Week 1 Theme: Empathy

Day 1 Theme: Identifying Others Feelings Day 2 Theme: Understanding Perspectives & Conflicting Feelings Day 3 Theme: Accepting Differences Day 4 Theme: Showing Compassion & Making Friends

Day 1 Theme: Identifying Others Feelings Lesson Concepts: -Looking for clues on a persons face or body and in the situation helps you notice and understand how the person is feeling -People can have different feelings about the same situation. -All feelings are natural Key Vocabulary : Same, Different, Clue, Situation, Amused, Empathy Why this lesson matters: The ability to identify others feelings using physical, verbal, and situational clues is essential to the development of empathy. Elementary students may misinterpret how someone else is feeling if they assume others will react and feel the same way they would. Understanding that different people can have different feelings in similar situations, and that feelings can change, helps students develop empathy and perspective-taking skills. Accurately identifying others feelings helps students make friends and avoid conflict with peers.
-Introduce topic and go over vocabulary 5 min

-Create a class Feelings List. 10 min -Play Feelings Factory with feelings from the class Feelings List. Then show students a feeling. Have them name it and explain what clues helped them figure it out. 25 min -Throughout the day, have students identify which feelings from the class Feelings List they are experiencing. Add new feelings to the list. -Play the Be a Learner song. Have students practice focusing attention and listening as classmates relate times when they felt upset. 15 min Have students complete the Daily Skill Check. Sample check-in statements: 5min -I can focus on another persons face and body and on the situation for clues about how that person is feeling. -My feelings about a situation can be different from someone elses.

Day 2 Theme: Understanding Perspectives & Conflicting Feelings Lesson Concepts: -People can have different feelings about the same situation, and their feelings can change -Empathy is feeling or understanding what someone else is feeling -Thinking about others perspectives helps you have empathy for them -You can have conflicting feelings about a situation -Having empathy helps you notice when others feelings are the same as or different from yours Key Vocabulary: Perspective, empathy, prediction, change, on purpose, jumped to conclusions, by accident, curious, nervous, conflicting Why this lesson matters: This lesson continues to build students perspective-taking ability by examining scenarios where people have different feelings about the same thing. Perspective taking is critical skill for working in groups, making friends, and successfully resolving interpersonal conflicts. It also expands students empathy skills by helping them learn that a person can have different, and even conflicting, emotions at the same time. Understanding this can improve students ability to understand others feelings-even when feelings are complex-and increase students ability to use empathy to build friendships and solve conflicts. - Introduce topic and go over vocabulary 5 min - Play Feelings Factory: Same of Different and Switch It Up. Check in with students about their feelings about an upcoming academic task or activity. Check in again afterwards to see if students feelings changed. 25 min -Play the Be the Learner song. Discuss how Skills for Learning help you notice and understand others perspectives. Also, have students identify a time they had conflicting feelings about learning something. 25 min -Have students complete the Daily Skill Check. Sample check-in statements 5 min -I have empathy for others when I feel or understand what they feel -Noticing and understanding others perspectives helps me have empathy.

Day 3 Theme: Accepting Differences Lesson Concepts: -Having empathy helps you understand and accept how others are the same as or different from you. -Accepting and appreciating others differences is respectful Key Vocabulary: Similar, different, accept, appreciate, individual Why this lesson matters: Practice I finding things they have in common with other students can help children develop empathy and avoid the stereotyping that can fuel teasing and other forms of bullying. Teasing is a very common and hurtful form of bullying, and it is important for children to understand that it is wrong. -Introduce topic and go over vocabulary 5 min -Have students play Common Ground with partners other than their Second Step partner. 25 min -Play the Empathy Song. Discuss ways students can use empathy to help them notice and understand others differences throughout the day. 25 min -Have students complete the Daily Skill Check. Sample Check-in statements: 5 min -Having empathy helps me understand and accept how others are different from me. -Accepting and appreciating peoples differences is respectful.

