Going Deeper: When 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 a 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 persevere
is greater than hers. Now that you are alone, will you keep working? Are
you familiar with the 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?
Movie: Chariots of Fire Theme: Getting Back Up
Teaser Question: What helps some people persevere despite threatening obstacles?
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 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?
Movie: Parenthood
Theme: The Way We See Things
Teaser Question: How does attitude affect your ability to persevere?
Going Deeper: A Roman philosopher (Epictetus) once said, "Men
are not so much affected by events as by the view they take f them." Do
you agree? Disagree? Why? Defend your opinion with examples from your
own life.
Making Choices: You and your best friend organize and lead a
camping trip for 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
Movie: School of Rock Theme: Believing in Dreams
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?
Activities
Keeping a Journal
As a homework assignment or in a class activity, the students will write two entries into their journal under the heading of Perseverance answering the following questions:
Of all the examples of perseverance demonstrated in the clips, which were your favorites? Why?
Write about a time when you had to persevere against the odds.
Write about a time when you knew it was time to give up and what you did afterward.
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
Instructions:
Students are each given a sheet of paper with steps drawn on it (as seen below)
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").
Each student should then 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.
After this, 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.
Students then split into pairs and share with one another their "steps sheet," talking about the goal and the various steps that would need to be taken to get there.
The teacher then asks 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, pens/pencils
Instructions:
Students should each write down on a blank sheet of paper their definition of success.
The students then get in groups of four or five and 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, the teacher asks 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 that, 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 7TIMES OUT OF 10!
Now 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 make it. Then, ask them to share their 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)
Instructions:
This project should be introduced about one week before it is due.
Students should each 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 a class 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
Instructions:
The teacher divides the class into groups of five students.
Groups are instructed to come up with a situation where someone displays perseverance, and then develop a short role play or "skit" to present the situation.
Each group presents their skit to the whole class.
Optional Teaching Strategies
Students should conduct research, then write an essay on 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.
Students write an essay describing situations where it is good to know when to quit, when not to persist in doing something.
Students draw nine dots on a page, as seen below. Ask the 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. Why is it necessary at times not just to persist, but also to think "outside the box" in order to succeed?