Objectives:

• Students will be able to define empathy
• Students will learn five skills to develop empathy

Materials Needed:

• 5 cards listing 5 skills to develop empathy in numerical order
• Excerpt from movie, tv show, story, magazine featuring strong emotional stimulus

Example (may need brief summary of Cast Away with Tom Hanks): 

Procedure:

1. Write on board: What is empathy?
2. After discussion, write final definition on board: the ability to understand and share the feelings of another person.
3. Show video on empathy
4. Ask students to think of a time when someone showed you empathy, or when you showed someone else empathy. List up to ten (10) responses on the board.
5. On five cards, introduce the 5 Skills to Develop Empathy: Step 1 – Watch & Listen: What is the other person saying and what is their body language? Step 2 – Remember: When did you feel the same way? Step 3 – Imagine: Imagine how you might feel in that situation. Validate the wide range of emotions that come up. Step 4 – Ask: Ask how the person is feeling. Step 5 - Show You Care: Let them know that you care through your words and actions.
6. Show/read an emotional stimulus picture/video/text from a storybook or magazine (with an issue relevant to your students), and use the 5 Skills to analyze the picture and practice developing empathy: Watch & Listen: What is happening? Ask, “How does the person feel?” “How can you tell?” Discuss strategies to figure it out, such as asking: “What do their words say? “What does their body language say?” “Does what they say match their body language?”  Remember: Have you felt the same way? Ask “When did something like this happen to you?” Imagine: Imagine how you might feel. Ask the class for examples of what it might feel like, and how they might act. Examples: “I’d feel like crying; I’d want to hit back; I’d feel very embarrassed.” Ask: Find out how the person is feeling. Have students provide examples of what they could say to someone, such as “Are you OK? What happened to you? How do you feel? How are you doing?” Show you care. Ask the students how to show someone that you care, and list answers on the board. Some examples: “Listen with all your attention, spend time with them, stay with them (don’t leave), say, “I’m sorry you’re feeling this way.” Encourage them, “Let’s get help, How can I help? Do you need a hug? I’m here for you, etc.”
7. Have students pair up and show what they have learned about empathy (transcript in student section).

Rationale for lesson: 

This lesson is to provide the basics of empathy. Students use their previous knowledge and build off that by connecting with media, their peers, and others.

Resources:

 Adapted from Edutopia Lesson on Empathy

Objectives:

• Students will be able to understand their own empathy skills
• Students will connect empathy to the workplace

Materials Needed:

• Student quiz results
• Frayer model graphic organizers (5 per student)
• TEDx Talk from Helen Reisser - The Power of Empathy

Procedure:

1. Go over quiz results. Discuss each students percentage of empathy and the blurbs that explained results.
2. Create the polleverywhere question: What are some skills/attributes that employers look for in an employee? (Remind students to limit responses to 1-3 words and to not use empathy as a skill). Discuss results. This gives you an idea of what skills students think are important when it comes to careers.
3. Discuss the top 5 skills employers want: Leadership, Interpersonal, Problem-Solving, Motivation, and Efficiency. (Using the Pongo Blog, describe each skill)
4. After discussing each skill, have students use the Frayer Model graphic organizer to describe each skill similar to the one below (optional: substitute "facts/characteristics" for "illustrations"):
   

   Frayer Model
5. Have students watch the TEDx Talk from Helen Reiss about the power of empathy.
6. For homework, have students create an update through the classroom edmodo group. The parent topic you create should be titled The Power of Empathy and read as follows: Think about the acronym that Helen Reiss used for E.M.P.A.T.H.Y. (E - eye contact, M - muscles of facial expression, P - posture, A - affect, T - tone of voice, H - hearing the whole person, and Y - your response) and how she explained each word. How can we connect these thoughts to the workplace? How are they important for future succes? Responses must be 50 words or more.
7. Students must comment on at least 3 other responses.

Rationale for lesson: 

Transferable skills are extremely important to have, which is why this lesson has been created. Students need to understand the skills they have and don't have so that they can better themselves for the career and life they want. Using the Frayer Model, the lesson dives into student centered activities. It is important to get to know your students, as well as what they know so that you can help them understand what they need to know. 

This lesson also uses edmodo or the so called "facebook for education." The students respond to their peers to acquire that instant feedback millenials are so used to.

