For our first lesson in our second rotation, we focused on being assertive - asking for what you want or need in a calm, firm, respectful way. We engaged our listening skills by watching the music video "Walk, Walk, Walk" and listening for the phrase "recognize those feelings."
We started our discussion on being assertive by discussing how our bodies can send messages. I asked students to make a passive pose, where students may feel afraid that they don't have the right to say what they want or need. We talked about whether this was a good way to get what we want or need and why it isn't: people might not take you seriously, people might not pay attention to you.
Next, we made an aggressive post, where students are being demanding and not thinking about other students' perspectives. We talked about why this is not a good way to get what we want or need: you make others feel uncomfortable, scared, or mad. For the remainder of our lesson we discussed a video clip about a student named Karley who pushed others out of a game of four-square to ensure her opportunity to play before recess was over. We discussed what each student wanted or needed in the video and whether they asked for help in a passive, aggressive, assertive way. By the end of the lesson, we all agreed that being assertive, or asking for help in a calm, firm, respectful way, is the best way to ask for help.
