Courage

Think Tac Toe

An alternative assessment method that can be used with all grades and subject areas. In the tic-tac-toe 9-square grid, list a variety of activities and projects (simple, more difficult, and those that would take days to complete). Youth then select any run of three squares: vertical, horizontal or diagonal, letting them own their choices. In …

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What Should We Do?

Show pictures and/or video of certain situations at school and in the surrounding neighborhood. Examples include: seeing garbage on the floor, an elderly person dropping their cane, a person not able to get through a door because their hands are full, a child crying or looking sad, or classmates arguing or fighting. Hold a classroom …

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Thankenstein

Adult writes at the top of a blank paper, “I’m so grateful that if I were a monster created by a mad scientist, my name would be Thankenstein.” Give each child a photocopy of this sheet, and have them draw their (happy) monster, then have them complete the sentence, “I appreciate you, (name), because ________________ …

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Structured Academic Controversy

An opportunity to explore controversial issues and divergent positions and work to reach consensus on what may have happened– highlighting the complexities of particular perspectives, opinions and events. Have youth argue one side of an argument and then have them switch sides before negotiating an agreement between the two sides. The controversial issues can be …

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Stoplight

To help young people deal with feelings of anger and frustration, try using the visual of a stoplight: green is calm, yellow is frustrated, and red is angry. Ask them to recognize and briefly describe their color. Are they moving up or down to a different color? What can they do to get to green? …

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Socratic Seminar

Titled after the Greek philosopher, Socratic dialogue transforms a student’s learning experience by allowing youth to generate and express their own ideas via the teacher asking questions as their primary method of instruction. It is collaborative, intellectual dialogue facilitated with open-ended questions about a topic, text, or issue. When done purposefully, the outcome is improved …

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