East Meadow U.F.S.D

East Meadow U.F.S.D.

CAP 2012 – 2013

GRADES 6-8 INSPIRATION! ADVISORY COLLABORATIVE STUDENT DEVELOPMENT

Woodland Middle School

Writers: Laura Papaleo Michael Benchimol Alison Thoben

1 2012 Table of Contents

1. Superintendent’s Conference Day Agenda p. 3

2. Curriculum Outline p. 6

3. Student Facilitator Training p. 7

4. Ground Rules p. 10

5. September: Self Awareness p. 11

6. October: Courage p. 14

7. November: Empathy p. 18

8. December: Generosity p. 23

9. January: Dream p. 24

10. February: Friendship p. 25

11. March: Peace p. 29

12. April: Perseverance p. 32

13. May: Gratitude p. 36

14. Appendix I- Homeroom assignments

2 Superintendent’s Conference Day September 4, 2012

Introduction to “Inspiration” Advisory “Collaborative Student Development”

1. What is Inspiration Advisory  In an effort to improve and to generalize our SEL curriculum, we have developed an advisory program that utilizes student leaders as facilitators.  Advisory will involve activities aligned with monthly themes to be facilitated by student facilitators under the active supervision of classroom teachers.  The goal is to develop a school community of students and staff with unifying values to support academic growth throughout the year.  Student facilitators will include peer helpers, SEL members, National Junior Honor Society members. They will receive training on effective facilitation techniques and will be briefed on all of the activities.  The activities are designed to highlight SEL skills and to engage students in experiential learning.

2. Activity: Gordian Knot  This activity is representative of the types of activities that will be performed in the classroom.

3. Discussion  Activity questions  What can our students learn from these types of exercises?  How can exposure to these types of experiences help us do our jobs as educators?  What could the teacher’s role be in this program?

3 The Gordian Knot Exercise Objective: 1. To have a team of students create a knot using a cord without breaking contact with other team members. Set-Up/Props Needed: 1. A large open area without any barriers or encumbrances, large enough for a team to form a circle with each member an arm’s length away from the next. 2. 3-4 pieces of cord per group 3. 6-8 students per group Procedure: 1. Ask the team to form a circle, standing shoulder-to- shoulder in the circle. Have the team members reach across the circle and hold one end of the cord. So that, two team members are holding the opposite end of one cord. 2. Each team member should be holding one end of the cord. 3. At this point, the team is instructed to create a knot with the cord. They cannot break contact with their end of the cord. They can cross over or under the team members without letting go. 4. This activity is timed for 5-6 minutes. 5. At the conclusion of the 6 minutes the team members sit down with their Gordian knots in the middle of their circle. 6. The facilitator will pass the completed knots to the next group. 7. The groups will now stand up and untangle the knots following the same procedure. Remind the participants that during the untangling process, they cannot break the physical contact with their cord and their partners. Note: 1. If the team has been struggling with a “knot” for a long time, offer an honorable time out called Knot First Aid. Offer a time out moment to let go and re-group. 2. Solutions are often quickly achieved after this bit of help; however, don’t be too quick to offer an easy time out if time and inclination seem to indicate a continued struggle. Some teams “get into” this problem and will want to continue until the team is successfully untangled. Facilitator Notes: 1. Throughout the activity, observe how the team communicates their progress, thoughts and ideas. Note the language used (exact words when possible), and how it affected the problem-solving process (made it easier/more difficult).

4 2. Observe/listen for how the team supports individual members who are experiencing difficulty in the untangling process. 3. Watch for how the team handles leadership/followership issues (e.g., how a natural leader emerges to guide the process). 4. Ask the team “what similarities/analogies do you see between this activity and how we work with our friends to untangle their relationship problems or school work problems?” 5. Ask the team – “How did your team handle the frustration that occurred during the untangling process? How could we help each other deal with their frustrations during their similar untangling process?”

