Grades 1-5
A Sample Unit on The Decision-making Process

 

Grade 1: The Decision-making Process: Lesson 2
Decision-making Process: Explore...			Resources Finders Keepers for Franklin
Foundational Objectives Students will describe a decision-making process (CCT, IL) Students will develop their ability to make decisions (CCT)			Learning Objectives Students will: suggest several possible courses of action and explore the long- and short-term consequences of these actions practise making decisions based on their analysis of the choices gradually incorporate the vocabulary related to decision making into their speech and writing (C)
Procedure Explain that Franklin had several choices. Ask the students if they remember what some of Franklin's choices were. Responses might include: Listen to Beaver and Moose, and keep the camera. Find the owner. Put the camera back where he found it. Invite the students to think about the first option. Would it be a good choice? What might happen if Franklin kept the camera? Would there be good points about keeping it? How about bad points? Would Franklin be a good model to follow if he kept the camera? Repeat the procedure for the other two options. It might be helpful to read excerpts from the story again so that the students pick up details which hint at consequences of the various options (e.g., "The owner might be mad"). Ask the students to rank the three options: Which option would deserve a sad face? Which one would deserve a face with a straight mouth? Which one would deserve a happy face? _In simple terms, point out to the students that the second thing you need to do when you have a difficult choice to make is what they just did: Explore... (Look at all the possible choices and choose the best one)			Notes Becoming Models of Wellness is the grade 1 perspective. Throughout the year, the students will practise making decisions to adopt health-enhancing behaviours. They select appropriate behaviours by answering a question such as "Would I be a good model for others to follow if I did this?" On the poster, write Explore...

 

Grade 2: The Decision-making Process: Lesson 2
Decision-making Process: Explore...			Resources Same resources as before
Foundational Objectives Students will develop their ability to make decisions (CCT) Students will treat themselves and others with respect (PSVS)			Learning Objectives Students will: suggest several possible courses of action and explore the long- and short-term consequences of these actions make decisions based on their analysis of the choices increasingly accept responsibility for themselves and others
Procedure This activity introduces the grade 2 perspective. On the chalkboard or a piece of chart paper, write the title A wildcat and draw two columns. Draw a happy face in one column and a sad face in the other. Ask the students what might happen if Annie chose to keep a wildcat as a pet. Explain that a choice is also called an option. What would be nice about this option? What good things might happen as a result of choosing this animal as a pet? And what problems might she have? What bad things might happen as a result of this choice? Record their responses under the appropriate column. Explain that the result of a choice is called a consequence. Repeat the procedure for the other two animals. Guide the discussion about consequences with questions such as: Would it be safe to keep this animal as a pet? Would it be considerate of others (e.g., would the animal be noisy or would it destroy things around the house and the yard?) Would it be against the law? Would Annie's parents be happy with that choice? Ask the students to compare the positive and negative consequences for each option. Which animal would be the safest to keep as a pet? Which would be the most quiet?... _In simple terms, point out to the students that when you Explore in order to make a choice, you: Look at options and consequences Choose an option Explain that a good option is safe, healthy, considerate of others, and obeys rules or laws. Review what Annie might do to take good care of her pet: feed it adequately, keep it clean, take it to the veterinarian, make sure it gets some exercise, etc. Conclude the unit by reminding the students that doing what you chose to do is not always easy. Making decisions does not stop when you have chosen the best option.			Notes Write the words "an option" and "a consequence" on the chalkboard. Beside the yellow circle, write the two steps of this level of the Decision-making Process: Look at options and consequences. Choose an option. The grade 2 perspective is Discovering Wellness Patterns. Students will be observing cause and effect relationships between their behaviours or actions, and their wellness or that of others.
			Direct the students' attention to the third level of the Decision-making Process on the poster as you point to this reminder.

