

I don’t want to!

Absolutely not!

No way!

Nope!

I don’t like that!

Stop!

You cannot!

Permission:

Yes!

Absolutely!

For sure!

It’s okay with me!

I’m sure!

How to ask:

Can I please? May I? Would you like to?

Lesson 6: Respect for Others

I will: ask for permission before touching others or their belongings.

We will: Practice getting permission before touching others or their belongings and practice accepting the answer “no.”

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Have students take three deep breaths. Say: today, we’re talking about a word that may be new to you. That word is permission: it means getting someone’s “okay” before doing something that involves them. I have a riddle for you: You need this before you go on a field trip. It’s signed, it’s returned. Yes! It’s a permission slip. Sometimes, we need your family’s permission at school so you can do things here, like get your picture taken or go on a bus. But did you know that you can ask for permission before you do things like touch others’ belongings or even before sharing someone else’s thoughts, ideas, or stories? In fact, asking for consent is a way to show respect. (Take a look at this poster. You can refer to it if you’d like!)

Guided Practice: For this lesson, I need two helpers (choose two helpers and find an object with which to model the lesson). Let’s imagine that this _________ (object) is _____’s (student 1’s) favorite object. And let’s imagine that _________ (student 2) wants to see it. What can _____ (student 2) say to _________ (student 1)? (Allow for responses). Yep! _______ (student 2) can say “Hey, ______ (student 1), that’s a really awesome _______ (object). Could I hold it for a moment?

Now, what options does _______ (student 1) have? Yep, she can say “yes,” “no,” or she can create conditions around it like “yes, you can see it, but please stay by my desk and give it back in 2 minutes.”

Remember: ________ (Student 1) has the right to say “no.” And that’s not something __________ (student 2) can control. It’s also something _______ (student 2) has to respect no matter what. Just like if we want to take you on a field trip but you don’t get your permission slip signed - that means we can’t take you, right? Because consent is serious.

Let’s practice! (allow the model students to practice all 3: yes, no, and conditional yes. For the “no” answer, have student 2 practice saying “okay” and walking away rather than whining or begging. You can make this silly and say “What if _____ (student 2) begged and whined like this [and then you model the incorrect behavior]. Then, you can tell them why this doesn’t work: it’s not respecting the boundary that _____ (student 1) put up.)

Thank the students and have them sit down.

Independent Practice: Think through this question: How does it feel when someone doesn’t respect your “no?” (Allow for responses). And how does it feel when someone does respect your “no?” (Allow for responses).

Materials:none

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We Will: Talk about qualities that make a great role model and think about people who could serve as role models in our lives.

I will: Identify what makes a great role model.

Lesson 7: Awareness of External Supports

I will: Identify what makes a great role model.

We Will: Talk about qualities that make a great role model and think about people who could serve as role models in our lives.

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Have students take three deep breaths. Say: today, we’re talking all about role models: people in our lives who we look up to and who we’d like to be when we grow up.

Guided Practice:Let’s think of all the people who serve as heroes and role models in our school and our community - can you think of some? (Allow for responses. Using the T-Chart provided or drawing your own, make a list of the role models on the left side). Let’s think about qualities all these people have in common and make a list of those qualities on the right side).

Independent Practice: Great! Now, think about the person in your life who is your personal role model and qualities that make them great personal role models. If you know your role model, you could tell them that they’re your role model today!

Materials: T-Chart

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We will: talk about three important parts of our brains so we can better understand our brains.

I will: understand how my brain works.

Lesson 8: Self-Control

I will: understand how my brain works.

We will: talk about three important parts of our brains so we can better understand our brains.

Direct Instruction: Come to our meeting spot and take three deep breaths. Did you know your brain is incredible? All your thoughts you think come from your brain, sure, but did you know that your brain controls the rest of your body, too? And when you’re feeling upset or excited, your brain can help you calm down, too!

Guided Practice: Your brain is the boss of your body! When your brain sees something that it thinks is scary or upset, it sends your body messages to get ready to run away - like making your heart pound really fast! And when your brain sees something like a chocolate chip cookie, it tells your tummy to growl and your mouth to water! Well, the same brain that does that is the brain you can use to calm down when you’re feeling upset!

