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My New Year, My Best Me

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Lesson Plan

My New Year, My Best Me

Students will reflect on personal social-emotional growth from the past year and set achievable social-emotional goals for the new year.

This lesson helps students develop self-awareness, practice positive self-talk, and cultivate a growth mindset by identifying areas for personal growth and creating actionable steps to achieve their social-emotional goals.

Audience

4th Grade Student (Individual)

Time

30 minutes

Approach

Guided reflection and personalized goal-setting.

Materials

My New Year, My Best Me Slide Deck, My New Year, My Best Me Activity, and My New Year, My Best Me Journal

Prep

Review Materials

5 minutes

Step 1

Introduction & Warm-Up

5 minutes

  • Greet the student and briefly explain the purpose of the activity: reflecting on the past year and setting social-emotional goals for the new year. Use the first few slides of the My New Year, My Best Me Slide Deck to set a positive tone.
    - Ask the student: "What is one thing you are excited about for the new year?"

Step 2

Reflecting on Last Year

10 minutes

  • Guide the student through the reflection prompts on the My New Year, My Best Me Slide Deck and the first section of the My New Year, My Best Me Activity.
    - Encourage them to think about challenges they overcame, things they learned about themselves, and moments where they felt proud of their social-emotional skills (e.g., being a good friend, managing big feelings).
    - Prompt with questions like: "When did you show kindness? When did you feel brave? What made you feel frustrated, and how did you handle it?"

Step 3

Setting New Year Goals

10 minutes

  • Transition to goal setting using the My New Year, My Best Me Slide Deck and the second section of the My New Year, My Best Me Activity.
    - Help the student identify 1-2 specific, achievable social-emotional goals (e.g., "I want to practice listening more," "I want to try new things even if I'm nervous").
    - Discuss how these goals will make them feel and small steps they can take to achieve them.

Step 4

Journaling & Wrap-Up

5 minutes

  • Have the student complete the My New Year, My Best Me Journal activity, focusing on their chosen goal(s) and why they are important.
    - Reiterate the importance of self-compassion and persistence.
    - End with a positive affirmation: "You are capable of amazing growth and kindness this year!"
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Slide Deck

My New Year, My Best Me!

A fresh start for an amazing YOU!

Welcome the student warmly. Briefly introduce the activity as a chance to think about the past year and dream about the new one. Ask the opening question.

What are you excited about for the New Year?

Share one thing that makes you smile when you think about January 1st!

Encourage the student to share one thing they are genuinely looking forward to. This helps set a positive tone.

Looking Back: My Super Strengths!

What good qualities did you show a lot of last year?

  • When were you a great friend?
  • When did you show kindness or empathy?
  • When did you feel brave or confident?

Guide the student to think about their social-emotional strengths. Prompt them with examples like kindness, bravery, good listening, or being a good friend.

Challenges I Conquered

What was something tricky you handled last year?

  • How did you feel when it happened?
  • What did you do to get through it?
  • What did you learn about yourself?

Help the student recall a challenge they faced and how they handled it. Emphasize that it's okay to struggle and important to learn from it.

Ready for Awesome Growth?

The new year is a perfect time to set goals for how you want to grow as a person, inside and out!

Transition to thinking about the future. Explain that growth isn't just about academics, but also about how we feel and interact.

My New Year Social-Emotional Goal(s)

What's one way you want to grow and be your 'best self' this year?

  • Be a better listener?
  • Try new things even if they feel a little scary?
  • Practice being patient?

Help the student identify 1-2 specific, positive social-emotional goals. Keep them simple and actionable. Provide examples if needed.

Small Steps, Big Impact!

How can you practice your goal each day or week?

  • What will it look like?
  • What will it sound like?
  • How will it feel when you achieve it?

Discuss simple, consistent actions the student can take to work towards their goal. Emphasize that small steps lead to big changes.

You Got This!

Every day is a chance to be your best self. Believe in yourself and keep growing!

Conclude with an empowering statement, reinforcing their capability for growth.

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Activity

My New Year, My Best Me Activity

Part 1: Looking Back at Last Year

My Super Strengths!

Think about all the wonderful things you did and how you showed up last year. What are some social-emotional strengths you used? (For example, being kind, a good listener, brave, helpful, patient.)

Write down or draw some examples:












Challenges I Conquered

We all face challenges, and that's how we grow! Think about a time last year when something was tricky or hard. How did you handle it? What did you learn about yourself?

Describe the challenge and what you learned:












Part 2: Looking Forward to the New Year

My New Year Social-Emotional Goal(s)

What's one or two social-emotional goals you have for yourself this new year? How do you want to grow as a person? (For example, I want to practice listening more, I want to be brave and try new things, I want to be more patient with my siblings.)

My Goal 1:



My Goal 2 (Optional):



Small Steps, Big Impact!

For each goal, write down one small step you can take to work towards it. Remember, big changes start with tiny steps!

For Goal 1, I can:






For Goal 2, I can (Optional):






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Journal

My New Year, My Best Me Journal

My Journey to My Best Self

Why is this goal important to me?

Think about the social-emotional goal(s) you chose. Why is it important for you to work on this? How will it help you feel better or be a better person to others?












How will I feel when I make progress?

Imagine you are working on your goal and starting to see changes. How does that make you feel? What positive emotions come up when you think about becoming your best self?












My New Year, My Best Me

Draw a picture or write a paragraph about what your

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