Resources:

www.gotoquiz.com/the_empathy_test

https://www.pongoresume.com/blogPosts/602/are-your-skills-on-employers-most-wanted-list-.cfm

Objective: 

•  Students will be able to experience exclusion and domination in a safe environment encouraging empathy and solidarity with others

Materials Needed:

• Sheets of circle stickers in three different colors
• Candy/Sweets (or a preferable food/prize)

Procedure:

1. Divide participants into three groups. Place a dot on the forehead of each participant: Red for one group, Green for another and Blue for the third.
2. Tell participants that Greens are all in their 30’s and 40’s years of age and that they have all the power. Give them chairs to sit on and sweets. Tell the Reds that they are all over 65 years old and to stand together with their noses touching one wall and not to look around or talk. Tell Blues that they are all under 18 years of age and that they must do exactly what the Greens say. (Write instructions on board if necessary)
3. You can give Greens some suggestions for instruction such as hop on one leg, do press ups, make animal noises, pretend to be elephants.
4. Repeat with Blues being in their 30’s and 40’s years of age and having all the power, Reds being under 18 years old and following Blues instructions and Greens being over 65 years old with the noses against a wall.
5. Repeat with Reds being in their 30’s and 40’s years of age and having all the power, Greens being under 18 years old, following their instructions and Blues being over 65 years old with noses against the wall.
6. Bring the group back together in a circle. Ask all participants to remove the dots from their head and to shake out their arms and legs taking deep breaths.
7. Have students create an update (during class) in the classroom edmodo group. The parent topic you create should be titled Reactions to Exclusion and read as follows: How did you feel at each stage of the game? Does this game reflect how people of different ages are treated in your community? How are young people treated? How are old people treated? What other groups in your community experience exclusion? Where do you think exclusion and oppression like this happens around the world? Responses should be 50 words or more.
8. Students must comment on 3 other responses.
9. For homework: Have students create an update in the classroom edmodo group. The parent topic you create should be titled Songs About Empathy and read as follows: Find a song that relates to empathy or other ideas that we have talked about in class thus far. Post the song through a youtube link or just the lyrics. Why/How does this show empathy? What is your specific connection to it? Listen/Read/Comment on 3 other responses.

Rationale for lesson: 

The reason that this lesson was incorporated was to put into action their feelings and emotions. We can talk and talk about how one might feel in certain situations, but taking students out of their comfort zones gives them an opportunity to gain empathy.

Resources:

Adapted from Scouts du Canada

Objective: 

• Students will be able to connect empathy to teamwork and team building skills
• Students will be able to understand the characteristics of a good team

Materials Needed:

• Youtube video of Remember the Titans - Teamwork (2012)
• Youtube video of good teamwork vs. bad teamwork

 Procedure:

1. Show video of good teamwork vs. bad teamwork (video embedded in student section)
2. Ask students to explain the difference. (Even though the task was accomplished in each, what were the different tactics and how did they pay out in the end?)
3. Using polleverywhere, invite students to answer the question: What are some characteristics of a good team/teamwork? (Limit responses to 1-3 words)
4. Show the following image and explain each characteristic: 
   
5.  Ask students to talk amongst themselves about how we need empathy to work in a team (connect to the 7 strengths). Discuss as whole group.
6. For homework: Have students create an update in the classroom edmodo group. The parent topic you create should be titled Remember the Titans: A Team and read as follows: Watch the following video:

Answer the questions that appear on the screen (What makes a strong team? What makes a cohesive team? What makes a team?) based on what is happening in the video and what we have talked about in class. Responses must be 50 words or more. Comment on at least 3 other responses.

Rationale for lesson: 

This lesson provides many different kinds of media (movies, shorts, and edmodo). Students are ubiquitous learners and fostering that learning outside of school really can make an impact. Many of the questions asked in this lesson focus on their understanding and individual thoughts on certain topics. It is important to center the learning around their interests.

Resources:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUXdrl9ch_Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S02D9QzDe4s

Objective:

• Students will be able to use their knowledge of teamwork to complete a given task

Materials Needed:

• 1 box of spaghetti and 2 bags of mini marshmallows for each group of 3
• Copies of directions and tips for each group
• Copies of peer evaluations for each group member

Procedure:

1. Explain that students will be putting into action what they have learned from the past few lessons about teamwork and empathy. They will be forming a spaghetti tower made of spaghetti and marshmallows. The object of the project is to build the highest tower. They can only use the materials provided. 
2. Break students into groups of 3.
3. Distribute copies of the directions and tips. Read through, answering any questions.
4. Have groups start at same time. Allot 30 minutes.
5. Observe communication among groups, strategies, and overall teamwork.
6. Once time is up, judge each tower. Award group accordingly.
7. Pass out peer evaluations explaining that not only are the students evaluating their groups, they are evauluating themselves as well.
8. For homework, have students watch a tutorial video for powtoon as well as create their own accounts if they have not already done so.

Rationale for lesson:

This lesson is to enrich what the students have already learned by applying their skills to a group activity. Similar to Lev Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development Theory, this lesson creates an experience that is within their limits, but also promotes new learning and understanding by being in the teamwork situations described in class. Throught the peer evaluations, they are also opening themselves up for criticism, good or bad. 

