Theme: Positive Thinking Film: Inside Out(PG) 0:59 Riley has just moved to a new town and today is her first day of school, we all know that first days can be tough. But her emotions characterized by separate feelings, including Happy, are determined to make sure her first day is a good one. She will not let anything go wrong if she can help it. She tries to think of everything and plans to be prepared! What she can't prepare for, is for something to go wrong on the inside. Sadness accidentally causes Riley to lose her core memories, and Happy MUST get them back or Riley will never feel happy again.
2015 American 3D computer-animated comedy-drama adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Productions. The film was directed by Pete Docter and co-directed by Ronnie del-Carmen, with a screenplay written by Docter, Meg LeFauve and Josh Cooley, adapted from a story by Pete Docter and Ronnie del Carmen.
Teaser Question: What helps you persevere? Why?
Going Deeper: A teacher tells you that you have to keep on working hard in your class because "that is what students do." Do you think that is a good reason? Is there a better reason the teacher could give you?
Making Choices: You and your best friend are working on a project which is more difficult and time consuming than you expected. The night before the project is due, your friend leaves after working on it with you for several hours. Your friend explains that your ability to persevere is greater than hers. Now that you are alone, will you keep working? Are you familiar with saying, "A winner never quits and a quitter never wins?" How about the country song which warns, "You got to know when to hold 'em and know when to fold 'em." How will you make your decision?
"Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be attained." - Marie Curie
"If you stand up and be counted, from time to time you may get yourself knocked down. But remember this: A man flattened by an opponent can get up again. A man flattened by conformity stays down for good." - Thomas J. Watson
Theme: Getting Back Up Film:Chariots of Fire (PG) 2:14 In a preparation race for the 1924 Olympic trials, Eric Liddell falls, but picks himself up and wins the race.
This 1981 film from Warner Bros., in association with Goldcrest Films, International Film, Allied Stars Ltd., and Enigma Productions is directed by Hugh Hudson. It is written by Colin Welland and stars Nicholas Farrell, Ben Cross, Nigel Havers, Ian Charleson, and Ian Holm.
Teaser Question: "Winners never quit and quitters never win." -Vince Lombardi. What does this mean?
Going Deeper: Can you think of a time that hard work and perseverance enabled you to come from behind and succeed? What is the difference between perseverance and stubbornness? What is meant when an athlete is described as having "a lot of heart?" Does perseverance require sacrifice? Why? Why not?
Making Choices: Your friend (who is a strong leader) seems to be comfortable with both success and failure. Is this an admirable quality? Why? Why not?
"Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success." - Dale Carnegie
"The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a man's determination." - Tommy Lasorda
heme: The Way We See Things Film: Parenthood (PG) 5:48 Determined to be a good father and frustrated by his ability to control all the outcomes for his children, Gil Buckman (Steve Martin) detests the "messiness" of life. His wife, Karen, (Mary Steenburgen) insists that life is naturally messy. Grandma (Helen Shaw) prefers life as a thrilling yet frightening roller coaster ride, acknowledging that others might prefer life to be more like a sedate ride on the merry go round. Three people in the same family have different attitudes toward the same events. Is it possible that the way we see things can help us persevere?
This 1989 film from Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment is directed by Ron Howard and written by Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel from a story by Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandel, and Ron Howard. It is produced by Brian Grazer and stars Steve Martin, Mary Steenburgen, Helen Shaw, Tom Hulce, Rick Moranis, Martha PLimpton, Keanu Reeves, Jason Robards, and Dianne Wiest.
Teaser Question: How does attitude affect your ability to persevere?
Going Deeper: A Roman philosopher, Epictectus, once said, "Men are not so much affected by events as by the view they take them." Do you agree? Disagree? Why? Defend your opinion with examples from your own life.
Making Choices: You and our best friend organize and lead a camping trip fro some very important people. From the beginning the trip is a disaster. Your friend seems unfazed. You are furious. You think your friend is not realistic. Your friend thinks you are too intense. Should you present the situation to your guests as a problem or an opportunity? What can you do to "adjust" your attitude in difficult situations? Is your attitude likely to have any affect on the outcome of events?
"Ability determines what you do. Motivation determines why you do it. Attitude determines how well you do it." -Lou Holtz
"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I...I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference." -Robert Frost
Theme: Believing in Dreams Film: School of Rock (PG-13) Dewey has been thrown out of his band and told that he is an utter failure in life. Standing before his students, Dewey tells them the depressing news that failure is all they should ever expect. "The Man," he claims, will never let them succeed, so they might as well not try at all. His students don't know what to make of him.
This 2003 film from Paramount Pictures is directed by Richard Linklater, written by Mike White, and produced by Scott Rudin. It stars Jack Black, Joan Cusack, Mike White, and Sarah Silverman.
Teaser Question: Do you agree with him? Why? Why not?
Going Deeper: How do friends help you persevere? How are they at times not so very helpful? How do you know when working harder will help you succeed or when, no matter how hard you work, you will still not be able to reach your goal?
Making Choices: You have a friend who is good in a sport, but not extraordinary. Your friend dreams of one day becoming a professional athlete. You know that only a small percentage of people ever make it to the professional level. What would you advise your friend to do: A. Press on towards the dream? B. Make an alternate plan as a backup? C. Give up on the dream?