Day 4 Theme: Showing Compassion & Making Friends Lesson Concepts: -Focusing attention on and listening to others can help you have empathy and show compassion. -You can say kind words or do helpful things to show your compassion Key Vocabulary: Concern, cares, notices, compassion, appreciates, conversation, friendly/friendliness, connection Why this lesson matters: Empathy helps students perceive and understand what others are feeling. This lesson focuses on putting empathy into action by showing compassion. One of the ways empathy makes a difference for students is by motivating them to use caring words and actions toward others. Students can channel their empathy into compassion to help peers feel less isolated, provide emotional support to peers in difficult circumstances, and strengthen friendships. Students who are bullied can experience fewer difficulties if other students are compassionate and show them support. -Introduce topic and go over vocabulary 5 min -Sing the Empathy Song. Have students track compassionate acts throughout the week. Record students compassionate acts on a class list titled Compassion: Empathy in Action and deliver it to the principal at the end of the week. Have students play Chat Chain with partners other than their Second Step partners. Discuss with students how having empathy helps them make conversation with others. 25 min -Before recess, review skills for making conversation. Ask students to start a conversation with another student while at recess. Afterward, have students reflect on their experience. Sing the Empathy Song and review and discuss the random acts of compassion observed in the last three days. 25 min -Have students complete the Daily Skills Check. Sample check-in statements: 5 min -Knowing how to begin a conversation, keep it going, and end it in a friendly way helps me get along better with others. -Focusing attention on and listening to others help me keep a conversation going. -Focusing attention on and listening to others help me have compassion for them -I say or do many things to show my compassion.

Week 2 Theme: Emotion Management

Day 1 Theme: Introducing Emotion Management & Managing Test Anxiety Day 2 Theme: Handling Accusations Day 3 Theme: Managing Disappointment & Managing Anger Day 4 Theme: Managing Hurt Feelings

Day 1 Theme: Introducing Emotion Management & Managing Test Anxiety Lesson Concepts: -When you feel strong feelings, its hard to think clearly. -Focusing attention on your body gives you clues about how youre feeling -Thinking about your feelings helps the thinking part of your brain get back in control. -Using a stop signal and naming your feeling are the two Calming-Down steps. Key Vocabulary: Nervous, anxious, manage, handle, recognize. Why this lesson matters: When emotions are intense, it is hard to think straight and make good decisions. Strong feelings of anger can lead to aggressive behavior. Students may also struggle to make good decisions when experiencing other intense feelings. Recognizing and labeling feelings in oneself and other facilitates problem soling, self-management, and social competence. Focusing on bodily signs of strong emotions helps students recognize emotions that might need to be managed. Emotion and language are processed in different parts of the brain. Using language helps engage the thinking part of the brain. Simply naming a feeling can help decrease its intensity, which can be helpful to children when they are upset or overwhelmed by a strong emotion. A stop signal is a way to use sign language when upset and halt the escalation of emotions. Then a student can use the rest of Calming-Down steps to regain self-control. -Introduce topic and go over vocabulary 5 min -Divide the class into two groups. Have one group do the Calm It Down Dance while the other sings the chorus to the Calm It Down song. The have groups switch roles. Have students use personal stop signals in place of the word stop in the song. 25 min -Have students play Frozen Feelings Factory with their Second Step partners. Have students use Think, Turn, Tell to say how their bodies feel when theyre experiencing strong feelings. 25 min -Have students complete the Daily Skill Check. Sample check-in statements: 5 min -I can focus attention on my body for clues about how Im feeling. -Feeling very uncomfortable is a clue that the thinking part of my brain is losing control. -I use my stop signal and name my feeling to start calming down. My stop signal is _________________________. -When I recognize my feelings, it helps the thinking part of my brain start to manage my strong feelings.