5 Inspiration! Advisory Activity Themes

Month Theme September Self Awareness October Courage November Empathy December Generosity January Dream February Friendship March Peace April Perseverance May Gratitude

6 Student Facilitator Training

Opening: Intro and Icebreaker

Communication

Activity 1: Objective: To hone listening and verbal communication skills used in giving instructions Materials: paper, pencils, drawing templates Instructions:  Break group up into pairs and ask the pairs to sit back to back.  One partner in the pair will be the “drawer” and one will be the coach. Coaches will get a copy of the template and partner that is drawing will get a blank piece of paper and pencil.  Coaches will be responsible for providing instructions to their partner so that he/she can duplicate the drawing on their piece of paper.  Once drawings are complete, partners should compare the drawing to the template. Discussion: 1. How did you and your partner do? 2. What worked well? 3. What was particularly difficult? 4. How do you think this exercise could help you in presenting to classroom?

Activity 2: Objective: To raise awareness of non-verbal communication and improve skills in interpreting it. Materials: Set of instruction cards Instructions:  Break the group up into small groups of 8-12  The facilitator explains that they will enact certain situations non-verbally, using body movements and facial expressions.  Each group member takes a turn to act out a situation and the other group members guess what the participant is expressing. Make a pizza Carry a glass of water careful not to spill Have an argument Skate on ice Climb a steep hill Walk through very deep snow

7 Dry dishes Set the table Open a large, wrapped present Move a large piece of furniture Ride a bicycle  As group members make guesses, facilitator should coach them to pay attention to the feelings being expressed during the demonstration.

Discussion: 1. How well were you able to convey emotions non-verbally? 2. How well were you able to interpret emotions being demonstrated? 3. Why are these skills important to your work as a student facilitator?

Facilitation

Hand-out: Skills of Good Facilitators

Activity 3: Objective: To help participants become aware of common situations that may be encountered as a facilitator in a classroom and to be able to address them appropriately. Materials: Set of role cards Instructions:  Break students up into groups of 8-12.  Each group will be given a problem/task.  Each group member will also receive an instruction card to guide their behavior during group discussion: Interrupt Agree with everything Say “I don’t care” Disagree with everyone Be unwilling to talk Make sure everyone is heard Laugh at everyone Keep the discussion on track  Give the groups about 10 minutes to solve their problem  Have students return to large group.

Discussion: 1. Were you able to solve your problem? Why or why not? 2. What behaviors were most problematic? 3. Are there things that you could do that would help you to deal with those issues as they come up?

8 Activity 4 Objective: To familiarize students with activities they will be expected to facilitate. Materials: Activity sheets and material associated with each. Instructions:  Divide students into small groups.  Assign each group one activity and give them 15 minutes to prepare.  Students will then be asked to present their activity to the group. Q & A and Feedback

Distribute Schedule and Homeroom Assignments

9 Inspiration! Collaborative Student Development

Setting up Ground Rules for Classroom Activities

Be a Good Listener: ______

Show Respect to Others: ______

Be an Active Participant: ______

Respect the Privacy of Others: ______

10 Inspiration!

Month: September Theme: Self-Awareness Grade Level: 6

1. Gathering: Introduce students to their journal book. The book will be kept in the classroom in a container. The students will use their journals for each monthly activity, possibly. Pass out journals and allow students to begin decorating their journal.

2. Agenda Check: Pass out journals-3 minutes Decoration of journals and activity-7-8 minutes Debriefing-2minutes Collection of journals-2 minutes

3. Main Activity: The students will complete the starters about themselves. They have the option to cut and glue them inside their or on the outside of their journal.

4. Debriefing: Peer helpers will share that each month a new activity will be introduced and completed. This journal will be used for the monthly inspiration period.

5. Closing: Peer helpers will collect journals and place them in the container.

11 Inspiration!

2. Agenda Check: Pass out journals-2 minutes Decoration of journals and activity-14 minutes Debriefing-2minutes Collection of journals-2 minutes

3. Main Activity: The students will read the poem together, See Me Beautiful. The students will glues this poem on the first page of their journal. The activity entitled, “What Would I be if I Were…” will be introduced. Each box contains starters that the students will complete either with a picture or a sentence.

