Your Choices, Their Feelings! Script

Welcome and Warm-up (5 minutes)

Teacher: “Good morning/afternoon, everyone! Today, we're going on an exciting journey to become 'Empathy Explorers.' Our lesson is called 'Your Choices, Their Feelings!'

Earlier, we brainstormed a lot of different feelings, like happy, sad, angry, and excited. Can someone remind me why it's important to think about how others might be feeling?”

(Allow students to share responses. Affirm their ideas, linking them to kindness, friendship, and understanding.)

Teacher: “Exactly! It helps us be good friends and classmates. And that brings us to our mission for today. Take a look at our slides.”

Introduction: What is Perspective-Taking? (5 minutes)

(Advance to Slide Deck: Your Choices, Their Feelings! - Slide 2: Today's Mission: Empathy Explorer!)

Teacher: “Our mission today, our objective, is to understand how your actions affect others' feelings and to practice seeing things from someone else's point of view. This skill is called perspective-taking.

(Advance to Slide Deck: Your Choices, Their Feelings! - Slide 3: So Many Feelings!)

Teacher: “As we just talked about, people can experience so many different emotions. It’s like a giant rainbow of feelings! But sometimes, even the same event can make different people feel very different things.

(Advance to Slide Deck: Your Choices, Their Feelings! - Slide 4: What is 'Perspective-Taking'?)

Teacher: “So, what is perspective-taking? It means trying to understand how someone else sees or feels about a situation. It’s like imagining you’re putting on their shoes and looking at the world through their eyes. How might things look different from there?

Let’s think about this: If you accidentally bumped into someone and they dropped their books, how might they feel? What about if you saw someone crying after falling down, how might they feel?

(Allow for a few responses. Guide them to consider the other person's internal experience.)

(Advance to Slide Deck: Your Choices, Their Feelings! - Slide 5: Why Does It Matter?)

Teacher: “Why do you think it matters if we try to understand how others feel? Think about how your actions are like ripples in a pond... they spread out and can touch others. Even small choices can make a big difference in how someone else feels.”

(Encourage discussion. Guide students to understand that their actions have consequences for others' emotions and relationships.)

Activity: Feeling Fortunes Game (10 minutes)

(Advance to Slide Deck: Your Choices, Their Feelings! - Slide 6: Game Time: Feeling Fortunes!)

Teacher: “Now it’s time to put our empathy hats on and play a game called Game: Feeling Fortunes! Here’s how it works:

I have a bunch of scenario cards. Each card describes a situation. When it’s your turn, you’ll pick a card, read it aloud, and then, as a group, we’ll discuss:

1. How might the people in the scenario feel?
2. Why might they feel that way? (Try to explain their perspective!)

Remember, there are no single 'right' answers for feelings, but we want to think deeply about why someone might feel a certain way. We’ll take turns, and everyone gets a chance to share their ideas. Let’s make sure we listen respectfully to each other's perspectives.

(Facilitate the game using the Game: Feeling Fortunes materials. Encourage thoughtful discussion and different perspectives for each scenario.)

Reflection: Empathy Explorer Worksheet (3 minutes)

(Advance to Slide Deck: Your Choices, Their Feelings! - Slide 7: Time to Reflect: Empathy Explorer)

Teacher: “Great job with Feeling Fortunes! You really showed some awesome empathy. Now, let’s take a couple of minutes to reflect on what we've learned and how you can use this skill every day. I'm handing out a worksheet called Worksheet: Empathy Explorer.

Choose one or two of the prompts to write about. Think about a time you tried to understand someone else's feelings, or how you might use perspective-taking in the future.”

(Distribute the worksheet. Give students a few minutes to write. If time permits, ask one or two students to briefly share their reflections.)

Assessment: How Do I Feel? Quiz (2 minutes)

Teacher: “To wrap up our lesson, I have a quick Quiz: How Do I Feel? for you. This will help me see what you’ve learned about perspective-taking and how our actions affect others' feelings. Please do your best and answer all the questions.”

(Distribute the quiz. Collect them upon completion.)

Conclusion (Optional - if time allows)

(Advance to Slide Deck: Your Choices, Their Feelings! - Slide 8: Keep Exploring Empathy!)

Teacher: “You all did a fantastic job today, Empathy Explorers! Remember, every day is a chance to practice understanding 'Your Choices, Their Feelings!' The more you think about how others feel, the better friend, classmate, and person you become. Keep exploring empathy!”

