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New Year, New You!

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Lesson Plan

New Year, New You!

Students will reflect on their winter break experiences and set one simple, personal goal for the new year.

This lesson helps students transition back to school positively, encouraging them to think about their recent experiences and what they want to achieve, fostering a sense of purpose and self-awareness.

Audience

Cognitively Impaired High School Students

Time

20-30 minutes

Approach

Engaging activities and guided reflection.

Materials

New Year, New You! Slide Deck, Winter Break Rewind Warm Up, New Year, New You! Script, Goal Setting Spin Game, My Awesome Goals Activity, and Share Your Sparkle Discussion

Prep

Prepare Materials

10 minutes

Step 1

Warm Up: Winter Break Rewind

5 minutes

  • Display the Winter Break Rewind Warm Up questions on the board or projector.
  • Ask students to think about one fun thing they did over break or one thing they enjoyed.
  • Go around the room and have each student share one short answer. Encourage simple, positive sharing.
  • Teacher Note: Use the New Year, New You! Script for guiding prompts.

Step 2

Introduce Reflection & Goals (Slide Deck & Script)

5 minutes

  • Use the New Year, New You! Slide Deck to introduce the concept of reflection (looking back) and goal setting (looking forward).
  • Keep explanations simple and use visual aids on the slides.
  • Guide students through a brief reflection on their winter break using simple questions.
  • Teacher Note: Follow the New Year, New You! Script for specific wording and questions.

Step 3

Game: Goal Setting Spin

7-8 minutes

  • Introduce the Goal Setting Spin Game.
  • Explain that we'll think about simple goals for different areas of our lives.
  • Spin the spinner (physical or digital) and have students identify a simple, achievable goal related to the category.
  • Provide examples as needed (e.g.,

Step 4

Activity: My Awesome Goals

5 minutes

  • Distribute the My Awesome Goals Activity.
  • Guide students to write or draw one simple goal they want to achieve.
  • Provide support and encouragement as students work on their goals.
  • Teacher Note: Remind students that goals can be small and personal (e.g., 'drink more water', 'help a friend', 'read one book').

Step 5

Cool Down/Discussion: Share Your Sparkle

3-5 minutes

  • Facilitate the Share Your Sparkle Discussion.
  • Ask students to share their goal (if they feel comfortable) or one positive thing they are looking forward to.
  • Conclude by emphasizing that every small step towards a goal is a success.
  • Teacher Note: End with a positive and encouraging tone, celebrating individual efforts.
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Slide Deck

New Year, New You!

Welcome back, everyone! Let's get ready for a great start!

Welcome students back and set a positive, light tone. Introduce the day's topic.

Winter Break Rewind

What was one fun thing you did over winter break?

What was something you enjoyed?

Transition from the warm-up to reflection. Ask students to share briefly.

What is Reflection?

Reflection means looking back.

Thinking about what happened.

What did we learn?

Explain 'reflection' simply, focusing on looking back at what happened.

What is a Goal?

A goal is something you want to do or achieve.

It's looking forward!

Explain 'goal setting' simply, focusing on looking forward to what you want to do.

Setting Small Goals

Goals can be big, but today we are thinking about small, helpful goals.

Like trying a new food, or remembering to drink water!

Introduce the idea of simple, achievable goals. Give examples as needed.

Your Goals, Your Way!

Your goals are for you.

They help you learn and grow.

Let's set some awesome goals!

Emphasize that goals are personal and about self-improvement.

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Script

New Year, New You! Script

Warm Up: Winter Break Rewind (5 minutes)

Teacher: "Welcome back, everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful winter break. It's so good to see all your faces! To start, let's do a quick 'Winter Break Rewind'. I want each of you to think of one fun thing you did over break, or just one thing you really enjoyed."

(Display Winter Break Rewind Warm Up on screen)

Teacher: "Let's go around the room. When it's your turn, share just one thing. It could be playing in the snow, watching a movie, eating yummy food, or just relaxing! Who wants to start?"

*(Allow students to share. Provide sentence starters if needed:

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Game

Goal Setting Spin Game

How to Play:

  1. The teacher will use a spinner (or a digital wheel) with different categories like:
    *
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Activity

My Awesome Goals Activity

Think about one small, positive goal you want to achieve. This goal is just for you! It could be something you want to do more often, something new you want to try, or something kind you want to say.

My Awesome Goal:













Draw a picture of you achieving your goal!













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Discussion

Share Your Sparkle Discussion

Let's talk about our goals and positive feelings!

  1. What is one goal you are excited about? (If you feel comfortable sharing!)

  2. What is one positive thing you are looking forward to this week or month?

  3. How can we help each other reach our goals? (For example, by being kind, cheering each other on, or helping a friend who needs it!)

Remember:

  • Every small step counts!
  • It's okay to try again if you don't reach a goal the first time.
  • You are all amazing and capable of great things!
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New Year, New You! • Lenny Learning