Lesson Plan
A Walk in Someone Else's Shoes
Students will be able to explain how someone else might be feeling in a given social scenario, demonstrating beginning perspective-taking.
Understanding how others feel helps us be better friends and classmates, making our school a kinder and more supportive place for everyone.
Audience
2nd Grade
Time
30 minutes
Approach
Through scenarios and role-playing, students will practice seeing situations from different viewpoints.
Materials
Whiteboard or projector, Walk in Their Shoes Slides, Different Perspectives Scenarios, and Role-Playing Cards
Prep
Prepare Materials
10 minutes
- Review the Walk in Their Shoes Slides and familiarize yourself with the content.
- Print and cut out the Different Perspectives Scenarios and Role-Playing Cards. Consider laminating them for future use.
- Ensure you have a whiteboard or projector available for displaying slides.
Step 1
Detective Briefing (Warm-Up)
5 minutes
- Begin by asking students: "What does it mean to put yourself in someone else's shoes?" Allow for a few student responses.
- Introduce the concept of "perspective-taking" as being a
Step 2
Learning the Clues (Introduction to Perspective Taking)
10 minutes
- Display Walk in Their Shoes Slides (Slides 2-4).
- Explain that understanding different perspectives is like being a detective, looking for clues to how someone might be feeling.
- Discuss how body language, words, and the situation itself can be clues.
- Show Slide 4 and discuss the example scenario, prompting students to think about how the character might feel and why.
Step 3
Field Investigation (Scenario Discussion & Role-Play)
10 minutes
- Divide students into small groups (3-4 students per group).
- Distribute one Different Perspectives Scenarios card to each group.
- Instruct groups to read their scenario and discuss the following:
- How might each person in the scenario be feeling?
- Why might they be feeling that way?
- What could someone do to show empathy or help in this situation?
- After a few minutes, distribute Role-Playing Cards to each group. Have students choose roles and briefly act out their scenario, focusing on expressing emotions and considering others' feelings. Circulate and provide guidance as needed.
Step 4
Sharing Discoveries (Wrap-Up)
5 minutes
- Bring the class back together.
- Ask each group to share one interesting discovery or insight they had during their discussion or role-play.
- Conclude by reinforcing the importance of
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Slide Deck
A Walk in Someone Else's Shoes
What does it mean to put yourself in someone else's shoes?
Welcome students and introduce the lesson's main idea. Ask a warm-up question to activate prior knowledge.
Becoming a Feelings Detective
To understand how others feel, we become 'feelings detectives'! We look for clues.
Introduce the concept of perspective-taking as detective work. Emphasize that we look for clues.
Our Detective Clues
- Words: What someone says
- Body Language: How their face looks, how they stand, what their hands are doing
- The Situation: What is happening around them
Explain what kinds of clues students should look for: words, body language, and the situation.
Let's Practice! (Scenario 1)
Imagine your friend dropped their ice cream cone on the ground.
How might your friend feel? Why?
What clues tell us how they might feel?
Present a simple scenario and guide students through identifying clues and inferring feelings. Ask guiding questions.
Field Investigation Time!
You will work in small groups.
Each group gets a scenario card and role-playing cards.
Discuss: How do people feel? Why? What can we do to help?
Then, act it out!
Explain the group activity and what students will do. Briefly mention the role-playing aspect.
Our Discoveries
When we take a walk in someone else's shoes, we learn to:
- Understand different feelings
- Be kind and helpful
- Build stronger friendships
Remind students of the key takeaways from the lesson. Reiterate the importance of empathy.
Discussion
Different Perspectives Scenarios
Instructions: Read your scenario with your group. Discuss the questions below.
Scenario Card 1: The Missing Toy
Lily brings her favorite new toy car to school for show-and-tell. During recess, she leaves it on the playground bench while she goes to get a drink. When she comes back, the toy car is gone. Her classmate, Ben, is playing with a very similar toy car a few feet away.
- How might Lily be feeling? Why?
- How might Ben be feeling? Is it possible he found a different car?
- What could someone do to help Lily or Ben in this situation?
Scenario Card 2: The New Game
Ms. Davis introduces a new board game to the class. It looks really fun! Maya is excited because she loves board games. However, David looks worried because he doesn't understand the rules and is scared he won't be good at it.
- How might Maya be feeling? Why?
- How might David be feeling? Why?
- What could someone do to show empathy or help David in this situation?
Scenario Card 3: Art Class Oops!
During art class, Leo is painting a beautiful picture. Suddenly, his elbow bumps his water cup, and it spills all over Sarah's drawing, which she was just finishing. Sarah looks very upset, and Leo feels terrible.
- How might Sarah be feeling? Why?
- How might Leo be feeling? Why?
- What could someone do to help Sarah or Leo in this situation?
Scenario Card 4: Sharing the Swing
At the playground, Mia has been on the swing for a long time. She loves swinging! Another student, Sam, has been waiting patiently for a turn for a while, and really wants to swing too.
- How might Mia be feeling? Why?
- How might Sam be feeling? Why?
- What could someone do to help Mia and Sam resolve this situation fairly and kindly?
Activity
Role-Playing Cards
Instructions: After discussing your scenario, choose roles within your group and act out the situation. Focus on showing how each character might feel through your words and actions. You can also act out what someone could do to help.
Card A: The Sad Friend
Character(s): Lily, Ben, a helpful classmate
Scenario: Lily is upset about her missing toy car. Ben is playing with a similar car. The helpful classmate tries to understand what's happening.
Focus: Expressing sadness, confusion, and attempting to communicate.
Card B: The Worried Newbie
Character(s): Maya, David, Ms. Davis/helpful friend
Scenario: Maya is excited about the new game. David is worried and confused about the rules. Ms. Davis or a helpful friend notices David's worry.
Focus: Expressing excitement, worry, and offering support/explanation.
Card C: The Spilled Paint Problem
Character(s): Leo, Sarah, a sympathetic classmate
Scenario: Leo accidentally spills paint on Sarah's drawing. Sarah is upset. Leo feels bad. A sympathetic classmate sees what happened.
Focus: Expressing upset, remorse, and offering comfort/solutions.
Card D: Swing Time Dilemma
Character(s): Mia, Sam, a mediator/friend
Scenario: Mia is happily swinging. Sam is waiting for a turn. A mediator/friend helps them figure out a fair solution.
Focus: Expressing enjoyment, desire for a turn, and cooperative problem-solving.