Category: Human Development

Importance of Small Talk

There was a time when keeping students quiet was a challenge because all they wanted to do was talk! Now, not so much! Sadly, many students want to avoid
talking to you, their peers or anyone else at all costs. Importance of Small Talk is a great lesson to use with students at the beginning of the school year, new semester or even as part of a communication unit. Not only does this lesson give insight on the importance of small talk, but it encourages small talk among students and helps build relationships as they get to know each other! Continue reading to learn more…

Relationship Videos

Movies and movie clips can be a great way to add and increase interest to a lesson or topic. Jeff Brown, of Colorado, teaches a Psychology of Relationships
course (any many others) at Rampart High School and has an amazing collection of Relationship Videos that he has created for that class.  He is graciously sharing his video collection with us, along with his websites which are chocked full of materials for various content areas.  So, if you’ve been struggling to add more interest and engagement to your relationship lessons, you are definitely going to want to check these out!

Mental Health Awareness: Chalk the Walks

Not only is May designated as Mental Health Awareness month, but for many schools it’s also the end of the school year!  As the year winds down, students get
antsy and yearn to be outdoors as the weather gets nice.  Why not combine the two by getting students outside to create sidewalk art that celebrates mental health awareness?  Continue reading Mental Health Awareness: Chalk the Walks to learn more!

Problem Based Learning: Parenting Dilemma

Problem based learning projects are a great way to engage your students and incorporate some rigor.  How, you ask?  Problem based learning projects incorporate
many, and sometimes all of the the 4 C’s; Critical Thinking, Communication, Collaboration and Creativity.  The Family Medical Leave Work Dilemma takes a real world problem inspired by a Washington Post article and provides just enough information for students to come up with a viable solution.  If you’ve ever wanted to try problem based learning in your family or parenting classes, why not start with this one?

Crayon Life Lessons

Who knew something as simple as crayons could teach some important life lessons? The Crayon Life Lessons teaches students a variety of lessons about acceptance, diversity and uniqueness that can be used in all settings from home, to school, to work in a unique way. I used it in my child development classes, but it could be used in any class as an enrichment activity!

The Brain & ACES Hyperdoc

With so many children dealing with adverse conditions and trauma, this lesson is critical when teaching child development. The Brain & ACES Hyperdoc helps to understand the impact on a child’s development.

Family Life Cycle Stages & Case Study

If you teach about the family, you no doubt include a few lessons or a unit on the family life cycle. In my class, I focus on each stage and do an in depth study around each stage. However, I have to introduce the stages of the theory and have done so in a variety of ways. Normally, I do an iron chef intro, but this year, due to a smaller class, I had to create a different strategy. I will include both versions in this Family Life Cycle Stages & Case Study post.

Dating Violence Memoirs

When teaching about dating violence, there is a victim, an abuser and usually a bystander. In the movie or case study, “No One Would Tell”, referenced in this post, these roles are clearly portrayed. The Dating Violence Memoirs is a follow-up project to that case study, focusing directly on the narratives of these characters. Read on to learn more…

True Friends vs Toxic Friends

True Friends vs Toxic Friends was a big hit with my students! It provides discussion as well as interactive, engaging and creative activities! I taught true friends vs toxic friends to a mixed class of high school students, but this lesson could easily be done with middle schoolers as well!

Communication Styles

After teaching my students about communication skills, I decided to spend a couple of days going over the different communication styles. The three communication styles consist of passive, aggressive and assertive. The best part of this lesson was the enthusiam my students exhibited when creating video skits of the communication styles based on selected scenarios. Wonder why? The video skits was their idea, so naturally they bought into it!