"Keep away from people who belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great." - Mark Twain
"You can be anything you want to be, if only you believe with sufficient conviction and act in accordance with your faith; for whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the ind can achieve." - Napoleon Hill
Moving Students to Reflection & Action: Keeping a Journal: As an in-class activity, ask your students to write up to five entries in their journal under the heading of "Perseverance" answering the following statement: 1. Of all the examples of perseverance demonstrated in the clips, which was your favorite? Why? 2. Write about a time when you had to persevere against the odds 3. Write about a time when you knew it was time to give up and what you did afterward. 4. Write about a famous individual who had to persevere in order to accomplish something great. Examples include President Abraham Lincoln, inventor Thomas Edison, astronaut John Glenn etc. 5. Describe a situation where it is good to know when to quit, when not to persist in doing something.
Activity 1: Steps to Take Performance Objective: To consider the things we need to do in order to reach our goals in life.
Materials Needed: Sheets of paper with steps drawn on them, separate sheets of paper, pens or pencils.
Teachers Instructions: Give each student a sheet of paper with steps drawn on it.
Have students write on the top step a big goal or dream (for example, "be an astronaut," "be in a band," "write a book," "play professional baseball").
Ask your students to think about what it would take to achieve that particular goal. On a SEPARATE sheet of paper, students can write down the various things that would need to be done.
Have your students should read through the things they wrote and write them down as steps to be taken on the "steps sheet," reaching up to the top step, which is the goal.
Split students into pairs to share with one another their "steps sheet," talking about the goal and the various steps that would need to be taken to get there.
Ask the students (still in pairs) to write on the bottom of the "steps sheet" which classes or extracurricular activities they are doing now that are helpful in working toward the final goal (for example Math and Science for "be an astronaut," or English for "write a book"). Students then talk with their partners about what they wrote.
Upon finishing, the "steps sheets" can be put on the wall in the classroom or hall.
Activity 2: Batting .300 Performance Objective: To re-examine our definitions of success.
Materials Needed: Sheets of paper with a large "Home Plate" drawn on each one, separate sheets, pen/pencils.
Teachers Instructions: Have your students write on a blank sheet of paper their definition of success.
Organize the students in groups of four or five and ask them to share their definitions with one another. What are common elements to their definitions?
While they are in groups, ask them how failure fits into their definitions of success. To be successful, does one need to never fail?
After they have had some time for discussion, ask the class as a whole to identify one of the greatest baseball players of all time. The names they say can be written on the board up front. Then, tell them the reality that the greatest players, the greatest hitters in the game, are those who reach .300 or a little higher. This means, on the average, they made a base hit 300 times out of a thousand, or 3 times out of 10. More to the point, this means that the greatest professional baseball players FAIL TO GET A BASE HIT 7 TIMES OUT OF 10!
Hand out the sheets with "Home Plate" on them and ask the students to rewrite their definition of success, accounting for the reality that we fail at something far more often than we succeed. Then, ask your students to share their new definitions.
Activity 3: Interviewing the Persistent Performance Objective: To learn from others what it means in real life to persevere in the face of obstacles.
Materials Needed: Preparation time, pen and paper, video or audio recorder (optional).
Teachers Instructions: This project should be introduced about one week before it is due.
Ask each student to consider someone that they admire and conduct a brief interview in which they ask the person to talk about the most difficult thing he or she ever had to do and what it took to accomplish it. The person interviewed can be a parent, relative, or anyone the student knows. The interview can be taped, if desired, or simply take the form of a personal conversation. Students need to write down the highlights of what was shared in that interview.
The following week, devote an advisory session to having students share with the rest of the class what they learned in their interview. Are there common elements to all the different stories? If so, what are they?
Activity 4: Role Play Performance Objective: To express opinions on a topic through written, oral, or dramatic expression.
Materials Needed: Paper, pencil, props for skits
Teachers Instructions: The teacher divides the class into groups of 5 students.
Instruct the groups to come up with a situation where someone displays perseverance, and then develops a short role-play or skit to present the situation. Have each group present its skit to the whole class.
Activity 5: Problem Solving Performance Objective: To formulate possible alternatives/solutions to a given problem.
Materials Needed: Paper, pencil, or white boards and white board markers
Teachers Instructions: Ask your students draw nine dots on a page, as seen here. * * * * * * * * * Ask your students to find a way to connect all nine dots using four straight lines without lifting their pens from the paper. The exercise is very difficult, but possible.
After some time has passed, ask the students to try thinking in nontraditional ways to achieve their goal.
In the end, the only way to accomplish the deed is to work outside the box. Starting at the top right dot, draw a straight line diagonally down to the bottom left dot.
Then, the second line moves right across the box and through and past the bottom right dot.
The third line starts where the second line ended outside the box and goes diagonally across the box through and past the middle right dot and the middle top dot.
The fourth line begins where the third line ended outside the box and goes straight down attaching the left hand column of dots. Thus, an arrow-like set of lines has been created.
Ask your students why it is necessary at times not just to persist, but also to think "outside the box' in order to succeed?