Day 2 Theme: Handling Accusations Lesson Concepts: -You can use belly breathing to calm down -Calming down helps you handle accusations calmly and thoughtfully -Its important to take responsibility when youve made a mistake Key Vocabulary: Belly breathing, accusing/accusation, racing (heart) Why this lesson matters: Calming down can help students manage strong feelings. In this lesson, students learn and practice how to calm down using deep breathing, called belly breathing. Belly breathing (diaphragmatic breathing) helps lower blood pressure and heart rate, both of which calm the body. Once students are calmer, it is easier for them to think clearly and handle situations. -Introduce topic and go over vocabulary 5 min -Review the belly-breathing technique with students. Play Freeze Frame with challenges. Have students practice belly breathing to calm down after the game. 25 min -Play the Calm It Down song and have students do the Calm It Down dance. Stop the music at different intervals and have students freeze in various feelings mentioned in the song, then use belly breathing to calm down. 25 min -Have students complete the Daily Skill Check. Sample check-in statements: 5 min -Belly breathing helps me calm down -I can handle accusations calmly and thoughtfully

Day 3 Theme: Managing Disappointment & Managing Anger Lesson Concepts: -Negative self-talk can make strong feelings even stronger -You can calm down by using positive self-talk -Setting a new goal and making a plan to achieve it are positive ways to handle disappointment -Everyone feels angry sometimes, but hurting other peoples feelings or bodies is not okay. -Its important to calm down angry feelings so you dont do something hurtful. -Being assertive is a respectful way to get what you want or need. Key Vocabulary: Goal, disappointing/disappointed, positive, negative, perseverance, hurtful Why this lesson matters: In this lesson, students learn how to use positive self-talk to calm themselves during disappointment, a common stressor for children. Positive-self talk can effectively engage the thinking part of the brain in emotional situations, while negative self-talk can escalate emotions and decrease students self-control. Students should identify and practice words and phrases that work for them so that positive self-talk comes easily when needed. Anger is a common strong emotion that can cause lots of problems for students. In this lesson, students learn about and practice using both assertiveness and a new way to calm down, counting, to cope with strong feelings of anger. Counting can help students successfully manage angry emotions; it engages the thinking part of the brain and helps students slow down so they can think before they react to a situation. -Introduce topic and go over vocabulary 5 min -Play Freeze Frame. Have students complete part 3 of the lesson 14 handout. Play Moving pictures. First have students show angry expressions. Next, have students use counting to calm down, then show calm expressions. (Cool as a cucumber. Calm as a quiet night, cool as ice.) 25 min -Have students create pocket plans for a least one academic goal and evaluate their plans with the Good Plan Checklist. Remind students that a good attitude and perseverance will help them achieve goals. 25 min -Have students complete the Daily Skill Check. Sample check-in statements: 5 min -Positive self-talk helps me calm down. -Setting a new goal and making a plan to achieve it is a positive way to handle disappointment. -Counting helps me calm down. -Its important to calm down when I am angry so I dont hurt someone.

Day 4 Theme: Managing Hurt Feelings Lesson Concepts: -Calming down when your feelings have been hurt can help you avoid jumping to conclusions. -Thinking of other explanations and getting more information can help you avoid jumping to conclusions Key Vocabulary: Jumping to conclusions, explanations Why this lesson matters: In this lesson, students learn to use emotion management techniques to stop strong emotions from pushing them into jumping to conclusions. Students can use the Calming-Down Steps to make it less likely they will act impulsively on their emotions. Then they can take the next step and ask questions assertively, which helps them better understand others perspectives and intentions. -Introduce topic and go over vocabulary 5 min -Play the Calm It Down song and have students do the Calm It Down Dance. Have students use counting to calm down after dancing. 25 min -Play the partner version of Jump to Conclusions. 25 min -Have students complete the Daily Skill Check. Sample check-in statements: 5 min -Calming down hurt feelings helps me think clearly -I can think of other explanations and find out more information to avoid jumping to conclusions.