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Our Support Web

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Lesson Plan

Support Web Building Plan

Students will be able to identify and appreciate the support they receive from peers and understand how they can offer support to others, fostering a stronger sense of classroom community.

Building a strong support network is vital for social-emotional well-being. This lesson helps students recognize their existing support systems and encourages them to actively participate in supporting their classmates, leading to a more connected and empathetic classroom environment.

Audience

2nd Grade Group

Time

15 minutes

Approach

Interactive activity and group discussion to visualize peer support.

Materials

Prep

Gather Materials & Review

10 minutes

  • Gather one ball of yarn per small group (if splitting into multiple groups for the activity) or one large ball for the whole group.
  • Review the Weaving Our Connections Slides and the Yarn of Support Circle (Activity) to familiarize yourself with the content and instructions.
  • Arrange seating to allow for a circle formation for the activity.

Step 1

Introduction: What is Support?

3 minutes

  • Begin by displaying the first slide of Weaving Our Connections Slides.
  • Ask students: "What does it mean to support someone? What does it feel like when someone supports you?"
  • Facilitate a brief discussion, encouraging students to share their initial thoughts and experiences.

Step 2

Our Classroom Community

2 minutes

  • Transition to the next slide of Weaving Our Connections Slides.
  • Explain that just like a strong fabric, our classroom community is made up of many threads, and each thread represents one of us, supporting each other.

Step 3

Yarn of Support Activity

8 minutes

  • Introduce the Yarn of Support Circle (Activity).
  • Explain the rules and demonstrate how to pass the yarn while sharing how someone supported them or how they supported someone else.
  • Guide the students through the activity, ensuring everyone gets a chance to participate and the web is formed carefully.
  • As the web forms, highlight how each connection strengthens the whole group.

Step 4

Reflection & Wrap-Up

2 minutes

  • Display the final slide of Weaving Our Connections Slides.
  • Ask students to reflect: "Look at our support web. What does it show us about our class? Why is it important that we support each other?"
  • Emphasize that the web represents their collective strength and kindness.
  • Thank students for their participation and remind them to continue building their support web every day.
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Slide Deck

Our Support Web

What does it mean to support someone?
What does it feel like when someone supports you?

Welcome students and introduce the concept of support. Ask an open-ended question to get them thinking.

Threads of Support

Our classroom is like a strong fabric.
Each of us is a thread.
When we connect, we make the fabric stronger!

Explain the metaphor of a classroom community as a strong fabric made of many threads.

Building Our Web

We're going to build a 'Support Web' together!
We'll use yarn to show how we're all connected.

Introduce the Yarn of Support activity. Briefly explain the goal of creating a web of connections.

Yarn of Support Circle

Share how a classmate supported you, or how you supported a classmate.
Then, gently pass the yarn across the circle to that person, or to someone new you want to support!

Facilitate the activity as described in the lesson plan. Remind students of the steps: share, pass the yarn.

Our Strong Web

Look at the web we built!
What does it show us about our class?
How can we keep our support web strong every day?

Conclude the activity and lead a short reflection. Emphasize the visual representation of their support network.

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Activity

Yarn of Support Circle

Objective: To visually represent the peer support network within the classroom and foster a sense of community.

Materials: A large ball of yarn

Instructions:

  1. Form a Circle: Have all students sit in a large circle on the floor.
  2. Start the Web: The teacher starts with the ball of yarn. The teacher holds onto one end of the yarn and shares a brief example of how a student in the class has supported them (e.g., "[Student Name] supported me by helping me clean up the art supplies yesterday!").
  3. Pass the Yarn: The teacher then gently tosses or passes the ball of yarn to the student they mentioned, or to another student they want to acknowledge for their support.
  4. Student Shares: The student who receives the yarn holds onto a piece of the string and then shares an example of how a different classmate has supported them, or how they supported a classmate. For example, "[Another Student Name] supported me by sharing their crayons when I forgot mine," or "I supported [Another Student Name] by cheering them on during our game."
  5. Continue Weaving: The student then passes the ball of yarn to the classmate they mentioned, or to another classmate they want to acknowledge for their support. Each student holds onto their piece of the yarn, ensuring the string remains taut, creating a web.
  6. Build the Web: Continue this process until most or all students have had a chance to receive and pass the yarn. A physical web of yarn will begin to form across the circle.
  7. Observe and Reflect: Once the web is complete, have students observe the connections. Ask questions like:
    • "What do you notice about our web?"
    • "What does this web tell us about how we help each other?"
    • "How does it feel to be part of this support web?"
    • "What can we do to make our support web even stronger?"

Teacher Tip: Emphasize that every student is a valuable part of the web. Ensure that students are gentle when passing the yarn and that everyone gets a chance to participate. Encourage specific examples of support rather than general statements.

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