Your brain has so many parts, but three are really important! We’re going to sing a song about this! Here is a video with the song. (If the song isn’t something you think your class would like, you could also use this video)

The song goes like this (To the tune of Frere Jaques)

Hippocampus, hippocampus

Amygdala, amygdala

Prefrontal cortex, prefrontal cortex,

That’s your brain, that’s your brain!

The hippocampus, the hippocampus

Starts the game, starts the game,

It remembers feelings, it remembers feelings,

Memories and pain, memories and pain.

The amygdala, the amygdala,

It keeps us safe, it keeps us safe,

It tells us to run and hide, it tells us when to run and hide

And when to play! And when to play!

Prefrontal cortex, prefrontal cortex,

It’s the boss, it’s the boss,

It helps us make wise choices, it helps us make wise choices,

And learn a lot! And learn a lot!

Next week, we’ll learn ways to calm our brains and bodies!

Materials: The Brain Song; Alternate video

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We will: practice deep breathing techniques.

I will: learn a new way to practice deep breathing.

Lesson 9: Self-Care/Stress-Management

I will: learn a new way to practice deep breathing.

We will: practice deep breathing techniques.

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Have students take three deep breaths. Say: 3rd grade can be really challenging sometimes. You’re learning so much and working so hard that sometimes, it can be difficult to manage the big feelings that come along. One of those big feelings that can sometimes come up is called anxiety: Anxiety is an emotion where your brain may be thinking of things that you’re worried about and your body starts to react: Your hippocampus starts to feel like you’re not safe and sends some messages to the amygdala. You might have butterflies in your stomach, you might feel your heart racing, and it may even make your hands feel sweaty! One of the best ways to deal with big feelings, like anxiety, is to take some big breaths.

Guided Practice: Let’s practice with this GoNoodle Video all about taking big breaths to manage big emotions.

Independent Practice: Now, even though the video is over, let’s see if we can remember some of the breathing practices we just did. Can you think of some of them? Let’s practice them without the video. (Here are a few form the video: using the Hoberman’s sphere if you have one [or would like to mime one], inhaling arms overheard and bringing them to your sides, inhaling your arms up and folding to the ground and rolling up, inhaling to the middle and exhaling to the left and right).

Materials: GoNoodle Video

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We Will: Talk about the importance of apologizing and practice it.

I will: Think about ways to be empathetic and apologizing when I hurt someone’s feelings.

Lesson 10: Empathy

I will: Think about ways to be empathetic and apologizing when I hurt someone’s feelings.

We Will: Talk about the importance of apologizing and practice it.

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Have students take three deep breaths. Say: Let's face it — it's not always easy to get along with sisters and brothers, parents, and friends. Kids aren't perfect and they sometimes do things that get them into trouble. Saying "I'm sorry" can help.

When you apologize to someone — and really mean it — it's because you have stopped to think about how the person may have felt because of what you did or said. When you stop to think about the other person's feelings, you begin to feel sorry for your behavior. You might even feel embarrassed or ashamed if you did something that you knew was wrong.

Even if what happened was an accident or you did something you didn't mean to do, you would probably still feel sorry if you knew the other person's feelings were hurt. After apologizing, you might feel a little better (the other person probably will, too).

Guided Practice: Let’s take a look at the three steps to an apology. Apologizing might seem tricky, but most of the time, when we say we’re sorry, think about how the other person is feeling, and then find a way to make it right, we are showing that other person that we care for them. We’re showing empathy. Let’s practice apologizing. What if I borrowed your favorite pencil and I accidentally broke it. How could I apologize?

I could say: “I’m sorry I broke your favorite pencil. I understand if you’re feeling angry about it. I can give you my favorite pencil as a replacement.”

Or, what if I was running on the playground and I accidentally ran into you?

I could say: “I’m sorry I ran into you. I understand if you are sad that it hurt you. I will go get a teacher to help you!”