 

Grade 3-5: The Decision-making Process: Lesson 1
Decision-making Process: Stop!			Resources Aaron's Awful Allergies reference print and audio-visual materials about animals (refer to Science: A Bibliography for the Elementary Level, 1990, for suggestions)
Foundational Objectives Students will describe a decision-making process (CCT, IL) Students will develop their ability to make decisions (CCT)			Learning Objectives Students will: connect what they already know with what they are learning (IL) recognize possible sources of information (IL) reflect on what they know and feel about an issue gather and evaluate information from a variety of sources
Procedure This activity introduces the grade 3 perspective. Read a story such as Aaron's Awful Allergies: Read the title. Have the students make predictions based on the title and the cover illustration. Pause during the reading to allow for responses, to answer students' questions or to invite further predictions based on the story and its pattern. Invite the students to share similar experiences. Are any of them allergic to animal hair? Do they have pets? What kind of pets do they have? Ask the students to imagine that Aaron's mom takes him to a pet shop and tells him that he may choose an animal to which he would not be allergic. The salesperson at the pet shop offers him three choices: a turtle, a fish, and an iguana (for example). Aaron is undecided. Can the students help him choose? Invite them to think about what they have learned in previous grades. Do they remember what to do in order to make a choice that is a bit difficult? Grade 3 students should remember from grade 2 that when you have a difficult choice to make, you: Stop! Explore... by looking at options and consequences before choosing an option Go! Ask the students to brainstorm what Aaron would need to consider when choosing his pet. Responses might include: What food does the animal eat? How much food does the animal eat? How much space does it need? What immunization does it need? Is it friendly? Is it easy to train? Does it bite? Would it scratch you? Could it have diseases such as rabies? How much does it cost? How much does its food cost? Does it need animal care products and how much do those cost? Invite the students to categorize their questions. The categories might include: Needs, Costs, Qualities, Safety. Prepare a matrix with these categories as headings. Ask the students what they know about turtles. How much do they cost? Are they friendly? Do they scratch? Express the need to get more information on the topic. For instance, tell students that you are not sure yourself if a turtle would scratch or bite, but that it would be interesting to find out. What else would the students like to find out? Record their questions. Brainstorm sources of information (print and audio-visual reference material, CD-ROMs, the Internet, human resources such as a veterinarian, someone who works at a pet shop, someone from the Humane Society, etc). Show the cover of an informational book about turtles. Read the title. Ask the students to predict the contents of the book and to justify their predictions. Copy the table of contents page on to an overhead transparency. Ask the students to predict, from that page, if the book might contain an answer to some of the questions they suggested earlier. Which ones? Select one of these questions and have the students identify the page number corresponding to the beginning of the section where they might find the information they are looking for. Read that section and ask whether it does provide an answer to the question. In small groups, have students practice locating relevant information to answer the remaining questions by using the table of contents of various resources. Have reporters share the results of their group's research. If applicable, explain that you do not always find all the information you need. Later when they start researching other animals, students might interview people who are knowledgeable about taking care of pets and ask the questions which have remained unanswered. In small groups, have the students use the same process to research the other two animals (half the class might research the iguana and the other one the fish). Have the groups share with the class the results of their research. _In simple terms, point out to the students that when they Stop before making a decision, they do what they just did: Think and then Research, or learn more about the topic. Explain to the students that in grade 3, they will practise making decisions as they did before, but they will learn to get more information about a topic before making decisions. They will be gathering facts in order to make better decisions.			Other stories dealing children who wish they could have a pet might be used. Following are a few possibilities: Mary of Mile 18; Nobody's Dog; Much Ado About Aldo; A Puli Named Sandar; Lost and Found; Owls in the Family (excerpts from this novel might be selected for use within this unit). Draw a traffic light representing the Decision-making Process. Write Stop! on the red circle, Explore... on the yellow one and Go! on the green one, and the steps for Level B of the Decision-making Process. Students in grades 4 and 5 should be familiar with the steps within Level A of the Decision-making Process. If you teach grade 4 or 5, go directly to the activities which introduce the grade 4 and 5 perspectives.
			These lessons model the introduction of research skills to students around the grade 3 level. Refer to the table of Research Skills Objectives in the appendix at the end of this document to adapt lessons to your students' level and to gradually build research skills into Level A of the Decision-making Process. Grade 5 students for instance, might work instead on comparing information from different sources to determine the validity of information. This activity might be shortened by simply pointing to the fact that more information is necessary for Aaron to make a decision. In that case, introduce the steps within Level A of the Decision-making Process (as explained at the end of this activity) and use the actual research activity within another unit.
			On the Decision-making Process poster, add the steps for Level A: Think Research The grade 3 perspective is Gathering Facts for Wellness.

