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Choose Your Path

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Lesson Plan

Choose Your Path Individual Plan

Student will apply the three-step decision-making process to a personally relevant scenario, exploring options and consequences with direct teacher coaching to make a responsible choice.

Individualized coaching helps Tier 3 students build confidence and critical thinking by practicing decision-making in a safe, supportive setting tailored to their needs.

Audience

7th Grade Tier 3 Individual Support

Time

20–30 minutes (one-on-one)

Approach

Personalized scenario, guided coaching, reflective practice.

Materials

Personalized Decision Scenario Handout, Positive Choices Reflection Worksheet, Tier 3 Decision Coaching Guide, Notebook or Lined Paper, Pen/Pencil, and Timer

Prep

Teacher Preparation

10 minutes

Step 1

Introduction & Goal Setting

5 minutes

  • Greet the student and explain the session’s purpose: to practice making positive decisions using three clear steps.
  • Review the steps on the Choosing Wisely Classroom Poster: Pause, Explore Options, Evaluate Consequences.
  • Collaboratively set a personal goal for today’s session (e.g., “I want to feel more confident thinking through choices before acting”).

Step 2

Scenario Exploration & Modeling

10 minutes

  • Present the student with the Personalized Decision Scenario Handout.
  • Think aloud as you model each step:
    • Pause: “Let’s stop and identify what’s happening.”
    • Explore Options: “What could you do? Let’s list all possibilities.”
    • Evaluate Consequences: “What good or bad might happen with each choice?”
  • Use guiding prompts from the Tier 3 Decision Coaching Guide to scaffold deeper thinking.

Step 3

Guided Practice

5–10 minutes

  • Offer a second scenario or a variation on the first one.
  • Ask the student to walk through the three steps independently.
  • Provide immediate feedback and targeted questions to deepen their reasoning (e.g., “What makes this option most positive?”).

Step 4

Reflection & Next Steps

5 minutes

  • Have the student complete key sections of the Positive Choices Reflection Worksheet: describing the choice they made, alternatives considered, and outcomes.
  • Summarize strengths observed and one area to improve.
  • Ask the student to state a personal reminder or strategy for using these steps in future decisions, and note it on a sticky or in their notebook.
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Slide Deck

Choose Your Path

Positive Decision-Making Strategies

Welcome students and introduce the lesson. Say: “Today we’re going to learn how to make positive, responsible decisions by exploring real-life scenarios.”

Objectives

• Learn the three key steps of positive decision-making
• Analyze real-life scenarios in small groups
• Reflect on personal choices and consequences

Read the objectives aloud. Emphasize that these skills help them daily.

Choosing Wisely

Pause. Explore options. Evaluate consequences.

Keep these steps visible as our decision-making guide.

Display the Choosing Wisely Classroom Poster on the board or projector.

Scenario Exploration

  1. Form groups of 3–4 students.
  2. Read your Decision-Making Scenario Card.
  3. List possible choices and potential outcomes on chart paper.

Explain group setup and hand out one scenario card to each group.

Sample Scenario

“You find a lost phone on the playground. What could you do?”
• Keep it
• Hand it in to the office
• Ask nearby students if it’s theirs
• Other ideas…

Model with a sample to ensure understanding. Use chart paper to list choices.

Key Decision-Making Steps

  1. Pause: Take a moment before choosing.
  2. Explore Options: Brainstorm all possible actions.
  3. Evaluate Consequences: Think about positive and negative outcomes.

Highlight each step and relate it back to the poster.

Reflection Activity

On your worksheet, describe:
• A recent decision you made
• Possible alternatives you had
• What happened as a result

Distribute the Positive Choices Reflection Worksheet and explain the prompt.

Wrap-Up

• Remember: Pause, Explore, Evaluate
• How will you use these steps today?

Share one insight you gained.

Summarize and invite volunteers to share their insights.

