Building a Classroom the "Inside Out" Way

This Inside Out lesson seemed to go extremely well!

The video clips were a perfect tool. They were short enough to engage a student without them losing interest, and precise enough that it was easy to identify how the emotions acted/felt.

The videos definitely prompted some interesting conversation about the feelings related to our emotions, and how we appear to others when we are acting emotional. For example- "Fear" seems to feel completely out of control. Do we feel a lack of control when we are fearful? How do we then regain a sense of control?

While I definitely prompted and contributed to the conversation, I feel that my students were really able to lead the discussion.

The Smart Board also proved to be useful, because the students were able to come up and write their responses. We used the board to discuss what we need from other people when we feel a certain emotion, and how that can be implemented in the classroom. The responses were thoughtful and extremely helpful in guiding how I would want to build a classroom community.

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I particularly enjoyed the ideas of being allowed to go for a walk and get a drink when you are angry and need a break, thinking before communicating your disgust with others, creating an active, celebratory environment when a peer is joyful, and reassurance through discussion when you feel fearful.

Finally, we concluded by creating a set of classroom rules that reflected our emotional needs. Again, I felt like the conversation was thoughtful and our product was very successful. Here is our list of class rules:

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These rules are simple, but they cover almost any situation. Make a homework mistake? We do re-dos. A child punched a peer? We are kind to others. A student struggles with work or a home situation? We like to support others.

Our lesson got a little rushed at the end, so in a first grade classroom, I would probably have given myself 45 minutes for the lesson. And once we created our rules, I would have typed them up and hung them on a wall where everyone could see and reference them. But overall, like the final product shows, the lesson felt like a success.

I think this is a very important lesson for kids, and you presented it in an engaging and safe way! Great job! You were obviously prepared, everything went well. You had us each going up to the board, of course you mentioned in a real setting with children you would not force students to participate which is very important. Awesome.

This is the one piece of feedback I have received so far, and I felt like it definitely reflects my feelings on the lesson.

This person did comment that technology was not needed for the Smart Board and a white board could have been used. I would argue that the slides on the Smart Board were better than just writing on the whiteboard because the students could organize and associate with pictures on the Smart Board in a way they could not on the whiteboard.

"Feel Good" Teaching

Inside Out Lesson Plan:

Standards:

Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions when appropriate to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings. (1.SL.5)

Describe people, places, things, and events with relevant details, expressing ideas and feelings clearly. (1.SL.4)

Reflection: I think the details aspect is going to be very key to understanding how the different emotions function. The whole of the standards tie back to that idea of community that is so essential to the whole lesson and to the development of a healthy classroom. Expressing ideas and feelings in healthy ways is important to creating an environment where students can feel safe enough to share their experiences and needs with the teacher and their peers. At a first grade level, it can be hard to recognize the needs of your peers when you are so naturally focused on your own needs. Thus this lesson is an extremely age appropriate way to help students begin to shift their paradigm of the classroom.

Objective: Students will successfully express the ideas and feelings of the Inside Out characters as well as their peers. Students will identify ways to create community and collaboration in the classroom.

Assessment: Students will label a personal table with details about the Inside Out Characters. They will also identify ways to support their peers by labeling the needs of each emotion and outlining the classroom rules on the Smart Board.

Reflection: Inside Out is currently a popular movie amongst this age group, so utilizing it can be a valuable tool.

Lesson Plan Guideline:

1. Students watch clips of the different emotions from Inside Out and label how each emotion feels and acts on their paper. (10 minutes)
2. Students come up to the board and identify their personal needs from their peers when they experience a specific emotion. (10 minutes)
3. Students conclude by using their lists of ideas and actions to help create a summitive list of rules for the classroom that can best help their peers succeed. (10 minutes)

Modifications:

Enrichment: Have students write down extra details on their worksheet for each emotion.

Supportive: Have the student draw details on the worksheet or discuss their ideas with a neighbor. If it’s challenging for them to write on the board, allow them to find a peer to assist them.

ELL: Have the student draw details on the worksheet or discuss their ideas with a neighbor. If it’s challenging for them to write on the board, allow them to find a peer to assist them.

Senses: The large screen should allow everyone to see. If they can’t hear, provide subtitles for the clips. If they cannot see, have them describe their emotions instead of looking at the emotions.

Reflection: I feel like this lesson plan has lots of potential because it has such an important theme, and so many ways that technology easily lends itself to the activity. If there is extra time at the end, have students copy down the rules and decorate them!