 

Grade 3-5: The Decision-making Process: Lesson 2
Decision-making Process: Explore... Go!			Resources Aaron's Awful Allergies F.Y.I. For Your Imagination: Focused Imaging
Foundational Objectives Students will identify sources of risk to healthy living Students will develop their ability to make decisions (CCT) Students will develop attitudes necessary for healthy living (PSVS)			Learning Objectives Students will: increasingly accept responsibility for themselves and others recognize sources of negative influence on their behaviour learn how to design and apply action plans learn how to evaluate their progress and revise their plans as needed have confidence in their ability to make decisions
Procedure This activity introduces the grade 4 and 5 perspectives. If necessary, read Aaron's Awful Allergies again, and briefly review from grade 3 how Aaron might make his actual selection. Focus the students' attention on the story. Do they think that Aaron takes good care of his fish? Why or why not? Ask the students if they have pets. Do they take good care of them? Discuss why it is important to take good care of our pets. Explain that sometimes, people decide that they are going to take good care of their pet, but after a while, things happen and they don't anymore. Suggest that they listen to a story which illustrates this point. Guide the students through a focused imaging activity such as the following, in order to point out some of the factors which sometimes interfere with the implementation of a decision. Explain to the students that you are going to tell them a story and you would like them to picture what you are describing. In a soft voice, read a script such as the one below, pausing for twenty to thirty seconds between sentences. Sit comfortably and relax. Close your eyes if you wish. Picture a large piece of white paper. Now picture yourself coming home from school. Here is Taffy, your beautiful new kitten waiting for you. You cannot wait to start playing with her. You take Taffy's favourite ball of yarn and start playing with her. Taffy loves playing with her ball of yarn. Look at her. Taffy's eyes sparkle. She is so happy with you. You are sure you can see a smile in her eyes. You pick her up and start petting her. Listen to her purr. It is nice to have this new friend. Your very own pet! Oh! Time for Taffy's supper now. You go and pick up Taffy's dish, and put just the right amount of food in it. Just like the lady at the pet shop told you. And now, Taffy needs to drink. You rinse her water dish and pour some fresh, clean water. Taffy is happy to have such a good friend as you. You take such good care of her! Now, I am going to count to ten. When I reach the number ten, you can open your eyes. One... two... three... Invite students to discuss the images they created in their minds and to share their feelings. Tell the students that you are now going to continue the story. Once again, have them sit comfortably, relax and close their eyes if they wish. A few weeks have passed. You are just back from school. The phone rings. It is your friend Brittany who wants you to go with her for a bike ride. "Maybe a bit later", you say. "I have a bit of homework to do, and then I need to take care of Taffy. I should be ready at around 4:30 or so." "Oh come on, can't you do that later? Ime and Andrew are coming too. And we could stop at the ice-cream place like last time. Come on, please, please, pretty please..." Now, I am going to count to ten. When I reach the number ten, you can open your eyes. One... two... three... Ask the students what they think is happening. Have they ever been in a situation such as this one? Friends sometimes try to influence you. Invite students to share personal experiences. Ask what arguments people use when they do this (they insist that you should do something because it is cool, they say it is safe, it is fun, nothing will happen, nobody will find out, everybody else does it, you are a chicken if you don't do it.) Ask students how it feels when someone is pressuring them. Why does it feel so bad? Explain that when someone tries to make you do something, it is called "pressure": they try to push you into doing something. "Peer pressure" is when someone from your class or a friend is pressuring you (peer is another word for "someone your age"). If a peer tries to make you do something nice, then it is positive peer pressure; but if a peer tries to make you do something bad, it is called negative peer pressure. Ask if students know of good ways to not let friends pressure them into doing something they know is wrong. Possible responses include: say no with a firm voice, explain why you think it is wrong (not safe, not so cool), say you don't want to do something just because "everybody else does it", walk away, talk to a grown-up you trust, say to that person: "You are my friend and I like you, but I don't like it when you try to push me into doing something wrong..." Record students' responses on chart paper and explain that throughout the year, they will often refer to this list and practice how to resist negative peer pressure. Explain that pressure from other people is one of the reasons why it is sometimes difficult to make the right decision and to stick to it. Explain that a good way to make sure that you are going to act on a decision is to plan exactly how you are going to do this and to write down your plan on paper. This is called making a "Plan of action", because it shows how you are going to act on your decision. Have the students think about the story you just told them. Invite students to suggest ideas for a plan to take good care of Taffy. Copy the sample action plan (suggested at the end of this sample unit) on to an overhead transparency or on chart paper. Introduce the elements of a good action plan one by one, explaining the importance of each one, and have students suggest ideas to complete this plan. The elements of a good plan correspond to the following questions: What? Stating a goal. I need to say what it is that I want to achieve. Can students suggest a goal? Sample response: >Take good care of my pet. How? Explaining how I will reach my goal. Can students explain how they could reach their goal? Sample response: play with it, feed it, keep it clean. When? Setting a specific time of the day (or week) when I am going to do what I have decided to do. I need to think of a time when I would not be busy and when it would be easy for me to remember... Deciding on a specific time is also important in order to establish a routine. Can students suggest a good time? Sample response: at four o'clock, when I come home from school. Where? Thinking about the place where the action might take place. Can students suggest a good place? Sample response: I will play with my pet, then feed it in the kitchen at home. Who? Selecting a support person. I need to think of someone trustworthy, who can answer my questions, who can help me remember, who can encourage me. Can students suggest a good support person? Sample response: my mom. It is also a good idea to: decide on a way to keep track of whether I did what I was supposed to do, and to have a starting date and dates for talking to my support person to check how things are going. _In simple terms, point out to the students that in order to have better chances of actually sticking to a decision you have made, you: Design and carry out an action plan Explain that even with a good action plan, things do not always work out as planned. Tell the students that this year, they will practise designing action plans on their own to implement their decisions. They will also learn to look at what is working and what is not, and revise their plans if needed. _In simple terms, point out to the students that in order to have better chances of actually sticking to a decision in the long term, you need to: Examine the results of your plan and revise it as needed.			Point to the Decision-making Process poster and review the steps for Level B. If you teach grade 3, conclude the unit at this point. If you teach grade 4 or 5, focus on this part of the unit, which corresponds to the perspectives for these grade levels: grade 4 students focus on applying decisions through the design of action plans, and grade 5 students consider conflicting expectations when making decisions. In grade 4, the perspective is Applying Decisions for Wellness and in grade 5, Considering the Wellness of Others.
			Point to the Decision-making Process poster, and add the steps for Level C: Design and carry out an action plan. Examine the results. Revise as needed.

 

My plan, by: What am I going to do? How will I do this? When will I do this? Where will I do this? Who will help me? ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ How will I keep track? ________________________________________ On _________________________________(date), I will check how everything is going. Signatures Me: ________________________________________ My Support Person: ________________________________________ My teacher:________________________________________ Date: ________________________________________

Sample Worksheet: Let's make a decision!

Stop! 1.What do I already know about this topic? How do I feel about it? 2.What else do I need to know? What information did I find?

Sample Worksheet: Let's make a decision! (Cont'd)

Explore... What are my choices? What is good about them? What is not good? Choice #1
Choice #2

Sample Worksheet: Let's make a decision! (Cont'd)

Explore... What are my choices? What is good about them? What is not good? Choice #3
Choice #4

Sample Worksheet: Let's make a decision! (Cont'd)

Explore... 1.Which option is the best for me? 2.This is the best option for me because:

Go! This is my plan:

Sample Worksheet: Let's make a decision! (Cont'd)