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Worksheet

Positive Choices Reflection Worksheet

Name: ________________________ Date: ________________


  1. Describe a recent decision you made. Include details: what happened, who was involved, and where it took place.











  2. What other options did you have? List at least two alternatives and describe them briefly.





  3. For each option you listed, describe one possible positive outcome and one possible negative outcome.










  4. Which option did you choose and why?


  5. Reflect on which of the three decision-making steps (Pause, Explore Options, Evaluate Consequences) you used in this situation. Provide an example for each step.





  6. If you faced this decision again, would you make the same choice? Why or why not?





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Activity

Decision-Making Scenario Cards

Use these cards in small groups to explore different choices and their possible outcomes. Distribute one card per group, have students read the scenario, then list choices and evaluate consequences.

1. Found Wallet
You find a wallet on the school sidewalk with money and an ID card inside. What could you do?





2. Quiz Cheat Request
A friend asks you to look over your quiz answers so they can copy. What are your possible options?





3. Lonely Classmate
You notice a classmate sitting alone at lunch who looks upset. How might you respond?





4. Online Bullying
You see someone being bullied in your class group chat. What actions could you take?





5. Chore Cover-Up
Your older sibling asks you to lie to your parents by saying you did your chores when you didn’t. What choices do you have?





6. Missing Homework
You realize you forgot your math homework at home and it’s being collected. What options can you consider?





7. Excluding a New Student
A new student is being left out of a recess game you and your friends play. What could you do?





8. Broken Pencil
You accidentally break a classmate’s pencil and they ask why it’s broken. What are your possible responses?





After listing choices, groups should discuss potential positive and negative outcomes for each option.

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Discussion

Choosing Wisely Wrap-Up Discussion

Purpose

To help students consolidate their understanding of the three decision-making steps (Pause, Explore Options, Evaluate Consequences) and practice applying them to real-life situations.

Discussion Guidelines

• Listen respectfully and let others finish speaking before you share.
• Speak clearly and use evidence from your scenario or reflection.
• Encourage one another: there are no wrong answers when we’re learning together.

Questions and Prompts

  1. Review the Steps

  2. Reflect on Your Worksheet

    • Question: On your Positive Choices Reflection Worksheet, you described a recent decision. Which step did you find most helpful in that situation?

      Follow-up: How might you use the other two steps next time?

  3. Apply to New Scenarios

    • Question: Think of one of our Decision-Making Scenario Cards that you didn’t discuss. How would you apply Pause, Explore Options, and Evaluate Consequences to that scenario?

      Follow-up: What new choices or outcomes did you notice when you paused first?

  4. Think About Real Life

    • Question: Can you share a time (at home, on the bus, online) when you wish you had used the three steps? What might have changed if you had?

  5. Commitment to Action

    • Question: Which one of the three steps will you focus on using today? How will you remind yourself to use it?
      Example response: “I will pause by taking three deep breaths before responding to my friends.”

Closing Reflection

Invite two or three volunteers to share their commitments. Encourage classmates to applaud or give a thumbs-up for each speaker. Remind students that practicing these steps helps them become more confident and responsible decision-makers every day!

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Worksheet

Personalized Decision Scenario Handout

Name: ________________________ Date: ________________


1. Your Scenario

(Teacher: Describe a situation relevant to the student’s current goals or challenges.)









2. Step 1: Pause

What is happening in this scenario? What feelings or thoughts come up?




3. Step 2: Explore Options

List at least three different actions you could take in this situation.


Option 1: _______________________________


Option 2: _______________________________


Option 3: _______________________________


Option 4 (optional): _____________________

4. Step 3: Evaluate Consequences

For each option above, describe one possible positive outcome and one possible negative outcome.

Option 1

  • Positive outcome: ___________________________

  • Negative outcome: ___________________________


    Option 2
  • Positive outcome: ___________________________

  • Negative outcome: ___________________________


    Option 3
  • Positive outcome: ___________________________

  • Negative outcome: ___________________________

5. My Choice

Which option did you choose? Why did you pick this one?




6. Personal Reminder

What will help you remember to Pause, Explore Options, and Evaluate Consequences in the future?




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