Tag Archives: open topic

Marshmallow Test: A Lesson in Self Control

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The marshmallow experiment is a famous test of this concept conducted by Walter Mischel at Stanford University and discussed by Daniel Goleman in his popular work. In the 1960s, a group of four-year olds were given a marshmallow and promised another, only if they could wait 20 minutes before eating the first one. Some children could wait and others could not. The researchers then followed the progress of each child into adolescence, and demonstrated that those with the ability to wait were better adjusted and more dependable (determined via surveys of their parents and teachers), and scored an average of 210 points higher on the Scholastic Aptitude Test.

  1. What do you think of the results of the study?
  2. How do you think self control can help you in school? How does it make you a better student?
  3. Why would someone with self control be a more dependable person?
  4. What are some things that you have difficulty controlling in your life?
  5. Design your own marshmallow test…what items could you use to “tempt” other students in your advisor group?

New Year’s Resolutions

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Start a Chain Reaction of Kindness in Memory of Rachel Scott and Others Who Died at Columbine High School Ten Years Ago

by Ali Adair, Associated Content Society

The students at Midvale Middle School near Salt Lake City, Utah are starting a chain reaction of kindness and taking Rachel’s Challenge for their 2009 New Year’s Resolutions. I recently saw a middle school presentation of Rachel’s Challenge, the very popular school non-violence curriculum based on the life and death of Rachel Joy Scott. Click here to learn more about Rachel.

A month after the Rachel’s Challenge presentation, the school dance classes at another middle school presented a moving Rachel’s Challenge Holiday Dance show to the entire school body. Rachel was the first person to be shot and killed at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999. The dance show included a choreographed depiction of the fear, panic, and grief the students must have gone through at Columbine High School that day. Then, the dancers presented all five challenges that Rachel gave the world in her essays and journals to start a chain reaction of kindness and compassion. Rachel’s five challenges are:

Eliminate prejudice by looking for the best in others

Dare to dream – set goals – keep a journal

Choose your influences – input determines output

Kind words and small acts of kindness = HUGE impact

Start a chain reaction with family and friends

As a certified high school business teacher, Rachel’s Challenge made a big impact on me to start a chain reaction of kindness and compassion. I decided to poll 150 middle school students to see if they had any clear written goals and what impact Rachel’s Challenge made on them. I asked if they had any 2009 New Year’s Resolutions. Here is their remarkable, compassionate response.


What are your New Year’s resolutions? Think of Rachel’s five challenges as you write them.

Gratitude: 20 Little Things to Treasure

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Have students create a list of 20 little things to treasure about: _________. You can choose the topic. Here is an example using the fall season:

20 Little Things To Treasure in Autumn

  1. Quiet dinners by the fire
  2. Reading mystery novels in darkened rooms
  3. Flannel sheets at the end of a long day
  4. Candles Flickering
  5. Smelling cinnamon, oranges & cloves
  6. Pumpkins
  7. Roasts, Potatoes & Carrots
  8. Fluffy feather beds on a cold night
  9. Watching movies snuggled in soft blankets
  10. Cozy socks
  11. Pie in the oven
  12. Warm crackling wood stoves
  13. Squash with buttered brown sugar
  14. Chili and corn bread smothered in honey
  15. Wind blowing through leaves
  16. Glow of lamps through windows
  17. Laughter filling a room
  18. Scrabble and popcorn
  19. Caramel apples
  20. Family

Gratitude: Make a Thankful Tree or Pile of Leaves

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Use this printable sheet and copy it onto fall colored paper. Have students create thankful leaves by writing directly on the leaves. You can choose to do this activity in a general way or have students focus on what they are thankful for from each other as we did with the bucket drops.
Additional leaf shapes can be found here:
Ash
Maple

Gratitude: Create a Journal

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Students are often asked at this time of year to recall all for which they are thankful. It may involve one lesson or a week’s worth of lessons and/or a culminating activity on the last day before the Thanksgiving holiday. Instead of making Thanksgiving break the stopping point for thankfulness, why not make it the starting point? Students can start a gratitude journal over Thanksgiving break and maintain it until winter break. This way, middle school students can truly see the many people, places, and things for which they should give thanks.

Heroes: What is a hero?

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  1. How do you define the term “hero?”
  2. What adjectives would you use to describe heroes?
  3. Who are some individuals whom you would classify as heroes? Explain why you would assign that label to each person you listed.
  4. How would you define the term “celebrity?” What are the differences and/or similarities between heroes and celebrities? Can celebrities be heroes? Explain.
  5. Do you think that it is important that we have heroes? Why or why not?
  6. How do you think that we should choose our heroes? What criteria should we use?
  7. Do you think that heroes are born or made? Explain.
  8. Do you believe that one person can make a difference in the world? State your rationale.
  9. Who is your hero? How has this person made a difference for the better? Is there a specific event or turning point that motivated your hero to take action?