Empathy Explorer: Your Choices, Their Feelings!

Name: ________________________

Directions: Choose one or two of the prompts below to answer. Think deeply about how your actions, or the actions of others, can affect feelings.

Prompt 1: Feeling Ripple

Think of a time when someone did something, and it made you feel a strong emotion (happy, sad, frustrated, excited, etc.).

What happened?

How did you feel, and why?

Prompt 2: Imagine You...

Imagine you see a classmate struggling to carry all their books, and some of them fall. You are walking by and notice them.

What is one way you could act? How might that action make your classmate feel?

What is another way you could act? How might that action make your classmate feel?

Prompt 3: Stepping into Their Shoes

Describe a time when you tried to understand how someone else was feeling. What did you do to try and understand? What did you learn?

Feeling Fortunes: A Game of Perspective-Taking!

Goal: To understand how different actions and situations can make people feel, and to practice seeing things from another person's perspective.

How to Play:

1. Teacher reads instructions: The teacher will explain the game and present the scenario cards.
2. Pick a card: A student will choose a scenario card and read it aloud to the group.
3. Discuss as a group: As a group, discuss the following questions for each scenario:
   • How might the person (or people) in this scenario feel?
   • Why might they feel that way? (Try to explain their perspective!)
   • What are some different ways someone might react to this situation?
4. Listen and Empathize: Listen to everyone's ideas respectfully. Remember, there can be many different feelings and perspectives!

Scenario Cards:

Scenario Card 1: The Broken Toy

You are playing with your friend's favorite toy, and it accidentally breaks in your hands. Your friend sees it happen.

• How might your friend feel?
• How might you feel?
• What could you do or say?

Scenario Card 2: The Missed Invitation

Your whole class is invited to a birthday party, but you hear that one student wasn't invited.

• How might the uninvited student feel?
• How might the student having the party feel if they found out someone was sad?
• What could you do or say if you were friends with the uninvited student?

Scenario Card 3: The Group Project

You are working on a group project, and one of your teammates isn't doing their share of the work. The deadline is tomorrow.

• How might you and other teammates feel?
• How might the student who isn't participating feel?
• What could your group do or say to help the situation?

Scenario Card 4: The Loud Laughter

Someone trips and falls in the hallway. A few students laugh loudly.

• How might the student who fell feel?
• How might the students who laughed feel later?
• What could you do if you saw this happen?

Scenario Card 5: The Compliment

A classmate has been working very hard on their writing, and they finally share a fantastic story with the class. You really enjoyed it.

• How might the classmate feel if you tell them you loved their story?
• How might they feel if no one said anything?
• What kind of compliment would be most meaningful?

How Do I Feel? Quiz Answer Key

Question 1: What does "perspective-taking" mean?

Correct Answer: Trying to understand how someone else sees or feels about a situation

Explanation: Perspective-taking is all about stepping into someone else's shoes and trying to understand their thoughts and feelings from their point of view. It's not about ignoring others or always agreeing, but about empathy.

Question 2: Imagine you borrow a pencil from a classmate and accidentally break it. How might your classmate feel when they find out?

Correct Answer (Example): The classmate might feel sad, disappointed, or frustrated because their pencil is broken. They might also feel annoyed if it was their favorite pencil or if they needed it for something important. They might also feel a little angry if they feel you weren't careful.

Explanation: Students should identify at least one relevant emotion (e.g., sad, frustrated, annoyed) and provide a reason connected to the situation (e.g., it was their favorite, they needed it, it was broken). The goal is to show understanding of how an action leads to an emotional response in another person.

Question 3: Your friend is telling a story about something exciting that happened to them. What is the best way to show you are taking their perspective?

Correct Answer: Listen carefully and ask questions about how they felt

Explanation: Listening actively and asking questions demonstrates that you are engaged and trying to understand their experience and emotions, which is the core of perspective-taking. The other options show disinterest or shift the focus away from your friend's feelings.

Question 4: Why is it important to think about how your actions make other people feel?

Correct Answer (Example): It's important because our actions can affect how others feel, and understanding this helps us be kind, respectful, and build stronger friendships. It creates a positive environment for everyone. It helps us avoid hurting others and instead, make them feel good.

Explanation: Students should explain that considering others' feelings helps foster positive social interactions, build empathy, maintain friendships, and contribute to a respectful environment. They should connect their actions to the emotional outcomes for others.