Independent Practice: Now, think about the last time you apologized to someone. Turn and talk to a partner about your apology. You’ll have two minutes to talk: one minute each. The person in your pair that is the tallest will go first. I will tell you to switch speakers after one minute. (Give the students about 2 minutes to talk about great things they do every day. About half way through, ask the students to switch speakers. If you need to model this, do so!).

Materials: 3-Step Apology Poster

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We will: practice reading nonverbal communication to understand what a person is saying.

I will: think about nonverbal communication and learn the ways we all communicate nonverbally.

Lesson 11: Communication

I will: think about nonverbal communication and learn the ways we all communicate nonverbally.

We will: practice reading nonverbal communication to understand what a person is saying.

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Have students take three deep breaths. Say: today, we’re talking about nonverbal communication. What comes to your mind when I say non-verbal? (Allow for responses). Since “verbal” means the word we speak, non-verbal communication is all the other ways we send each other messages besides the words we say. Take a look at this poster (feel free to click on it if you need to enlarge it). Let’s take a look at each of the ways we communicate beyond our words.

You can sometimes tell how someone is feeling by looking at his or her face. We tell other people a lot with our eyes and the shapes our mouths make.
Sometimes, it’s not what we say but how we say it that matters.
Sometimes, it’s the way we’re standing that sends people a message.
And sometimes, it’s how close or far we’re standing that tells people something.

Guided Practice: Let’s go through these scenarios to see where a person may have missed some nonverbal clues:

In the hallway, Leah spots her favorite teacher, who’s talking sternly to another student. Leah runs toward him, yelling, “Hi Mr. Lenz! Mr. Lenz, hey!” He turns to her and furrows his eyebrows and raises a finger at her to say “Just a minute.” But Leah keeps running his way.

What did Leah miss?

At recess, Hillary asks Ava twice to play tag with her. When Hillary approaches Ava a third time, she doesn’t notice Ava crossing her arms and shaking her head.

What did Hillary miss?

In gym class, Noah asks if he can be on Dan’s basketball team. Dan says sarcastically, “Yeah, you can play with us,” and walks away. Noah follows Dan, thinking he said yes.

What did Noah miss?

At her birthday party, Clarice reaches out for a hug from her friend Molly. Molly scoots back. Clarice gives her a hurt look, thinking that Molly has just rejected her.

What did Molly miss? What did Claire miss?

Looking for the nonverbal clues is a great way to see the whole picture of what people are communicating to you. Let’s practice catching nonverbal clues this week.

Materials: this poste r

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We will: think about the jobs we each do every day to make our learning community (our class) a better place to be.

I will: think about our roles in our learning community.

Lesson 12: Social-Engagement

I will: think about our roles in our learning community.

We will: think about the jobs we each do every day to make our learning community (our class) a better place to be.

Direct Instruction: Come to our meeting spot and take three deep breaths. This class is special because you are in it! And everyone in this class makes this class better. You may not realize it, but in this class, you have many jobs! And when you do the jobs you do in this class, you help it be a great place!

Guided Practice: Let’s think of some of the jobs you do in this class! What are some ways you are a helper in this class? (Allow for responses and put those responses on the board). That’s right. Hmm, I wonder: what would happen if we didn’t do these jobs? What would be different in our class? (Teacher can give some examples, like: If we didn’t clean up after centers, the floor would be dirty and centers would not be organized, etc. Allow students to respond). That’s right! You make this class better! Let’s think of one thing you could do right now to make this class better! What is one thing you see that could be done (Could chairs be pushed in? Could papers be cleaned up? Could books be put away? Allow the students to think through these ideas, or guide them through these suggestions).

Independent Practice: Today, find one way you can make this class a great place to be. When you complete that task, let me know! I love to celebrate all the ways you improve the class!

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We will: complete the Teamwork T-Chart .

I will: think about what a great team looks like, sounds like, and feels like.

Lesson 13: Teamwork

I will: think about what a great team looks like, sounds like, and feels like

We will: complete the Teamwork T-Chart

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Have students take three deep breaths. Say: working in a team is a really important skill for all people to have.

Guided Practice: But have you ever considered what a great team is? How can we tell a team is great? Let’s all take a look at this t-chart and think about how a really great team works together.