Resources:

http://chnm.gmu.edu/7tah/unitdocs/unit10/lesson5/peereval.pdf

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9mdHMtxOjY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DI4zp7yeuMU

Adapted from the BA 

Objectives:

• Students will collaborate with group
• Students will be able to design a video of teamwork in the workplace based on previous knowledge

Materials Needed:

• Access to computers
• Accounts for powtoon for each group

Procedure (may take more than one class period):

1. ​Explain to students that they will be creating a short animation video based on what we have learned in class through Powtoon (cue tutorial if you/they have not used before) 
   
2. Break students into groups of 3 (at most)
3. Before they even get started creating, they must brainstorm ideas. The question they must answer is "Why is teamwork so important in the workplace?"
4. The students should have at least two resources in the powtoon
5. Give students 20 minutes to brainstorm/research on computer
6. Once they have a general idea of their answers, they can start on powtoon
7. There are templates that they can use or they can start with the basics
8. If they prefer to use a different animation website, they care allowed to do so (scratch, animaker, etc.)
9. It does not matter how long the video is, as long as it answers the question and has two resources
10. Use the powtoon grading rubric to assess students
11. For Homework: Have students set up account for a blogging website (wordpress, weebly, blog.com, blogger.com, squarespace, etc.)

Rationale for lesson: 

This lesson is to incorporate what they know into media. By putting them in groups, it promotes teamwork and learning about people. They are also learning how to use different software. The hope is that this ignites a fire inside of them to use different forms of media in their homework or projects (without someone asking).

References:

Powtoon - set up accounts beforehand

Powtoon tutorials

Powtoon grading rubric

Objective:

• Students will be able to apply knowledge from unit of empathy and teamwork to create and add to a blog

Materials Needed:

• 1:1 technology (if possible)
• Copies of rubric for each student (1 for each blog post)

Procedure:

1. Using their blog page that they have set up (or at least created an account for), have students design and set up the initial page
2. Students will create two blog posts today using the updates in edmodo titled: Mission Statement and Team-Building Activity. 
3. Use the following rubric for the blog posts: 
   

    

4.  The details for the blog posts are as follows:

• Mission Statement - Congratulations! You just landed your dream job! Hard work really does pay off. First day and they already have you working hard on the company website. So where to begin? You decide to start with the "mission statement" as well as the "about us" section. The mission statement should be a memorable line that gets down to business, but the about us has more leeway. You want to include everything that you believe that the company is and should be. Research some mission statements. Think about what we have discussed and accomplished in class through this unit (team-building, teamwork, empathy, workplace skills, etc.). How can you incorporate that into the mission statement and the about us section? (If you are having trouble getting started, think of a career that you want. Find a website based off of that career. Check out their mission statements and information sections. Gather some ideas. Create your own.) 
• Team-Building Activity - You have been at your job for years! You've seen people come and people go. The stress is high and the morale is low. So what can you do to fix that? Your boss suggests a picnic for everyone. Get outside, breath in the fresh air. You decide to take it one step further. You want to play games, particularly team-building exercises. After doing some research, you come to the conclusion that you need to create your own activity; everything else is just too boring and overdone. What is that activity? Be sure to include materials needed, how many to a team (if any), procedure, and the overall goal. 

Rationale for lesson:

This lesson is to promote creativity and ubiquitous learning. It also gives students a chance to think about their own lives and goals. Incorporating a blog into their studies makes it more realistic and interesting to the students. 

Objective:

• Students will be able to apply knowledge from unit of empathy and teamwork to create and add to a blog

Materials Needed:

• 1:1 technology (if possible)
• Copies of rubric for each student (1 for each blog post)

Procedure:

1. Using their blog page, have students respond to the last two blog updates for this unit: Workplace Scenarios and What's Your Experience?
2. Use the rubric from the previous lesson
3. The details for the blog posts are as follows:

• Workplace Scenarios - Sheila felt ready to get to work after her one day job orientation for new employees. When she got to work, however, she was shocked. She was not prepared for the fast pace, sophistication and skill level found in her new department. By noon that day, Sheila felt like she was not cut out for the job. She felt underskilled and under prepared to meet her department's challenges. On her way to the company cafeteria one of her co-workers, Tammy, caught up with her and they had lunch together. Sheila was glad that Tammy was so friendly to her and she was able to relax a little bit. During lunch Tammy talked about their manager, Mr. Smith. Sheila learned that Mr. Smith was in trouble with his superiors. Next, Tammy told her about James, the computer programmer. She told Sheila that James spread rumors and was not to be trusted. She talked about Mrs. Tyler, the accountant. She said that Mrs. Tyler was an alcoholic and frequently took sips from a whisky bottle in her desk. Tammy asked Sheila to join her for coffee after work. She said, "Trust me, Sheila. Once you come to understand how screwed up everyone is around here, and get the feel of the place, you'll do fine." Question: Why would Tammy be so friendly towards Sheila? What might happen if Sheila gets close to Tammy? Have you ever been in a similar situation? If so, what did you do? If not, what would you do?
• What's Your Experience? - Describe your experience with teams. If you have not been on a team, describe what you think it means to be an empathetic person and what a person can do to become more empathetic.

 Rationale for lesson:

Once again, this lesson leaves it in their hands. I wanted to incorporate their personal expriences because I think it is very important to understand your student before you can even teach them anything substantial.

References:

http://www.literacynet.org/icans/chapter07/six.html