Teaching sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

15 minutes

Explore: Understanding opportunities and obstacles

30 minutes

Discover: Setting goals

10-20 minutes

Thrive: Building accountability

Explore: Understanding opportunities and obstacles

Step 1

This step looks at the Line-up Game.

Select one of the options below and ask students to line up without speaking (they can use non-verbal communication).

Options for line order are:

youngest to oldest
tallest to shortest
first name in alphabetical order
birthday order.

Once they’ve completed the task, use the following questions to prompt discussion and link the exercise to the lesson's purpose:

What worked well during this activity?
What were the obstacles during this activity?
What are some opportunities for growth?

Ask students to discuss what they could do to improve their time and teamwork, then play the game again (if time permits) so they can test their strategies.

Provide the following explanation to assist their thinking:

To build new skills, we must let go of the fear of making mistakes, use problem-solving strategies, utilise resilience, stay grateful and look for the positives in a situation.

Step 2

Remind students of the power of having a positive or negative mindset and how this is linked to achieving goals.

A positive mindset includes the thoughts, feelings, emotions and behaviours that create the best version of ourselves, aligned with our goals and vision.
A negative mindset, on the other hand, is the thoughts, feelings, emotions and behaviours that take us away from being the best version of ourselves, often not aligned with our goals and values.

Ask students to pair up and discuss how their mindset (positive and negative) has impacted on their ability to set or achieve a goal. If time permits, invite students to share their answers with the class.

Discover: Setting goals

Step 1

Introduce the concept of goal setting:

Explain that goal setting gives us long-term vision and short-term motivation.
It is essential to break a goal down to make it more achievable.
If we focus on the stepping stones to get there, the big goal becomes more realistic.

This could be an opportunity to share a relatable story about goal setting from your own life.

Step 2

Explain that during this lesson, students will learn to set personal goals using a goal-setting model.

Play the following video, Goal Setting For Kids, then use the following questions to prompt discussion:

What were some of the goals the young people shared?
Do you think it is important to have goals?
Reflecting on your own life, what are some of your goals?
What goals have you achieved in the past? How did you do it?

Step 3

Ask students to pair up and share any goals they have been working on, then discuss as a class.

Use the following questions to prompt discussion:

Have you faced any obstacles? What are they?
Have you identified any opportunities or enablers? What are they?
Are there parts of your goal that feel out of reach?

Step 4

Display the GROW model (page 1 of GROW graphics) and explain how this model can be an effective tool for setting realistic goals.

Goal. What is your goal?
Reality. What is happening now?
Opportunities & Obstacles. What/who can help you? What/who could stop you?
Way Forward. What steps will you take to achieve your goal?

Then display the GROW Goal Setting example (page 2) and discuss how goals have been broken down into steps.

Step 5

Provide each student with a copy of the GROW Goal Setting worksheet. Encourage them to identify 2 goals and fill in the worksheet prompts. Once they have completed the task, allow them time to share their answers with a partner before debriefing the activity as a class.

Step 6

Ask students to sign and date the bottom of their worksheet. The date could be today’s date, the date they are committing to the goal or the date they want to complete it by. Explain that signing this is an acknowledgment of committing to their goals and part of holding themselves accountable.

Provide the following explanations to debrief the activity:

Reiterate that goals will look different for everyone.
Some may have created a short-term goal, a long-term goal, two short-term goals or two long-term goals. What’s important is finding what works for them.
Goal setting helps us to understand the gaps between our goals and our current reality and what can help and hinder us throughout the process.
Encourage them to share their goals with their friends or someone they trust to fuel connection and build trust and accountability.

Thrive: Building accountability

Step 1

Ask students what it means to be accountable and why it is important to have accountability when working on goals.

Examples:

Increases motivation and commitment
Provides focus and direction
Enhances productivity
Can help to build trust and credibility

Step 2

Encourage students to consider ways they could help others be accountable to their goals. Prompt them to think about what accountability might look and feel like before asking them to share their answers.

Examples:

A morning check-in
Reminder texts
Asking open-ended questions about their goal
Being supportive and understanding
Willing to listen
Not passing judgement if goals aren’t achieved, or new obstacles arise

Explain that for this task, students will be required to identify an accountability buddy. Ask them to pick a partner they feel they can trust and rely on.

Step 3

Once everyone has an accountability buddy, invite them to share their goal and any obstacles they have identified. Have them agree on the type of accountability they can provide for one another in relation to tackling obstacles and identifying opportunities.

Example:

Check in with me each morning in homeroom to ask how my goal is going
Every Friday, remind me of my goal and to set a weekend intention to work on it
Send me a text twice a week to check in
Have lunch together once a week to discuss our progress and identify opportunities

Step 4

If students are comfortable sharing their goals, discuss them as a class.

Provide the following explanation to debrief the activity:

Research shows that those who regularly write down and review their goals are more likely to succeed.
Verbalising your goals to others can make them feel more attainable and assist with motivation.

Teacher note: This exercise could be used each term or revisited on a specific day each week to help increase accountability and remind students to monitor their goals, celebrate their achievements, set new goals and check in with each other.

Skills: Goal Setting

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