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Secrets of Self-Care

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Lesson Plan

Self-Care Blueprint

Guide each student through a personalized self-care blueprint, teaching stress-management techniques and setting actionable wellness goals in a 30-minute one-on-one session.

High schoolers face rising stress and mental health challenges; individualized self-care planning fosters resilience, improves coping skills, and promotes ongoing emotional well-being.

Audience

High School Students

Time

30 minutes

Approach

Hands-on, one-on-one coaching with guided reflection.

Materials

Wellness Essentials Slide Deck, My Self-Care Tracker Journal, and Self-Care Share Discussion Guide

Prep

Prepare Materials and Space

10 minutes

Step 1

Welcome & Check-In

5 minutes

  • Greet the student warmly and ask about their current mood or stressors
  • Have them open My Self-Care Tracker Journal and briefly review any recent entries
  • Use prompts: "What felt supportive this week? What felt challenging?"

Step 2

Self-Care Essentials Overview

8 minutes

  • Present core self-care strategies via Wellness Essentials Slide Deck
  • Highlight physical, emotional, social, and cognitive wellness techniques
  • Pause for student questions and relate each strategy to their experiences

Step 3

Blueprint Creation

10 minutes

  • Guide the student in drafting their personal Self-Care Blueprint in the journal:
    • Identify top stress triggers and preferred coping methods
    • Choose at least one daily and one weekly self-care activity
    • Allocate realistic time slots for these activities
  • Encourage specificity (days of week, durations) and note resources needed

Step 4

Reflection & Goal Setting

5 minutes

  • Prompt the student to reflect:
    • "Which activity feels most doable this week?"
    • "How will you know it’s helping?"
  • Have them write one SMART goal in My Self-Care Tracker Journal
  • Discuss potential obstacles and brainstorm quick solutions

Step 5

Wrap-Up & Share

2 minutes

  • Use Self-Care Share Discussion Guide to ask:
    • "What is your key takeaway from today’s plan?"
    • "How confident are you on a scale of 1–5?"
  • Confirm next check-in session date and encourage ongoing journal updates
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Slide Deck

Wellness Essentials

Unlock your self-care potential with practical strategies for daily life.

Welcome participants. Introduce the purpose: explore core self-care strategies to build resilience and manage stress. Explain that this deck will guide reflection and planning.

What Is Self-Care?

Self-care consists of intentional actions to maintain and improve your physical, emotional, social, cognitive, and spiritual well-being.

Define self-care and emphasize that it’s an active, ongoing process—not a one-time treat. Encourage questions or examples of what they already do to care for themselves.

Categories of Self-Care

• Physical: exercise, sleep, nutrition
• Emotional: journaling, creative expression, therapy
• Social: peer support, quality time, healthy boundaries
• Cognitive: learning new skills, problem-solving, mindfulness
• Spiritual: meditation, nature walks, personal values exploration

Briefly walk through each category. Invite students to name a self-care activity they already practice in each area.

Stress Management Techniques

• Deep Breathing (4-7-8 technique)
• Progressive Muscle Relaxation
• Mindfulness & Meditation
• Mindful Movement (yoga, stretching)

Explain each stress technique step-by-step. Optionally guide a 1-minute breathing or muscle relaxation demo.

Personalizing Your Plan

Reflect on:
• Your top stressors
• Activities that energize or calm you
• Potential barriers to self-care
• How you’ll schedule daily and weekly practices

Prompt students to reflect aloud or in their journal. Capture responses and relate back to categories.

Taking Action

• Pick one daily self-care activity
• Pick one weekly self-care activity
• Track progress in your journal
• Write one SMART goal for the coming week

Refer students to My Self-Care Tracker Journal for recording activities and progress. Remind them to set one SMART goal and prepare to share in the next check-in.

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Journal

My Self-Care Tracker Journal Template

Daily Self-Care Log

Date: ____________________

  1. Mood Rating (1–10): __________


  2. How am I feeling today? Describe emotions and any triggers:





  3. Top stressors I faced:





  4. Self-care activities I practiced:





  5. What helped me most, and what could be improved?





Weekly Reflection & SMART Goal

  1. What self-care successes did I have this week?





  2. Obstacles I encountered:





  3. My SMART goal for next week (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound):





  4. Action steps to reach this goal:





  5. How I will track and measure progress:





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Discussion

Self-Care Share Discussion Guide

Purpose

This guide helps students reflect on their personalized self-care blueprint, verbalize their plans, and identify supports and next steps.

Guidelines

  • Speak one at a time and listen respectfully.
  • Be honest and specific in your responses.
  • Offer supportive feedback if others share.
  • Keep contributions focused and concise.

Discussion Questions

  1. Key Takeaway
    • What is your single most important insight from today’s session?



    Follow-up: Why does this stand out for you?
  2. Chosen Activities
    • Which daily self-care activity did you select?
    • Which weekly activity did you choose?



    Follow-up: How did you decide these were a good fit?
  3. Identifying Obstacles
    • What challenge do you anticipate when you try to maintain these activities?



    Follow-up: What’s one strategy you can use right away if that obstacle arises?
  4. Confidence Rating
    • On a scale of 1–5, how confident are you that you will follow your self-care blueprint this week?



    Follow-up: What would help you move your confidence up one level?
  5. Support & Resources
    • What support (people, tools, reminders) do you need to stick to your plan?





Next Steps & Wrap-Up

  • Confirm the date and time for the next check-in.
  • Encourage ongoing entries in My Self-Care Tracker Journal.
  • Remind students to bring any questions or reflections to the next session.
  • Thank everyone for sharing and emphasize the value of peer support.
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Secrets of Self-Care • Lenny Learning