Unit 1: Mindsets & Goals

August 24 - October 12

Lesson 1: Starting Middle School

In this lesson, students will identify challenges they might face when starting middle school and identify resources in their school where they can get help.

You Can Try This at Home

Tell your child about something that made you nervous when you started middle school. Ask what makes them nervous and who they can go to for help at school.

Lesson 2: Creating New Pathways in Your Brain

In this lesson, students will learn that intelligence is not fixed; their brain actually makes new connections and their skills and abilities develop when they practice difficult things.

You Can Try This at Home

Tell your child about a time you had to learn something challenging and explain how you persisted in learning it. Ask your child if there’s anything they would like to learn to do this year.

Lesson 3: Learning from Mistakes and Failure

In this lesson, students will learn how to learn from mistakes. When your child does difficult things, they may initially make mistakes and fail, but these mistakes can be chances to learn and grow.

You Can Try This at Home

Tell your child about a mistake you made in the past and what you learned from it. Ask your child to tell you about a mistake they made and what they learned from it.

Lesson 4: Identifying Roadblocks

In this lesson, students will identify and distinguish between internal and external obstacles (or “roadblocks”) that can get in their way when working toward goals.

You Can Try This at Home

Tell your child about a roadblock you encountered when you were working toward a goal, and if you had control over the roadblock.

Lesson 5: Overcoming Roadblocks 1

In this lesson, students will learn how to use If–Then plans to overcome roadblocks. If–Then Plans help your child anticipate potential roadblocks and come up with plans for addressing them.

You Can Try This at Home

Ask your child to explain to you what an If–Then Plan is. Work together to make a plan for how your child can respond positively to a difficult situation they might encounter at home.

Lesson 6: Overcoming Roadblocks 2

In this lesson, students will identify a goal they want to work on, anticipate roadblocks, and develop an If–Then Plan for their own goal.

You Can Try This at Home

Think of a time you achieved a big goal, such as learning to drive or graduating from school. Tell your child about your big goal and some of the smaller goals you needed to finish in order to achieve it. Ask your child to tell you about a goal they have.

Lesson 7: Advice on Roadblocks

In this lesson, students will put their knowledge about overcoming roadblocks into action by giving advice to a sixth-grader who is struggling to learn something new.

You Can Try This at Home

Tell your child about a time you had to try something new to overcome a roadblock, such as asking someone for help or looking at a problem with a different viewpoint. Tell your child what eventually helped you overcome that roadblock.

Bennington Public Schools

11620 N 156th Street, Bennington, NE 68007

Phone 402-238-3044| Fax

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