Think about it:

What does a great team look like? (Allow for responses - Students may say things like: people taking turns, people smiling at each other, people quietly listening to each other, teammates listening to their coach, teammates sharing, teammates giving each other high fives).

Now, let’s think about what a great team sounds like. (Allow for responses - Students may say things like it sounds like one person talking at a time, it sounds like teammates cheering one another on, it sounds like kind words and phrases, etc.).

Lastly, let’s talk about what it feels like to be on a great team. (Allow for responses - Students may say things like: it feels like you’re with your friends, it feels like love, it feels happy, it feels like you’re working hard but achieving goals, etc.).

When we work as a team in this class, this is what our class could sound like. Let’s try to be a great team!

Materials: Teamwork T-Chart

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We will: Set a long term goal and imagine myself achieving my long-term goal.

I will: learn about long term goals.

I’ve Got Great Goals!

I’ve Got Big Goals!

Lesson 14: Goal Setting/Growth Mindset

I will: learn about long term goals.

We will: Set a long term goal and imagine myself achieving my long-term goal.

Direct Instruction: Come to the meeting spot and take three deep breaths. Today, we’re talking all about long term GOALS. Long term goals are things that you can’t do yet but you want to work toward. Let’s take a look at this picture. Tell me what you know about this picture. (Allow for responses). Yes! This soccer player just scored a goal. What work do you think has to go into being able to score a goal in soccer? (Allow for responses). Yes! You’d have to practice over and over. You’d have to do a lot of running practice to make you fast. You’d have to shoot a lot of shots in games to get used to trying to make a goal. This soccer player scored a goal because he made a goal to score points in a soccer game. I’m calling this a long term goal because of all the work that it takes to get to the soccer game and make that goal. We know this player had to work months and months on all his soccer skills to make this happen.

You can do the same thing! Maybe you don’t want to score a goal in soccer, but if you have a goal you want to achieve, like mastering fast math facts in addition up to 10 or increase your reading level to an L, we can make steps to help you get there. Your goal doesn’t have to be a school-related goal. It can be a sports goal like making a goal in soccer or a home goal like keeping your room clean for a whole week.

Guided Practice: Let’s turn and talk to our shoulder partners. What goal do you want to achieve? You’ll have two minutes to talk: one minute each. The person in your pair that has the biggest feet will go first. I will tell you to switch speakers after one minute. (Give the students about 2 minutes to talk about what their goals are. About halfway through, ask the students to switch speakers. If you need to model this, do so!).

Independent Practice: Next week, we’ll talk about the ways you plan to achieve this goal and all the steps you can take to help reach your long-term goal, but for now, I want you to go back to your seat and draw yourself achieving your goal on this printable (or a sheet of paper), just like this picture of the soccer player. I want you to imagine yourself completing your goal.

Materials: printable (at the bottom there is a sentence stem that says “Here I am….” Students can fill this in telling the reading what they’re doing: ex. “Here I am riding my bike.”

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We will: create short term goals that help us as steps to achieve our long-term goal.

I will: Create a short term goal that will help me achieve my long-term goal.

Lesson 15: Self-Discipline/Grit

I will: Create a short term goal that will help me achieve my long-term goal.

We will: create short term goals that help us as steps to achieve our long-term goal.

Direct Instruction: Come to the meeting spot and take three deep breaths. Last week, we looked at this picture (picture 1) and you created a great long-term goal. Think back: can you remember the long-term goal you created? This week, we’re talking all about short-term goals. Those are the great things I can do today to help me achieve my long-term goal. For example, with the soccer player in this picture, his long-term goal was to make this goal. But his daily, short-term goals are what helps him make that long-term goal happen. What are some short-term goals this player had to have to make that long-term game happen? (Allow for responses). Right! The player probably had to show up to every practice, plan to run as hard as he could in running drills, decide how many goal shots he wanted to practice each day, and then shoot them even when he’s tired of practicing or bored of shooting the goal shot over and over. These steps are his short-term, daily goals.

