Often the most challenging part of any journey is the first step, the getting started and figuring out where to start. Middle schoolers engage in a series of games and activities to learn the importance of setting short-term goals,...

Having goals is important. The opening, two-day lesson in the Goal Setting module teaches middle schoolers the importance of setting meaningful, realistic goals. Through a series of activities, participants practice setting personal...

Making responsible decisions can be hard, especially in difficult situations when the consequences can be difficult as well. Through a series of activities and games, middle schoolers learn that when making decisions, they must consider...

The final instructional activity in the Resolving Conflicts module asks participants to summarize what they have learned about resolving conflicts. Groups then apply what they learned to a conflict described in a provided scenario.

Win-lose? Lose-lose? or Win-win? The activities and games in the fifth lesson in the Resolving Conflicts module teach middle schoolers how they might use their problem-solving skills to transform a conflict into a win-win solution.

Miscommunication is often the basis of conflict. To improve their communication skills, pupils first review what they learned about assertive (as opposed to aggressive or passive) communication, role-play several scenarios, and...

The Resolving Conflicts module begins with a lesson about tolerance and learning to appreciate differences among people. Through a series of activities and games, middle schoolers learn that conflicts arise when people have opposing...

A lesson about following directions tests learners' ability with a tricky scenario that will shock unsuspecting participants. After viewing results, scholars discuss why it's important to follow instructions and define listening. Peers...

Build a strong classroom community with a closing routine that asks each participant to share something they appreciate about their classmate(s), issue an apology if they may have hurt someone's feelings or an "aha" moment when they...

Wouldn't it be nice if we could all learn to get along? Middle schoolers review the skills they have learned in other lessons in the course and apply them to a series of activities. They then create posters illustrating their advice on...

Scholars create and commit to a contract for their Service Learning project. The contract details who is responsible for which tasks on the action plan they developed in a previous instructional activity.

It's time to get to work! Groups assign roles, duties, and due dates for their Service Learning action plan. They then identify the approvals they will need to complete their project successfully.

Introduce the project teams to critical skills they will need to successfully complete their Service Learning project. Groups learn how to use a tracking sheet and write a status memo. They discuss the importance of commitment,...

Check and double-check! That's the big idea as teams prepare to launch their Service Learning Projects. They review their action plans, materials lists, timelines, schedules, and memos, brainstorm last-minute project needs, issues, and...

Students learn about budgeting, saving, dept, financial management, opportunity cost, and self-regulation. In this financial management lesson, students apply their knowledge of finance components and create their own web based plan...

Learners study communication, feelings, and calming down. For this sociology lesson, students play a game about feelings and discuss how to use I-messages to calm anger.

Students analyze potentially stressful situations to determine the degree of control an individual has over my own behaviors. They develop a behavior change plan that includes rehearsal as a means to promote frequency of replacement of...

Just about everything you need to teach a unit on sexual education. Diagrams, charts, factual information all here. This lesson plan is thorough and goes step by step in guiding everyone through the topics providing questions for...

The focus of the second in a 10-session course on Social, Physical, Emotional, Cognitive and Spiritual (SPECS) health is on learning to express and manage feelings appropriately. Class members learn different ways of...

A pinwheel encourages deep breathing to calm one's body and recenter their thoughts. Scholars breathe into a personal pinwheel with different types of breathing patterns then answer a question about how they feel. 

The focus of the second session in this SPECS unit is on learning how to identify, and then appropriately express and manage feelings.

Grow your pupils' ability to meet expectations with a flower-themed behavior tracking system. Individuals receive flower petals to put on their stems after successfully meeting expectations for activities and lessons. They can receive...

Encourage your pupils to set and meet goals by incorporating regular goal setting sessions. They can fill out this chart, which provides space for writing in six goals, dates by which learners would like to achieve these goals, a...

To begin the second year of a health and wellness course, class members review the aspects of social, physical, emotional, cognitive, and spiritual health investigated the previous year. After completing the...