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Make Patience NormalGRADE 6, LESSON 23

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CharacterDare(5-7 minutes)

Exit Intentionally(1 minute)

Objectives:• Students will reflect on their own

character and identify ways they could improve it.

• Students will understand what Patience can look like, daily or weekly, in their lives.

• Students will create an ongoing commitment to bring Patience to life in their school.

Materials:• Image: CharacterDare Image Set• Image: WOOP Goal Worksheet• Optional Worksheet: WOOP Goal

Worksheet• Supplies: Paper and/or notebook

and writing utensil for each student

• Video: This Side Up (2:46)

CharacterDare (5-7 minutes):• *Project Image: Previous CharacterDare.*

• Review the previous CharacterDare. In partnerships or small groups, have students discuss the previous Dare using the Truth or Dare format.

• *Project Image: Truth or Dare.* Є Truth: “What do you think about our most recent Dare?”

Є Do you like or dislike the Dare? Why? Є What was most difficult when considering this Dare? Є What do you think would happen if more people did

this CharacterDare? Є Dare: “Reflect on your experience with our most recent

Video(5-7 minutes)

Activity(12-15 minutes)

Dare.” Є What did you learn about yourself

in attempting this CharacterDare? Є What did you learn about others in

attempting this CharacterDare?

• Ask for volunteers or randomly select some students to share their Truth or Dare reflections. Encourage them when appropriate and take advantage of any teachable moments, especially when a student shares a struggle. Remind your students that it is not about being perfect or completing every Dare. This process is about striving to improve our character with intentional practice. For some people, the challenge is simply in thinking about the CharacterDare and discussing it.

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Make Patience NormalGRADE 6, LESSON 23

• *Project Image: Current CharacterDare.*

• Introduce the current CharacterDare. Answer and clarify any questions about the Dare. Encourage students to modify the CharacterDare if it does not seem to specifically fit your school situation. If necessary, talk about ways you could increase or decrease the challenge of the CharacterDare.

Video (5-7 minutes):• *Play video: This Side Up (2:46).*

• Have students talk to someone next to them about where they saw the man be patient and where they saw his patience being tested.

• Ask the class to discuss all or some of the following questions as a class or with a neighbor.

Є What is something that makes you really frustrated or impatient? Є When you get really impatient, what is something you do that might not be

how you really WANT to treat people? Є When you get impatient, what do you do to calm yourself or remind yourself

to get back your self-control?

Activity - Make Patience Normal (12-15 minutes):• Say, “In the video, you saw a man get really frustrated while the computer was

testing his patience. There are lots of things that test our patience in the world, and sometimes, when we don’t practice enough patience or self-control, we do things that are hurtful to ourselves or other people.”

• Ask, “Earlier this year, we talked about making Kindness normal in our school and in our lives. Let’s check in—how has it been going? We will use ‘fist to five,’ meaning you put up all five fingers if it’s going really well and just one finger if you have been struggling.”

• Use this as an easy way to see where kids are at in the class. Call on a few ‘fives’ and a few ‘ones’ to check-in and see how they are doing and why they are struggling or succeeding. Ask some ‘threes’ or ‘fours’ to share what would help them to get to a ‘five.’

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Make Patience NormalGRADE 6, LESSON 23

• Say, “In this lesson, we are focusing on making Patience normal in our lives. We have talked about setting more powerful goals with the WOOP technique. Let’s apply it to Patience.”

• Ask, “Remember Patience is about getting your values (head) in charge of your emotions—helping you have more self-control. Where in your life can you work on being more patient?”

• Remind students what WOOP stands for: Є Wish: What do you want to achieve? Є Outcome: What would happen if you achieved your outcome? Є Obstacle: What obstacles might be in the way of achieving your desired

outcome? Є Plan: Simple ‘If...then…’ plan that focuses on overcoming the obstacles

identified as they emerge.”

• *Project Image: WOOP Goal Worksheet.*

• Say, “Today, we are going to write a WOOP goal for patience. First, we have to start with the wish! An example of a wish for patience might be, ‘I wish that I was better at having patience with people that are different than me’ or ‘I wish that I had more patience with my siblings’ or ‘I wish I was more focused and patient in class with my teachers.’ Go ahead and write your own wish now!”

Є Ask if 1-2 people would share their wish. Offer help where they are strug-gling.

• Say, “The next step is to think about and visualize the outcome of your wish. If it came true, what would happen? Maybe you would create more friends at school and help make others feel happy, safe, and important here. Maybe it would mean you’d have a stronger relationship with your siblings and they might help you more when you needed it. Maybe you’d learn more in class and get better grades at school. Take a second and write down what the outcome of YOUR wish could be!”

Є Ask if 1-2 people would share their outcome. Offer help where they are struggling.

• Say, “Now, the most important part of the WOOP process is figuring out what will get in the way of us achieving what we are trying to work on. This part is called the obstacle. What is an obstacle for you in making your wish come true? For example, maybe you feel pressure from your friends to treat certain people in certain ways, and you don’t want your friends to laugh at you. Maybe your siblings can be really annoying sometimes, and it feels like they always start the fight. Maybe you feel really bored or hyper in certain classes, and it makes it hard to focus. For YOUR wish, write down one or two obstacles that might get in the way.”

Є Ask if 1-2 people would share their obstacle. Offer help where they are struggling.

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Make Patience NormalGRADE 6, LESSON 23

Exit Intentionally (1 minute):• Say, “Thank you for being patient with this challenging lesson today! Practicing

patience is so worth it. A Chinese proverb says, ‘One moment of patience may ward off great disaster. One moment of impatience may ruin a whole life.’ A Greek proverb says, ‘One minute of patience, ten years of peace.’ It is so true! When we get our head (our values) in charge of our hearts (our emotions), we make better choices that can change our relationships and our lives!”

• Say, “The last thing I want you to write down is your plan! With a lot of goals in our life, the plan is pretty straightforward. If I want to get better at swimming, I probably have to go to swim practice and practice swimming every day. When we are talking about our character, it gets a little harder. That’s why we are taking time today to figure out how to be better people and not just better athletes or students! So, what is your plan for making Patience more normal in your life? For this part, I want you to write two things.”

• Say, “First, I want you to write down how you will handle your obstacles. It should be an if-then statement. For example, ‘If my brother is whining or blaming me for something, then I will listen to why he is feeling that way instead of getting defensive or attacking him!’ Go ahead and write down your plan for how you will handle your obstacles!”

• Say, “Finally, the last part of your plan is HOW you want to practice patience in some small way every day or every week—one simple way that you will make patience a part of your life. Maybe it is that every Monday when you get home from school, you sit down with your brother and ask him about stuff he likes. Maybe it is that for the first 3 minutes of lunch, you try and talk to someone you don’t know that well. Maybe it is every day you show up to your 2nd period class one minute early so you can talk to the teacher and feel ready for class. Write down the one way you plan on practicing patience in your life to accomplish your wish!”

• Say, “Put this paper somewhere you will see it every day, to help you make patience normal in your life!”