12 Inspiration!

2. Agenda Check: Pass out journals-2 minutes Decoration of journals and activity-14 minutes Debriefing-2minutes Collection of journals-2 minutes

3. Main Activity: The students will be given the framework for an auto bio poem. The students will be encouraged to answer each question or complete each statement. The students will be given an example to use as a guide for their finished auto bio poem. Once completed the students will tape or glue their poem into their journal.

5. Closing: Peer helpers will collect journals and place them in the container.

13 Inspiration!

Month: October Theme: Courage Grade Level: 6

1. Gathering: Purpose: Group building, self-esteem building

2. Main Activity:

 Materials: Body cut-outs, pens/markers

 Activity:

1. Give each student a body cut-out and pen/markers

2. The cut-out is a representation of themselves. Ask students to do the following:

In the region if the head, write the things they worry about. In the region of the heart, write the things they feel deeply about. In the region of one arm, write things they are good at. In the region of the other arm, write things that are challenging for them. In the region of one leg, write the things they “stand for”/believe in. In the region of the other leg, write things they hope to accomplish.

3. Debriefing:

Once the students have finished, begin discussion about what it takes to be the person they have created. How they can be courageous in their own lives.

14 Inspiration!

Materials: Courage worksheet

1. Gathering: Teacher says, “What does it mean to have COURAGE?” Call on 2 students to answer. Teacher writes definition of courage on board (the frame of mind that allows people to face difficulty, fear or pain). Today we are going to talk about how to stand up for our beliefs and show courage.

2. Main Activity: Teacher says, “Today we are going to decide which scenarios can show courage in our lives. Complete these questions by putting yes or no for the following statements, based on if you are able to do them or not. Nobody will see this but you.”

3. Debriefing: Teacher asks a few students to share their answer for Part 2. Discuss.

4. Closing: Teacher says, “As you move through your day today, think about our discussion about courage. Work on practicing the action you chose!”

15 Courage: Your character is built on the choices you make throughout your life.

Part 1: Write “Yes” or “No” for each, based on whether you do these actions, or not. Be honest. Nobody will see this except you!

1. ______Treat people equally 2. ______Give everyone a chance 3. ______Stand up for somebody who is being bullied 4. ______Take responsibility for something you did wrong 5. ______Speak up about an issue you feel strongly about

Part 2: Choose ONE of these actions. Which ONE would you like to choose to work on building your COURAGE? Remember it doesn’t happen overnight, but it happens slowly as you practice the skill of courage! The action I choose to work on to build my COURAGE is: ______

I chose this action because: ______

16 Inspiration!

1. Materials: Video, rocks (or substitute), markers

2. Gathering: Show softball video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVlKtI7yd_s&feature=youtube_gdata_player

3. Main Activity:

 Ask for student feedback on the video.

 What traits were demonstrated in the video?

 Did the act you saw demonstrate courage defined as “the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty”?

 What thoughts or words help you in times of difficulty?

 Students will be asked to choose their most meaningful/motivational thought, word or phrase and to write it on their rock.

 Rocks can be displayed in classroom for inspiration throughout the year.

4. Closing: Remind students to reflect on their chosen phrases often.

17 Inspiration!

Month: November Theme: Empathy Grade Level: 6

1. Materials:

 Pie plate

 Half & Half

 Food Coloring (Blue, green, yellow, red)

 Liquid soap

2. Gathering:

Ask students to arrange their chairs in a circle with the materials in the center.

3. Main Activity:

 Introduce story by explaining that it is a story about a place that maybe similar to other places you know:

(Pour half and half into a shallow pie plate) This is a simple story about a simple place called Simple World. Life once appeared uniform and simple in Simple World. But one day, on the horizon, different people appeared.

Blue came in. (put a drop of blue food coloring in the milk). Blue came in with their blue feelings and their blue clothes and their blue selves. But it

18 didn’t much seem to matter because blue pretty much stayed to themselves, separate from the other people in Simple World.

