Be positive! That's the take-away from a lesson about how a positive attitude influences actions and increases one's ability to succeed. To conclude the lesson, participants create a plan for how to respond positively to obstacles.

Concepts

social-emotional learning, attitudes, consequences, body language, tone, positive thinking

Show More Show Less

Instructional Ideas

• Warn the volunteers that they will be part of an experiment about positive and negative attitudes
• Post the list of techniques to develop a positive attitude in a prominent place in the classroom
• Have participants store their plans in the folder they created for the course

Classroom Considerations

• The activity has the potential to devolve quickly; observe the volunteers closely, intervene when the "Cannot" volunteer shows signs of distress, and extend the debrief to ensure that they understand the purpose of the activity
• A link to an overview of the module is provided in the Included Materials section
• First of five lesson in the Managing Personal Resources module of the Overcoming Obstacles course
• Requires poster paper and art supplies

Pros

• The list of techniques reminds learners that there are many different ways to respond positively to adverse situations

Cons

• None