Week of December 17 - 21

Welcome to the final week of 2018 and of the 2nd quarter!

This week we will have shortened periods for only 2 more days due to district testing, Monday and Tuesday.

On Monday, the students and I began reading an article together about how to improve their EQ.  They were also given a set of questions and instructed to do two things before Tuesday's class:
       1. Read the article in its entirety.
       2. Indicate on the article where the answers to each question (#s 1-7) can be found.

The article and questions are shown below.

On Tuesday, the students will write out their answers to each of the 7 questions by (1) restating the question, (2) answering the question asked, and (3) writing their answers in grammatically complete sentences.  This activity should be completed for homework if it is not completed during the class period.

On Wednesday, I will lead the students in an activity that will help them assess their own level of emotional intelligence.  The culmination of that activity is a list of ten qualities of people with high emotional intelligence. 

10 Qualities of People with High Emotional Intelligence
 1. They are NOT perfectionists.
 2. They know how to BALANCE work and play.
 3. They EMBRACE change.
 4. They don't get easily distracted.
 5. They are EMPATHETIC.
 6. They know their strengths and weaknesses.
 7. They are SELF-motivated.
 8. They don't dwell in the past.
 9. They focus on the POSITIVE.
10. They set BOUNDARIES.

On Thursday, after having reviewed the students' written responses to the homework assignment that was due on Wednesday, I used the class period to help the students improve their ability to write an accurate written response.

On Friday, the students will read two short articles about how to manage the emotion of anger, and they will take notes on their learning.

Bell Ringer's this week:

Monday: 3-minute mediation on Staying Awake

Tuesday: How emotionally intelligent are you?  EXPLAIN.

Wednesday: Identify which attribute of emotional intelligence is the most challenging for you.  Explain why this attribute is more difficult for you than the others.

Thursday: List from memory as many of the 10 qualities of people with high emotional intelligence as you can remember.

Friday: Describe how you typically act when you get angry.

Week of December 10 - 14

Welcome to Week 17!

This week will include a few more days of district testing which will shorten our class periods.  Nonetheless, I will continue to move forward in my curriculum, and for these final 2 weeks of the 2nd semester our topic of study will be EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE.

On Monday, the students received a handout which they will be completing in class.  We began by defining emotional intelligence.  Emotional intelligence (EQ), also known as social-emotional learning (SEL), is the ability to understand, use and manage you own emotions in order to create successful outcomes.  Unlike your IQ which is established at your birth, your EQ can be developed and increased by learning key skill sets which fall into one of 4 categories (or domains).  The 4 domains of emotional intelligence are: (1) self-management, (2) self-awareness, (3) social awareness, and (4) relationship management.

On Tuesday, the students and I discussed the myriad of possible emotions that people may feel, and discussed how difficult it is for some people to even accurately identify what emotion they are feeling.  On Thursday, we will be discussing where emotions come.  In preparation for this discussion, the students were given homework (on Tuesday) to view a video on emotions and the brain (see below) and complete question #3 on the handout I gave them (after they watch the video).

Emotions and the Brain

On Wednesday, only periods 2 and 7 met due to extended district testing.  During these class periods, we discussed last Friday's homework and then read an article about how Kawhi Leonard (a player on the Toronto Raptors basketball team) used emotional intelligence to deal with negative publicity he received.

On Thursday, we watched and discussed the video (above), and I collected the homework (Emotional Intelligence - 3 questions).

On Friday, our 15-minute class sessions (due to extended district testing time) left us with time only for me to pass back and discuss the homework assignment and for all of us to experience a 3-minute meditation on happiness with a follow-up discussion.

Bell Ringers this week:

Monday: Explain two of the successful coping strategies that you and your parent(s) discussed over the weekend for your homework assignment.

Tuesday: What is emotional intelligence?

Wednesday: No bell ringer for most classes due to extended testing schedule.

Thursday: Draw the EQ quadrants and fill them in from your memory.

Friday: No Bell Ringer due to 15 minute classes

Week of December 3 - 7

This week we move into the topic of MINDFULNESS.

To help develop an understanding of meditation, one of the 10 ways the students learned how to tame their monkey mind, students will be spending 3 minutes each day in meditation.  The meditation presented can be found in the "Headspace" app for kids. The students have been asked to simply focus on "being present" and not to worry about whether they feel they are becoming "good" or "bad" at meditation.  Prior to each meditation, they will be shown a short animation that provides insight on "how" to meditate.  The bell ringers this week will consist of summarizing each animation.  Students must be present in class in order to complete each bell ringer.

Jon Kabat-Zinn is best known for introducing mindfulness to western culture with his MBSR technique (mindfulness-based stress reduction) that he created to help patients suffering with severe anxiety due to trauma.  Mindfulness is now very commonly practiced.  It is what arises when we are paying attention in the present moment on purpose and non-judgmentally.  On Monday and Tuesday, the students brainstormed several terms to help them understand the difference between the terms "Mind Full" and "Mindful".  In addition, the students read two excerpts about mindfulness from Kabat-Zinn's book entitled, Mindfulness for Beginners.  The students were required to answer the following 3 questions from their reading, and to memorize the definition of mindfulness.

1.  What is Jon Kabat-Zinn's definition for "mindfulness"?
2.  What is the difference between the "doing mode" and the "being mode" of our mind?
3. What 2 things are necessary in order to shift from the "doing mode" to the "being mode"?

On Wednesday and Thursday, despite the shortened class periods due to the 7th and 8th grade testing schedule, my leadership students continued their meditation practices and added to their understanding of mindfulness by viewing and discussing the following two videos:

VIDEO: What is Mindfulness?

VIDEO: Why is mindfulness a superpower?

This video illustrated the following truth:  

Mindfulness allows you to respond wisely to things that happen to you rather than blindly reacting to events without thinking.

We also learned about 4 ways to practice mindfulness:

1. Stay in the present.
2. Be only the observer of your thoughts.

3. Engage your senses.

4. Transform your relationship with your problems.

The students were required to memorize these 4 important ways to practice mindfulness.  To do so, we discussed multiple ways to memorize material including reciting it over and over, writing it down and quizzing yourself, and creating an acronym.  On Thursday, the students were quizzed on these 4 ways to practice mindfulness.  

On Friday, the students began with another meditation practice, and then they completed a letter to their parents (see below):

                                                                                                               December 7, 2018

Dear Mom and/or Dad,

1. Please read over what I have written on these handouts.  Then, have a discussion with me and let me explain to you how I can "transform my relationship with my problems" so that I can live more mindfully and become more successful in handling my problems.

2. Also, please acknowledge that we have had this discussion by placing your signature on the line below:

_____________________________
(Parent's signature)

Thank you for supporting my leadership development.

Sincerely,

______________________________   Class Period: _______

         (Student's name)

After writing this letter the students brainstormed to complete the following handouts which were attached to the above letter to their parents: