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Look at me!

Age group

8-10 years old

Primary CMS area

Area 1 – Personal effectiveness

Other CMS areas

Area 2 – Managing relationships

Unit Description

The main objective of this unit is to help pupils understand who they are and how the others (their classmates) see them. Three activities will be carried out. In the first activity, pupils are asked to fill out a list, in which they have to indicate their classmates’ characteristics, for example using adjectives or simple expressions. In the second activity, each pupil creates a mini-poster with pictures and words representing themselves (they are free to cut and paste photos or words from magazines, newspapers, etc). In the meantime, the teacher prepares a playing card for each pupil with the adjectives (and no names) from activity one and puts all the cards in a box. The mini-posters are then hung on the classroom wall (the pupils write their name on each one). In the third activity, each pupil draws a card from the box and tries to match it to the corresponding poster, according to the description provided on the playing card. At the end of this activity, the teacher asks the pupils if they are happy with their choices, or if they would like to change the position of some of the cards. When the pupils are happy, the teacher then reveals the correct descriptions for each child. The unit ends up with a reflection on the activities. The teacher guides the pupils to reflect on what they are good at and what they should improve. The discussion can then develop into a discussion on strengths and weaknesses.

Activity 1. Look at me …what do you see? Activity 2. What do I see? Activity 3. Do we agree?

Learning outcomes

General objective: to help pupils understand who they are and how others see them. Specific objectives: to interact confidently and well with others; to build positive relationships with others ; to accept different points of view; to recognize one’s weaknesses and strengths

Description

Activity 1: The teacher introduces the activity to the pupils. He/she gives them the materials and checks that they follow the given directions. Then the teacher collects the pupils’ outputs and summarizes all the adjectives, etc. on a blank playing card for each pupil.

Activity 2 (art activity): The teacher provides the pupils with the materials to carry out the activity (to create a mini-poster with pictures or words representing themselves using magazines, etc.). Once the posters are ready, the teacher hangs them so that they are clearly visible to everybody.

Activity 3: The teacher elicits the pupils’ attention by showing them a box which contains the playing cards created in activity one. The teacher asks them questions to arouse their curiosity about the contents of the box. The pupils are invited to guess what they are going to do. The teacher then explains the activity. He/she calls a pupil to draw a playing card from the box. The pupil reads the playing card out aloud and the teacher asks them to match it with the poster they think it is describing. When the game is over, the teacher starts a discussion to see if all the pupils agree. If not, they can also change the matches and justify why.

Conclusion
The teacher guides the pupils to reflect on what they are good at and what they should improve. The discussion can then develop into a discussion on strengths and weaknesses.

Learning materials

All what is needed to carry out the activities (paper, cardboard, coloured pencils, markers, scissors, glue, magazines and newspapers, fabric, etc.).

Timing

Activity 1.
1 hour (10 min. for the teacher’s introduction, and pupils’ questions, 45 min. for the activity, depending on the number of the students)

Activity 2.
2 hours (10 min. for the preparation of materials and for the teacher’s introduction, 1 hour and a half to create the posters, 10 min. to collect the posters and hang them).

Activity 3.
1 ½ hour (15 min. for the teacher’s introduction, 45 min. for “Do we agree?” activity, 30 min. for final discussion and possible changes.) The activity can be reviewed in the following days, by emphasizing the pupils’ strengths and weaknesses.

Role of the Teachers

The teacher gives directions and explanations, helps the pupils acting as facilitator, guides the discussion making them reflect and understand .

Methodology

Individual work, art workshop, group work

Assessment

The pupils’ assessment will be made by observing their way to organize their ideas, their work and how they motivate their choices