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Reflect & Write

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Lesson Plan

Reflect & Write Small-Group Plan

Students will engage in guided reflective writing to identify and articulate emotions, enhancing self-awareness and emotional literacy while practicing academic journaling skills. By the end, students will complete personalized journal entries and an exit ticket capturing their current emotional state.

Incorporating social-emotional learning into ELA supports students’ holistic development by helping them recognize and articulate feelings, build emotional vocabulary, and develop reflective writing habits. This lesson addresses Tier 2 support needs by strengthening self-regulation and academic writing endurance.

Audience

7th Grade Students (Tier 2 Small-Group)

Time

30 minutes

Approach

Guided prompts, modeling, independent journaling, peer sharing, and a one-word exit ticket.

Materials

Prep

Teacher Preparation

10 minutes

Step 1

Introduction & Mood Check

5 minutes

  • Greet students and briefly restate lesson objectives
  • Display slide 1 of Prompt & Reflect Slides: “How am I feeling today?”
  • Conduct a quick one-word mood check (thumbs up/down or emoji scale)
  • Highlight the connection between recognizing feelings and writing about them

Step 2

Guided Prompt & Modeling

7 minutes

  • Advance to slide 2 of Prompt & Reflect Slides featuring the first journal prompt from My Feelings, My Voice Prompts Journal
  • Read the prompt aloud and perform a think-aloud to model reflective writing strategies:
    • Identifying an emotion
    • Using descriptive language
    • Connecting feeling to a personal experience
  • Invite one student volunteer to share a sentence aloud

Step 3

Independent Journaling

10 minutes

  • Distribute journals/notebooks and direct students to respond to the same prompt in My Feelings, My Voice Prompts Journal
  • Encourage full sentences and use of emotional vocabulary; provide sentence starters or emotion word bank as needed
  • Circulate, offer encouragement, and prompt deeper reflection with questions (e.g., “What made you feel this way?”)

Step 4

Pair Share & Reflection

5 minutes

  • Have students pair up and exchange journal entries
  • Provide guiding questions:
    • “What feeling stood out to you?”
    • “How did your partner describe that emotion?”
  • Encourage active listening and positive, supportive feedback

Step 5

One-Word Feeling Exit Ticket

3 minutes

  • Hand out One-Word Feeling Exit Ticket Template
  • Ask students to write a single word reflecting their current emotion and one brief sentence explaining why
  • Collect exit tickets as students leave to inform future Tier 2 support planning
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Slide Deck

Reflect & Write

Integrating Emotional Awareness & Academic Skills in ELA

Introduce the lesson: "Today we'll focus on self-awareness through writing. We'll check in, write, and reflect together."

Mood Check

How am I feeling today? (Choose one word or emoji to describe your current mood.)

Ask students to share a one-word mood check. You can use emojis or thumbs up/down. Highlight how noticing our feelings helps guide our writing.

Journal Prompt 1

Recall a moment this week when you experienced a strong emotion. Describe the situation, name the emotion, and explain why you felt this way.

Read the prompt aloud and model a think-aloud. Show how to identify an emotion, use descriptive language, and connect it to a personal experience. Invite one student to share aloud.

Journal Prompt 2

Choose one coping strategy you used (or wish you had used). Write about how it helped (or could help) you manage this emotion.

Encourage students to use vivid details and emotional vocabulary. Ask guiding questions: “What did you see, hear, or feel?” and “Why did it matter?”

Exit Ticket

Write one word describing how you feel now and one sentence explaining why.

Hand out the One-Word Feeling Exit Ticket Template. Instruct students to write a single word and one brief sentence. Collect as they leave.

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Journal

My Feelings, My Voice Prompts

  1. Recall a moment this week when you experienced a strong emotion. Describe the situation, name the emotion, and explain why you felt this way.











  2. Choose one coping strategy you used (or wish you had used). Write about how it helped (or could help) you manage this emotion.











  3. Write about something you’re grateful for that brought you joy recently. Explain how practicing gratitude influences your mood.










  4. Imagine giving advice to your future self about handling tough emotions. What would you tell them and why?











  5. Practice using emotional vocabulary. Pick five emotion words (from the word bank or your own). For each word:

    • Define the word.

    • Use the word in a sentence to describe a feeling you’ve experienced.

    • Explain how recognizing this emotion can help you reflect or cope.


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Cool Down

One-Word Feeling Exit Ticket

Write one word describing how you feel right now:



Write one sentence explaining why you feel this way:






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Reflect & Write • Lenny Learning