Guided Practice: You have long-term goals! Now, we just need to make some daily, short-term goals to help you get there. Last week, you made a long-term goal. This week, we’re going to make some short-term goals to help you achieve your long term goal. Let’s take a look at this sheet! (Picture 2 - This is a great time to fill out the sheet. You can pause now and have students go back to their seats and guide them through making their own short-term goals, or you can model while they are still in the meeting spot and have them fill it out after. Whatever works best for your kids!). For example: if your long-term goal is to score a goal in a soccer game, what are some short-term goals to help you get there? Maybe you’ll need to make sure you practice soccer at home or if you’re on a team, you will make sure you go to as many practices as possible. You’ll want to be able to get to the goal before the other players, so another short term goal can be to run with the ball and not lose control of it.

Independent Practice: It’s your turn! What is your long-term goal? What are some short-term goals you have that, if you achieved them, would help you get to your long-term goal?

Materials: this sheet

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We will: sing a song about whole body listening and practice it.

I will: learn what whole body listening is and practice it.

Lesson 16: Perspective Taking

I will: learn what whole body listening is and practice it.

We will: sing a song about whole body listening and practice it.

Direct Instruction: Come to our meeting spot and take three deep breaths. Did you know we talk to each other with our whole bodies? And we listen with our whole bodies, too! Today, we’re going to practice listening with our whole bodies to try to guess some feelings messages our classmates are feeling! Whole-body listening is tricky, because sometimes, when we’re listening, we can get really wiggly and forget we’re listening at all! But today, I’m going to show you what whole body listening looks like! Whole-body listening looks like: heads up, eyes open, mouths closed, bodies still, and brains thinking about what is going to happen next. Let’s watch this video about listening.

Guided Practice: Teacher says: Those are some really thoughtful answers. Practicing whole-body listening is great because after a lot of practice, you will become a natural at it. When people listen to you with their eyes looking, ears listening, mouths quiet, and bodies still, how does that make you feel? (Allow for responses).

Independent Practice: Teacher says “Let’s practice! We’ll sit in our circle on the carpet and each tell what our favorite animal is. While your classmates are explaining what their favorite animals are, you will practice whole body listening. Your heads will be up, your eyes will be on the classmate whose turn it is to talk. (Optional: show poster here). Remember, your eyes are looking at the person talking, your ears are listening, your mouth is quiet, your hands are folded, and your legs are crossed (or still). This is not easy and it takes practice, but we can do it!” Then, the class will engage in the activity. Extension: have students try to remember each other’s favorite animals.

Materials:

Optional Free Posters

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We will: identify problems.

I will: think through what problems are and how we know what they are.

Lesson 17: Identifying Problems

I will: think through what problems are and how we know what they are.

We will: identify problems.

Direct Instruction: Come to the meeting spot and take three deep breaths. One thing we know is that anywhere we have people, we will have problems. Problems are just a part of life. We’re going to practice solving problems together, but we also need to be able to identify problems. What is a problem? (Allow for responses). How do you know a problem is a problem? (Allow for responses).

Guided Practice: Let’s take a look at some situations and see if we can identify the problems! (Go through all three scenarios and see if the kids can identify the problems in each scenario. Consider asking “What is the problem? How do you know? How does it feel to have this problem?”).

Independent Practice: Now, let’s go back to our seats and think about a problem you’ve faced before. Turn and talk to your partner about a problem you’ve faced before. You’ll have two minutes to talk: one minute each. The person in your pair that is the tallest will go first. I will tell you to switch speakers after one minute. (Give the students about 2 minutes to talk about great things they do every day. About half way through, ask the students to switch speakers. If you need to model this, do so!).

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We will: think through potential problem scenarios and think through possible outcomes.

I will: predict possible problems and think of potential outcomes.

Lesson 18: Problem Solving

I will: predict possible problems and think of potential outcomes.

We will: think through potential problem scenarios and think through possible outcomes.

Direct Instruction: Come to the meeting spot and take three deep breaths. One thing we know is that anywhere we have people, we will have problems. Problems are just a part of life. Last week, we identified problems and talked about how we know they are problems. This week, we’re going to think through the three steps to problem solving. (Click on the Problem-solving Steps Poster and talk through it).