Soon other people started to come in. Some people came to Simple World because they wanted to…

Green burst in. (Drop green food coloring in the plate) And they were pretty bossy. They wanted to do everything their way.

And others came in because they had to… Yellow crept in. (Put yellow drops in milk). …and they pretty much tried to keep over to the side, all by themselves.

One day red charged in… (Put red drops in milk) With red parents, red kids, red feelings and red clothes…

Simple World was really looking different.

Some of the people looked strange. Some of them even started to make strange sounds among themselves.

But to avoid conflict, it was decreed that all the different people should stay separate in Simple World. They would stay away from one another and life went on.

Eventually however, friction began to surface between the different groups. Because the people had never had contact with one another, there were misunderstandings and a lot of fighting. Everyone stayed with their own, thinking and feeling like they always had.

Discussion: (Part one)  What does this story remind you of?

 If this story was about our school, what do you think the colors represent?

 How do people separate themselves into groups?

 What keeps the groups apart?

Story continues… Things in Simple World were getting pretty complicated. People were beginning to come out of their own little corners of the world, but not in an easy, friendly way.

19 One day a stranger appeared with a magic potion which he began to sprinkle around. (pour liquid soap into the pan).

And just like magic, everything began to change. People didn’t know what the potion was but there were a lot of questions and rumors. Some thought it might be made of strange and exotic ingredients. All they did know was that things were changing rapidly and no one was quite sure what was going on.

People were starting to come together and talk. Some thought it was great! Others thought it was well, “interesting”. And some were actually quite afraid. What would happen if these groups mixed with one another.

Everyone agreed that Simple World no longer seemed quite so simple. In fact, they realized that maybe their world wasn’t ever simple, just “the same”. It was never going to be that way ever again. Would people be able to get along with one another? Would they respect each other’s differences? Could they still be a community?

Discussion: Part 2  You can see here that things starting to mix together. How do you think the different groups may feel?

 What do you think the different groups want?

 What could the magic potion be?

 Could you envision our school like the one in the story?

 Why or why not?

4. Closing: What could you do to show some empathy for someone in a different social group here at school. Jot it down in your journal and give it a try.

20 Inspiration!

Materials: Rachel Scott’s essay, “Gloves of Conviction”

1. Gathering: Teacher says, “Today I am going to read you an essay written by Rachel Scott. You may have read ‘My Ethics, My Code of Life’ also written by Rachel. Does anyone know what empathy means? (call on 2 students) Tell the class, “Empathy is when we identify with people’s thoughts or feelings.” Teacher writes it on the board and says, “As I read Rachel’s essay, see if you can notice how Rachel feels empathy in this story.”

2. Main Activity: Teacher reads Rachel’s essay, “Gloves of Conviction” to the class.

21 3. Debriefing: Teacher asks, “How did Rachel show empathy in this story?” Call on variety of students to respond.

4. Closing: Ask class, “How can we show empathy to others as we go through our days?”

Inspiration!

Objective: To help participants become aware of how classmates may feel when treated in pre-determined ways.

Materials: Set of stickers and 15 crayons for each group of 8 Instructions:  Break students up into groups of 8  Each group will be given crayons arranged in the attached figure.  Each group member will also receive a sticker to put on their forehead. Do not allow the student to see what the sticker says on his/ her head. The stickers will be labeled as follows:  Interrupt me

22 Agree with everything I say Disagree with everything I say Ignore me Laugh at me Compliment me Ask me what I think Let me make all the decisions  Ask each group to remove 6 crayons to make 10.

 Give the groups about 10 minutes to solve their problem  Have students return to large group.

Discussion: 1. Were you able to solve your problem? Why or why not? 2. How did you feel during this exercise? 3. How did the way you were treated change how you participated in the exercise? 4. How does this relate to our day to day lives at school?

Facilitators: the solution is attached.

(Activity adapted from 201 Amazing Mind Bogglers by Robert B. Bowman, PhD) Inspiration!

