Lesson:
Engage (10 minutes):
Bring students together for a whole-group activity. Ask students to help sort cards into 3 categories: I can control, Left up to chance, Both.
Suggested Prompt for Cards:
- The weather tomorrow
- How long my homework essay is
- Whether I get called on to answer a question
- If I will trip on the walk to recess
- Whether I score in the basketball game
- Whether I finish the last chapter of my book today
- If I argue with my friend
Suggested Discussion Prompts for After a Card is Sorted:
- Explain your thinking.
- Do other agree or disagree? Why or why not?
Suggested Prompts to Reflect on the Sorting Activity:
Sometimes we think the way things turn out is entirely under our control. So, if a decision turns out well, we say, “That was a good decision!” And if a decision turns out badly, we say, “Well, that was a terrible decision.” But in decision-making, outcomes are often due to a mix of factors – some that we can control and some that are due to chance – that we don’t have control over.
When we become better at untangling what we can control and what things are outside of our control, we can reflect more thoughtfully on why things turned out the way they did – which is a key part of being a skillful decision maker!
Apply (15-20 minutes):
In partners or small groups, have your students choose one or two of the scenarios from the Engage activity. In list or chart form, students brainstorm and record examples in each scenario of factors that they can control and factors that are left up to chance.
Suggested examples to share before students head off to work independently/in groups:
Whether I finish the last chapter of my book today | |
Factors I can control
|
Factors left up to chance
|
Reflect (5-10 minutes):
Select students to share their reflections on the examples they choose.
Suggested Discussion Questions:
- Are there any cards from our initial sort that we want to move now that we’ve thought more about them?
- Which of these scenarios seems the most impacted by chance? Which scenarios seem the least impacted by chance?
- How might knowing about what you can control and what is left up to chance help you as a decision maker?
Suggested Prompt for Closing the Lesson:
Skillful decision makers pay attention to what is within their control and what is left up to chance when making a decision. How likely is it for things outside of their control to impact a decision? When we do this, it helps us move away from thinking, “Well, that was a bad decision because it didn’t turn out well!” to instead thinking, “How much of that bad outcome was due to my decision-making skills and how much was just because of chance?”