Guided Practice: Let’s think through a problem together and see if we can use the three steps to solving a problem to solve it. Here’s our problem (Choose a book from your reading library. It can be any book.): We only have one copy of this book. It’s a really great book from our classroom library. But, let’s imagine (choose two students in class) both of our friends here, ______ and ______ , want to read the book for independent reading time. Let’s use the three steps to problem solving and see if we can come up with a solution for this problem.

Step 1: What’s the problem (allow for responses)

Step 2: Let’s think through some solutions (allow for responses)

Step 3: Have we found a solution that works? If not, let’s keep thinking of possible solutions until we find one that works.

Materials: Problem-solving Steps Poster

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We will: Read Just Ask , by Chief Justice Sonya Sotomayor.

I will: Think about all the ways people can be different and celebrate our differences.

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I will: think about ways to be an upstander to stand up to bullying.

We will: create a classroom acrostic poem about being an UPSTANDER.

Lesson 20: Anti-bullying, Fairness, and Just Actions

I will: think about ways to be an upstander to stand up to bullying.

We will: create a classroom acrostic poem about being an UPSTANDER.

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Have students take three deep breaths. Say: Last week, we talked about ways people can be different and that our differences make us great. Sometimes, when people are different from each other, they can misunderstand one another and even think that things about each other are strange. Some people might even be scared of others because of their differences or think of others as bad, all just because they’re different. But we’re all different, and we know our differences are what make us unique.

Have you ever heard or seen someone being mean to another person because of that person’s differences? It could be because of their disabilities, the sound of their voices, or even because of the color of their skin or where their family is from. Sometimes, it’s because of the foods a person might eat or traditions their family has.

All of these parts of a person’s self help make up who he or she is. And who we are in this class is pretty awesome. How do you think meanness and leaving people out just because they have a difference makes us all feel? It’s certainly not making us a better class, a better school, or a better community.

Guided Practice: That’s why in this class we don’t treat each other with meanness because of our differences. And if we see someone using disrespectful words or displaying disrespectful behaviors against someone else, we act as UPSTANDERS. Bystanders just stand by and watch people being mean. They might even laugh and join in. But UPSTANDERS speak up and help the person who is being bullied.

Today, we’re going to work as a team to create a poem about being UPSTANDERS.

(The teacher should pull up the “upstander” printable or write “upstander” along the left-hand side of a poster or the board in a vertical fashion to create the template for an acrostic poem.

Here are some examples of words your class can use:

U- Understands that we’re all different; uplifts others; unifies; unkind words are questioned and reported; us;

P- Protects others; provides support; pals; pays attention to how people talk to each other; plays with everyone; picks people up when they’re down

S - Speaks up if someone is mistreated; shares with everyone; shows kindness to all; says if someone does something mean

T- Truth-teller; tells a trusted adult if someone is discriminating against someone else; tries to bring people together �A- Asks questions when someone has differences to understand them; appreciates differences; adds people to the group

N- Never discriminates against others; Notices when people are being unkind and speaks up; nice to everyone

D- Defends others when they’re treated poorly; doesn’t just stand by if people are being discriminated against

E- Everyone belongs; eats lunch with someone who needs a friend; ears listening and ready

R- Respects everyone; really treats everyone with kindness; relays information to teachers if they see someone being treated unfairly

(Teacher can keep this acrostic up in the room and refer back to it)

Materials: Upstander Acrostic Poem

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We will: learn the three-step conflict process and practice dealing with our conflicts.

I will: talk about conflict and understand the three steps to help deal with conflict.

Lesson 21: Conflict Resolution, Part 1

I will: talk about conflict and understand the three steps to help deal with conflict.

We will: learn the three-step conflict process and practice dealing with our conflicts.

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Take three deep breaths. It would be nice if we could all always get along and never disagree, but in this class, in our school, and at our houses, we will all have times where we have conflicts with others. When we have a conflict, it is important to find ways to be respectful to one another and work through our conflict. We may not always agree, and we may not always feel like friends, but in this class, we work through our conflicts peacefully.