Month: December Theme: Generosity Grade: 6-8

Materials: 1 present cut out for each student and coloring supplies

1. Gathering: Facilitator begins by asking:  What students think of when they hear the word “generosity”. Facilitator should record student’s responses on the board.  In what ways can a person show generosity without the use of money?

2. Activity: Ask students to reflect on the best gift they ever received (encourage students to think about non-material gifts).  Why was the gift so meaningful?

23  How did it make you feel?

Give each student a “present” and ask them to think about a gift that they could give to someone important to them that would make them feel special. Each student should write or draw on their present the gift they have come up with.

3. Debriefing:  Can you actually give this gift to the person you chose?  What does it require of you?

4. Closing: Encourage students to share their gifts with their families at home.

Inspiration!

Month: January Theme: Dream Grade: All

Focus: the students will be introduced to the Tibetan tradition of making flags to express their deepest hopes and dreams. Materials: Colored construction paper, coloring supplies, Martin Luther King statement

Gathering: 1. The students will be given an excerpt from Martin Luther King speech, “I Have a Dream”. 2. Introduce the Tibetan tradition of making flags to reflect their hopes and dreams. 3. The students will be encouraged to think about their own hopes and dreams.

24 4. The students will brainstorm their thoughts, words, ideas and images while reflecting about their hopes and dreams. 5. Each student will be given a colored piece of construction paper. 6. The students will illustrate their flag with words and images reflecting their hopes and dreams. Closing: 1. The peer helpers will collect the flags.

2. The flags will be strung together and hung inside or outside of their homeroom.

Inspiration!

Month: February Theme: Friendship Grade: 6

Focus: the students will be introduced to Put –Ups.

Materials: writing utensils, journals, colored construction paper in a variety of shapes.

Gathering: 1. Each student will receive a different colored piece of construction paper.

2. Each colored piece of construction paper will have a student’s name on it.

25 3. The students will be guided to write one positive statement about the person whose name is on the top of the colored paper. The comments must be positive and appropriate.

4. The students will pass their paper to the person next to them when they have completed their positive statement.

5. The papers will be passed until the original paper returns to the student whose name is at the top.

6. The peer mentors will collect the paper put-up and hand the student their own put-up.

7. Allow the students the time to read their own put-up.

Closing: 1. The students will be given an opportunity to write their reflections about their own put-up.

2. Guide the students to answer the following question; “How did this activity make you feel?” or “Why is it important to tell people how you feel?”

3. The peer helpers will collect the journals and place them in the container.

Inspiration!

Month: February Theme: Friendship Grade: 7

Focus: The students will be introduced to Robert Frost’s poem, “The Road Not Taken”

26 Materials: writing utensils, journals, copy of the poem, tape

Gathering: 1. The students will be given copies of Robert Frost’s poem, “The Road Not Taken”.

2. Encourage a student to read the poem aloud.

3. When the student is finished reading the poem guide the students to write one sentence about what they think the poet is trying to say.

“I think/feel the author is trying to say…” 4. The student’s will be asked to respond in their journal to the following questions:

a. Describe both of these roads.

b. Which road would you choose? Why?

c. Pick one friend: Which road would they choose? Why?

d. What would encourage you to make a difference?

e. Why did you choose this friend?

Closing: The peer helpers will collect the journals.

Inspiration!

Month: February Theme: Friendship

27 Grade: 8

Objective: To have participants reflect on their friendships and the type of friend they themselves are.

Materials: A piece of paper for every cooperative pair, scissor, friendship check off sheet.

Main Activity:  Break the class up into pairs.  Give each pair 2 sheets of paper and ask them to do the following: o Fold the paper in thirds, like you were folding it for an envelope. o Cut down each fold until it is about 1 inch from the paper’s edge. o Hold the 2 top corners of the paper. Then pull the paper, trying to tear both cuts at the same time, so that the middle piece will drop out. o (Ultimately the paper will tear at the “weakest point”)

Debriefing: 1. Things stress our friendships and relationships all the time. Some of our friendships serve different needs in us at different times. Think about your friendship with someone important to you. 2. Using the friendship checklist, rate whether your qualities as a friend are strong or weak. 3. Consider working on those areas that are weaker in order to sustain strong and long lasting friendships. 4. Also consider the friendships you already have. Do these friends have the qualities you want them to have? Do you feel good being around them?

