Decision Making

Classroom Guidance

Grades 2nd-3rd

 

 

Goal

 

Students will use knowledge of healthy vs. unhealthy choices to help them work together to solve a problem peacefully.

Check-in

How are you feeling right now?

Question Before you Begin

 

 

Do you feel that you can solve a problem when you are upset?

Building Background

 

Today we are going to be learning about Decision Making. What is a decision? 

 

A decision is another word for a choice. Today we are going to learn about how to make a decision or choice. We are also going to talk about the words healthy and unhealthy. Before we have talked about how to make a healthy versus an unhealthy choice. When we make a healthy choice how does that make us feel?

 

A healthy choice is going to make us feel good and turn into a positive. But what happens when we make an unhealthy choice?

 

Another word for unhealthy might be bad. What could be an unhealthy choice we make?

 

An unhealthy choice could make us feel sad or mad. For example, if I choose to not _________________ then this could happen? What are some healthy choices we could make with people we have good relationships with?

 

\We could be respectful to them, listen to them. We could also be kind to them and follow directions. But what happens when we choose to make an unhealthy choice with another person? What could happen?

Watch "Right Choices and Overcoming Difference"

 

Discuss how the dad made the right choice by helping the umpire at the end even though he might still be upset about the game.

Watch The Bad Seed

 

 

Questions before Watching

 

  • Why do you think this could be a bad seed?
  • What do you think happened to him?
  • Do you think he made healthy or unhealthy choices?

Questions after Watching

 

  • What happened to the bad seed?
  • Was he able to change?
  • Who made him change? (answer: He had the power to change himself.)
  • What did he do to change?

Activities (Choose one)

Planting a Seed

 

Materials needed: Cup, seed, potting soil, and a cup of water

 

Would you like to plant a seed?  If so, you will have to make some healthy decisions for our plant. What’s the first step to planting a seed. (Talk through putting the soil in the pot. Then put the seed and cover it with soil. Now our seed is planted. ) What kind of healthy decisions will you have to make for your seed? 

 

You will need to give it water, sunlight and talk to it kindly. These are all healthy decisions for your plant. Those will all help your plant grow good and strong. What kind of healthy decisions could you make to help a relationship grow with a person?

 

Use kind words, be polite, help them, and talking to them with kind voices, even when we are mad, help you grow relationships with your parents, siblings, teachers, and friends.

 

Jenga Decisions

 

Materials needed: Jenga

 

Build the tower and discuss how we make decisions everyday. 

 

Let’s pretend each one of these blocks is a decision we have to make in a day. We make decisions all day long. Once the tower is built, ask the students what happens when we make a decision that may not be healthy for us, like responding rudely to a teacher when we are frustrated? As students respond, pull a piece out of the tower. 

 

When we make decisions that are unhealthy for us, sometimes it can make us feel unsettled or wobbly. Then what happens when we choose to make another decision? What could happen to us? 

 

When we choose to continue to make unhealthy decisions we are eventually going to crash down.  Do we want to do that? 

 

Now each one of us is going to take a block and we are going to take 10 seconds to think about what kind of decisions we can make to bring a healthy outcome. Could be to your parents, teachers, family, or friends. What can you do to build those relationships and keep them strong and healthy? 

 

Allow everyone to add their block to the Jenga tower while sharing what they can do to make healthy decisions.

Check for Understanding

 

  • Now do you feel that you can solve a problem when they are upset?
  • What is one decision that you made recently that maybe was unhealthy and what could you do to change it to a healthy one?

Mindful Moment

Mind Yeti

 

Balloon Arms

 

1.  Discuss before you begin:  When you fill a balloon with air (inflate it) it gets bigger, and when you let the air out of the balloon (deflate it), it gets smaller.

 

2.  Rest your hands on top of your head. with your fingertip touching.  Now, move your hands like a balloon filling with air and getting bigger, then down like a balloon deflating and getting smaller, keeping your fingertips together.

 

3.  Now, sync your breathing with the movement of your arms.  Slowly breath in as your balloon fills with air, then out as airs leaves your balloon.

 

4.  Repeat ten times.  How are you feeling?