Guided Practice: Have you ever been in a conflict with someone in class? Maybe you wanted to read the same book at the same time or you both wanted to lead the line at the same time? When conflicts happen, it is important to work through them. Let’s take a look at this three-step conflict process (teacher shows first page of PDF - this can be digitally or printed out). Let’s have two friends practice Going through the conflict steps. (Teacher chooses two students to come to the front of the room). Let’s imagine these two classmates both want to read the same book at the same time. Let’s imagine they both went to the bookshelf to pick up the book at the exact same time and touched the book at the exact same time. Who should get the book? Since we don’t know, we have a conflict. They need to go through the steps of solving their conflict.

Step 1: They need to be their calmest selves. When our bodies aren’t calm, we can make some really poor choices. So, let’s go through each of the body-calming options (Page 2 - allow students to go through each of the calm-down strategies)

Step 2: Now that these classmates are calm, they can talk about it. They can each use an “I feel” statement, like saying “I feel very angry that I won’t be able to read the book because you’re reading it.” (Page 3 - have each student go through an imaginary “I feel” statement describing how they would feel if this were happening to them.) Let’s go through step 2 to make sure we can do each of these steps.

Step 3: Now that we are seeing each other with the best, most thoughtful eyes and have listened to each other’s “I feel” statements, it is time to make a plan. (Page 4).

Materials: three-step conflict process

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We will: think through a conflict we’re experiencing as a class and practice noticing and then resolving that conflict together.

I will: use a conflict identification process with my class to see if we can solve a class-wide conflict.

I’ve noticed...

Lesson 22: Conflict Resolution, Part 2

I will: use a conflict identification process with my class to see if we can solve a class-wide conflict.

We will: think through a conflict we’re experiencing as a class and practice noticing and then resolving that conflict together.

Direct Instruction: Let’s all come to the meeting spot and take three deep breaths. Last week, we practiced our “I feel” statements we can use when we have a conflict with another person. This week, we’re going to talk about how to deal with a conflict we’ve been seeing in the classroom. (Each teacher should think through conflicts they’ve been noticing in the classroom lately - conflicts about cleaning up centers, about line leaders, maybe some conflicts you’ve been noticing in recess, etc. Perhaps it isn’t conflict between students, per se, but a conflict of interest, like a conflict of behavior in a specials class. Any pervasive conflict will do.).

Guided Practice: I’m going to guide you in a “conflict solving” process called “I noticed.” I’m going to say a conflict I’ve noticed happening sometimes in our class. And then I’ll ask “have you noticed?”.

(Teacher uses the “I’ve noticed…..” frame to explain something you’ve noticed in the classroom. It can sound like this “I’ve noticed that sometimes, when we’re lining up to come back from PE, there is some unkind touching or arguing about cutting. Have you noticed?” Then the students can say “yes/no” or shake their heads.)

Then the teacher can say “How does this make everyone feel?” Let’s take turns talking (either using a talking piece or by having students raise their hands).

Then, the teacher can say “What are some solutions to our conflict?” For example, you may say “I see we have a conflict when we line up after PE. What are some ways we can use the three step conflict solution to help solve this conflict? We’ve already calmed down. We’re already talking about it. But now, we need to make a plan. How can we keep ourselves from arguing and pushing in the PE line?” Allow for responses. Come up with a few solutions and write them on your board/type them out/write them on poster paper. Say “So, we’re going to practice this conflict solution today. How will we feel when we have solved this classroom conflict?” Allow for responses.

Materials: None

Followup: As soon as students are going into a space where they might experience the conflict, remind them of the solutions you came up with together. As soon as you see them solving this conflict, encourage them to praise one another for solving the conflict with statements like, “Everyone, help me cheer ____ who _____.”

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We will: Listen to situations where someone can choose integrity and think about how we would respond.

I will: Practice showing integrity (doing the right thing even when no one is watching).

Practicing Integrity

Lesson 23: Evaluating

I will: Practice showing integrity (doing the right thing even when no one is watching).

We will: Listen to situations where someone can choose integrity and think about how we would respond.

Direct Instruction: Come to the meeting spot and take three deep breaths. Today, we’re talking about integrity. Showing integrity means doing the right thing even when no one is watching.