(Activity adapted from 201 Amazing Mind Bogglers by Robert B. Bowman, PhD)

Friendship Checklist

28 Friendship Strong Weak Quality Honesty/ loyalty Fun to be around Kind/ considerate Encouraging/ positive Listens

Inspiration!

Month: March

29 Theme: Peace Grade Level: 6

1. Materials: Music, paper, markers, crayons, etc.

2. Gathering: Peace related songs from varying decades will be playing as students arrive and signs of peace displayed.

3. Main Activity:

 Facilitators will explain that the peace sign has been a significant part of pop culture for decades in this country however many people do not know how it came to be.

 History of the Peace Sign- developed by a man in England in 1958 to promote the Nuclear Disarmament Movement. Some people say it is modeled after the naval signals for “N” and “D”. Others say it is meant to represent a person “putting down their arms”. The Peace Sign came to the U.S. and was adopted as symbols in anti-war demonstrations and the civil rights movement.

 Facilitators will show other symbols of peace (dove, 2 fingers, olive branch, etc.) and explain that they are all used in by various groups in various circumstances.

 Students will be asked to develop a symbol of peace specifically for Woodland.

4. Debriefing:

Students will be asked to explain how they developed their design and what they hoped people got from it.

30 Inspiration!

Month: March Theme: Peace Grade Level: 7

1. Materials: Colored paper, markers

2. Gathering: Quotes from Martin Luther King, Jr. re: Peace

3. Main Activity:

 What type of ACTION seems to necessary in order to achieve peace?

 Students will be asked to reflect on what individual action they can take in order to promote peace at school.

 They will then trace and cut out their hand and print their “Promise of Peace” on their hand.

 The hands will be collected in order to be displayed.

4. Closing: ask students to make a conscious effort to practice their promise over the next month and to make notes in their journal about the impact of their efforts.

31 Inspiration!

Month: March Theme: Peace Grade Level: 8

1. Gathering: Meditation music?, journals

2. Main Activity:

 What does the music make you feel?

 We often talk about peace, what does that mean?

 What kinds of peace are there?

World Nature Peace between people Peace in society Inner peace  Where does inner peace come from? How do you achieve it?

 Ask students to write in their journal something they will do to help themselves be more peaceful.

3. Closing: Guided imagery

32 Inspiration!

Month: April Theme: Perseverance Grade Level: 6

Materials: worksheet, “Perseverance”

1. Gathering: Write on board: Perseverance: carrying out a goal to completion even when it gets difficult  Teacher says, “Today we are going to talk about following through with our goals. People who follow through with their goals have perseverance, the ability to carry out a task until it is completed. Sometimes the task becomes difficult and it can get tough. People with perseverance keep their commitment and accept responsibility for finishing. They don’t give up!”

2. Main Activity:  Teacher says, “Your character is built upon the choices you make. Which of the following actions show perseverance?”

 Teacher hands out ‘Perseverance’ worksheet and explains directions.

 Students complete independently.

 Teacher directs students to choose ONE of the actions they feel requires perseverance. After a minute, teacher directs students to write down how students plan to commit to this action.

33 3. Debriefing: Teacher asks a few students to share. At the end, teacher says, “For today, focus on the goal you chose and work on showing perseverance in that area!”

Perseverance  carrying out a goal to completion even when it gets difficult 

Your character is built on the choices you make. Part 1. Decide which of the following actions show perseverance. ______Do what you set out to do ______Give up easily ______Show self-confidence and self-discipline ______Think before you act ______Blame others for your mistakes ______Pursue excellence ______Let others down when they are counting on you ______Set goals and don’t follow through

Part 2. Choose one of the above actions you feel showed perseverance. Write down how you plan to show perseverance in this area.