Guided Practice: Today, we’ll listen to a few stories where people have a chance to show integrity. We’ll decide how they can practice integrity and think about what we would do in these situations.

Read these scenarios with your class. After each one, ask: How can ____ respond? Which option shows integrity?

Independent Practice: Practicing integrity is a choice. Just like practicing anything else, the more we practice integrity, the easier it is to make choices that show integrity. This week, we will each be thinking of ways we could show integrity. When you show integrity this week, tell me about it! I can’t wait to hear the ways you practiced it all on your own!

Materials: scenarios

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We will: Exchange specific, meaningful compliments with classmates.

I will: Give a specific, meaningful compliment to a classmate.

Lesson 24: Expressing Gratitude

I will: Give a specific, meaningful compliment to a classmate.

We will: Exchange specific, meaningful compliments with classmates.

Direct Instruction: Come to the meeting spot and take three deep breaths. Today, we’re practicing gratitude by giving specific, meaningful compliments to one another. What do you think I mean when I say that we’re giving compliments that are specific and meaningful? (Allow for responses). That’s right! We’re giving compliments that tell exactly what we notice that is awesome about each other. For example, if I said “Maria, I like your shoes,” that’s a compliment for her shoes, not for her. But if I said, “Maria, you have great style,” that’s a specific compliment to Maria.

Guided Practice: Okay, let’s all take a compliment sheet and write a compliment to someone in class. When you’re finished, you can share the compliment paper with the person you want to compliment.

Independent Practice: (Teacher can print and cut the cards (there are 2 cards per sheet of paper). Students spend most of their time filling out compliment cards.

Materials: Compliment Card

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We will: identify who is in our safety networks.

I will: think about how to respond when I feel unsafe and identify my safety network.

Who is in your safety network?

Lesson 25: Reflecting

I will: think about how to respond when I feel unsafe and identify my safety network.

We will: identify who is in our safety networks.

Direct Instruction: Come to the carpet or meeting spot. Have students take three deep breaths. Say: Have you ever had an unsafe feeling? A feeling that you were not safe in your own body? We all have an internal alarm clock that tells us if we’re seeing, hearing, or experiencing something that makes us feel unsafe.

Guided Practice: Let’s take a look at this poster. (SPAN) On this poster, you’ll see that when our personal alarm clocks go off, we can tell because of the way our bodies respond. (Teacher reads the poster with the kids)

If this ever happens to you, you can talk to your trusted adult about it. But did you know that you have more than just one trusted adult? You have a safety network. Your safety network is a group of people you can tell if something happens that makes you feel unsafe in your body.

Independent Practice: Let’s identify the people in your safety network. Using the high-five handout, write the names of five trusted adults who are your Safety Network.

Materials: this poster. (SPAN)

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We will: make a class list of ways we practice being “The Wylie Way.”

I will: think about all the ways we practice being “The Wylie Way” in class, in our school, and in our community.

How can we practice “The Wylie Way?”

Lesson 26: Ethical Responsibility

I will: think about all the ways we practice being “The Wylie Way” in class, in our school, and in our community.

We will: make a class list of ways we practice being “The Wylie Way.”

Direct Instruction: Come to the meeting spot and take three deep breaths. We all know that in Wylie ISD, and at ____ Elementary, we practice living and learning “the Wylie Way.” But what does that mean? Take a few minutes to think: What does it mean to live “The Wylie Way” in our classroom and in our community? (Allow for responses). Sometimes it can be difficult to think of an exact definition of what “The Wylie Way” is, but we know that “The Wylie Way” is to be respectful and responsible, to practice caring and giving, to show grit and preparation, and to practice gratitude and celebration. (Note: if your school has a list of essential behaviors, use that instead!).

Guided Practice: As a group, let’s think through ways we can practice living “The Wylie Way” in our classroom. When you share an answer, I’ll write it on our board (or a poster, or on the SmartBoard). As we think about you going into 4th grade, these are the ways we will want our future 4th graders to be leaders in our school - so what do our 4th grade leaders in the school do to show The Wylie Way? (Allow for responses and write them on the board).