Ex: I chose think before I act. I plan to follow through with this action by taking an extra minute to think about the consequences before I do something. I will think about if what I am about to do demonstrates who I am and if the results of my action will help me reach my goals. If I am angry or upset, I will not act until I calm down.

34 Inspiration!

Month: April Theme: Perseverance Grade: 7

Materials: 9 dot drawing

1. Opening: Ask students to sit in pairs, as they will work collaboratively to solve a problem.

2. Main Activity:

 Facilitator will hand out one dot drawing per pair.  Facilitator will give the following instructions: Pairs will be asked to connect all 9 dots with 4 straight lines without lifting the pencil from the paper. You may not redraw over any line, but you can cross over a line.  The pairs will have 5 minutes to attempt the task.  After 5 minutes, facilitator will check in with groups to see if they were successful. The groups who did not complete the task will be offered an additional 2 minutes if they choose to use it.  Check in with all groups after 2 minutes.

3. Debriefing:  How easy/ difficult was this task?  What if anything, helped you to solve it?  Why did you choose to use or not to use the extra time?  What skills were required to solve the problem?

35  How do we use those skills in our daily lives?

(Activity adapted from 201 Amazing Mind Bogglers by Robert B. Bowman, PhD)

Inspiration!

Month: April Theme: Perseverance Grade Level: 8

Materials: T- puzzle pieces

1. Opening: Divide the class into groups of four.

2. Main Activity:

 Facilitator will give each group puzzle pieces and tell them that they have 5 minutes to try to put the pieces together in order to make a T.

 After the 5 minutes, check in with groups to see if they were successful. Let the groups who had not completed the task know that they could have another 2 minutes if they want to continue to try to solve the problem.

 Check in with all groups at the end of the 2 minutes.

3. Debriefing:  How easy/ difficult was this task?

 What, if anything, helped you solve it?

 Why did you choose to use or not use the additional time?

36  What skills were required to solve the problem.

 How do we use those skills in our day to day lives?

(Activity adapted from 201 Amazing Mind Bogglers by Robert P.. Bowman, PhD)

Inspiration!

Month: May Theme: Gratitude Grade Level: 6

1. Gathering: So much time is spent getting through our difficult times, we can sometimes forget to count our blessings. We are going to think about the good things in our lives today.

2. Main Activity:

 Each student will receive 5-8 small slips of paper

 Students will be asked to write on the slips the things they may be unhappy about in their lives.

 Once they have reflected on their complaints, students will be asked to turn the slips of paper over and write down something they can be thankful for.

For example, if a student has written that their math grade is terrible, on the flip side that student may state that he/she is grateful for his/her teacher giving extra help. 3. Debriefing:

37  Students will be asked to share some of the things they are frustrated by and how they “flipped that around” to find something to be thankful for.

 How will thinking about these things be helpful to you?

4. Closing: How can you express your gratitude the people in your life over the next month?

Inspiration!

Materials: 1 paper cup for each student, small slips of paper

1. Gathering: So much time is spent getting through our difficult times; we can sometimes forget to count our blessing. We are going to think about the good things in our lives today.

2. Main Activity:

 Each student will be given 1 cup and 10 slips of paper

 Students will be asked to write the answers to the following questions on the slips of paper and put them into their cup.

38 o The last compliment you received

o The name of the last person that helped you

o The last time you did something you enjoy

o The last time you tried something new

o The last time you felt good at something

o 5 things you are grateful for.

3. Debriefing:

 Students will be asked to share some of the things they put into their cup.

Inspiration!

1. Gathering: So much time is spent getting through our difficult times, we can sometimes forget to count our blessing. We are going to think about the good things in our lives today.

2. Main Activity:

39  Each student will receive 5-8 small slips of paper

 Students will be asked to write on the slips the things they may be unhappy about in their lives.

 Once they have reflected on their complaints, students will be asked to turn the slips of paper over and write down something they can be thankful for.

For example, if a student has written that their math grade is terrible, on the flip side that student may state that he/she is grateful for his/her teacher giving extra help. 3. Debriefing:

 Students will be asked to share some of the things they are frustrated by and how they “flipped that around” to find something to be thankful for.

4. Closing: How can you express your gratitude the people in your life over the next month?

Appendix #1

6th Grade Homebase Assignments Room Teachers Student Facilitators 134 Smith/ Panzica Clair Awad/ Noah Adelman/Andy Goetz 135 Thoben/ Schmidt Khadija Bhatti/ Lindsay Pincus 161 Trupiano/ Wermelinger Paige Blayne/Emily Rosenkrantz

40 162 Garcia/ Herman Nefia Chacko/ Jon Fitzpatrick 163 Nicolello/ Galligan Purnima Chopra/ Senya Huda 165 Healy/ Ricchetti Alyssa Cohen/Anthony Valentin 166 Sweeny/ Rausch Alex Cunha/ Stephanie Botman 227 Fullam/ Jones Kim Dannahy/ Victoria Cuttone 230 Mele/ Reynolds Jordan Diamond/ Natalie Schmidlen 262 Green/ Marshall Caitlyn Donnelly/ Lexi Dolan 228 Castro/ Rooney Erika Espinosa/ Amanda Owens 234 Bracken/ Larsen Erin Floody/ Shermeen Khan 238 Malinverno/ Alfarone Krutika Ghandi/ Jacqueline Picone 266 Gallagher/ Marino Aliyha Gill/ Margaret Hall

7th Grade Homebase Assignments Room Teachers Student Facilitators 100 Cutrone/ Minelli Kyle Barker/ Jayden Agosta 101 Selario/ Anderson Allie Goldstein/ Nikita Uppal 103 Greenbaum/ Rowe Ariel Jimenez/ Gina Wilson 104 DiNapoli/ Horn Nicole Kane/ Mary Zaradich 105 LaConti/ Barker K. Lao/ Matt Fertitta 112 Guerriero/ Spagnoli Isabel Londono/ Michael Wood 114 Purdy/ Kreuder Faryal Mohammed/Annunziata Mazzella 115 Denecke/ Feinstein Jaden/ Nogee/ Angelina Zampini 202 Schmerler/ Kluczka Isabella Oliverio/ Jake Schneebaum 204 Wolin/ Cassard Kajal Patel/ Sean Bies 206 Berk/ Rogala Sonali Persaud/ Alex Severo 213 Friedman/ Dunn Melina Ramirez/ Helen Doddato 214 Mades/ Zeman Lauren Reilly/ Elise Shallbetter 215 Melendez/ Seeley Dan Sparkowski/ Lou Vega 216 Cinnamo/ Maenza Kirkland Surgrim/ Giancarlo Consiglio 222 Back/ Dervisi James Surless/ Jake Novik

8th Grade Homebase Assignments Room Teachers Student Facilitators 126 Meckley/ Feinman Chrissy Mirabito (EMHS) 128 Messina/ Bange Allison Keenan (EMHS) 139 Lyon/ Carlsen Melissa Allen (EMHS) 141 Moisa/ Guinta Danielle Tuthill (EMHS)

41 142 Johnson/ Lamonica Jordan Freudenberg/ Rose Zaman 143 Lalier/ Hoffman Lauren Cassell (EMHS) 144 Burnside/ Antonelli Michelina Lanzer/ Zhara Dhalla 145 Genoino/Hardwick Mahaia Mathelier/ Gianna Azzato 226 Lemp/ Runco Gabriella Piccolo/ Mahek Laul 233 Lewner/TBA Justin Reyes/ Emma McKillop/Stephanie Iline 236 Re/Aberman Scott Shapiro/ Kelly Efferson 239 Jantz/ Boccio Stepahnie Tavel/ Michelina Lanzer 240 LaVolpe/Salgado Olivia Garrahan/ Danitza Leon 242 Passalacqua/Trgo Olivia Megale/ Rukhsar Asef 243 Mello/ Sundri Toni Ann Califano/ Melissa Kamper 244 Gropf/ Deacon John Whitenack/ Amanda Clements