Lesson Plan
Your Future, Your Focus
Students will identify personal strengths and areas for growth, and apply time management strategies relevant to college and career goals.
Developing self-awareness and self-management skills is crucial for navigating the demands of college and career paths, fostering independence and successful goal attainment.
Audience
High School Juniors
Time
28 minutes
Approach
Interactive discussions, self-reflection, and practical strategy application.
Materials
- Your Future, Your Focus Slide Deck, - Self-Management Self-Assessment, - Time Management Toolkit Worksheet, and - Whiteboard or projector
Prep
Prepare Materials
10 minutes
- Review the Your Future, Your Focus Slide Deck for content and flow.
- Print copies of the Self-Management Self-Assessment for each student.
- Print copies of the Time Management Toolkit Worksheet for each student.
- Ensure projector/whiteboard is ready for display.
Step 1
Introduction & Hook
5 minutes
- Begin with a captivating question to engage students, such as: "What does it mean to be 'ready' for your future?" (2 minutes)
- Introduce the lesson's focus: self-awareness, self-management, and time management as key components of college and career readiness. (3 minutes)
- Use Your Future, Your Focus Slide Deck slides 1-2.
Step 2
Self-Awareness & Self-Assessment
8 minutes
- Distribute the Self-Management Self-Assessment to each student. (1 minute)
- Guide students through completing the assessment, emphasizing honest self-reflection. (3 minutes)
- Facilitate a brief discussion on insights gained, focusing on identifying strengths and areas for growth. Encourage students to share one thing they learned about themselves (optional). (4 minutes)
- Use Your Future, Your Focus Slide Deck slides 3-5.
Step 3
Time Management Strategies
10 minutes
- Introduce practical time management strategies relevant to academic and future professional life. (3 minutes)
- Distribute the Time Management Toolkit Worksheet. (1 minute)
- Have students work individually or in pairs to brainstorm how they can apply these strategies to their own schedules, focusing on upcoming tasks or goals related to college/career. (6 minutes)
- Use Your Future, Your Focus Slide Deck slides 6-8.
Step 4
Wrap-up & Next Steps
5 minutes
- Ask students to share one actionable time management tip they will try this week. (3 minutes)
- Emphasize that self-management is an ongoing process. Encourage students to keep their assessment and worksheet as tools for continued growth.
- Conclude by reiterating the importance of these skills for their future success.
- Use Your Future, Your Focus Slide Deck slide 9.
Slide Deck
Your Future, Your Focus
Self-Management & College/Career Readiness
- What does it mean to be 'ready' for your future?
Welcome students and introduce the topic with an engaging question. The goal is to set the stage for personal reflection and growth.
What Are We Focusing On Today?
🔑 Key Skills for Your Future
- Self-Awareness: Knowing your strengths, weaknesses, values, and emotions.
- Self-Management: Taking control of your actions, thoughts, and emotions.
- Time Management: Organizing and planning how to divide your time between specific activities.
Why are these important for college & career readiness?
Explain the three key areas we'll cover and why they are important for their journey beyond high school. Emphasize that these are life skills, not just academic ones.
Self-Awareness: Understanding YOU
Before you can manage your future, you need to understand you.
- What makes you tick?
- What are you good at?
- Where can you grow?
Let's find out with a quick Self-Management Self-Assessment.
Transition to the self-assessment activity. Distribute the 'Self-Management Self-Assessment' and explain its purpose.
Your Self-Assessment
Take a few minutes to complete the Self-Management Self-Assessment.
- Be honest with yourself! There are no right or wrong answers.
- This is a tool for your growth.
Allow students time to complete the assessment. Circulate and offer support or clarification if needed. Remind them to be honest with themselves.
Reflect & Share
What did you discover about yourself?
- Identify one strength you recognized.
- Identify one area for growth.
- How might understanding these help you in the future?
Facilitate a discussion. Ask students to share general observations or one new thing they learned about themselves. Keep it positive and constructive, focusing on insights rather than judgments.
Time Management: Your Most Valuable Resource
Time is precious, especially when you're balancing:
- Classes & Homework
- Extracurriculars
- Part-time Jobs
- Social Life
- College Applications / Career Exploration
Effective time management is a superpower!
Introduce the concept of time management as a crucial aspect of self-management. Connect it to their college and career aspirations.
Time Management Toolkit
Here are some strategies to help you take control of your time:
- Prioritization: What's most important? (e.g., Eisenhower Matrix)
- Scheduling: Use planners, calendars, or apps.
- Breaking Down Tasks: Large projects into smaller, manageable steps.
- Avoiding Procrastination: Start small, set deadlines.
- Setting Boundaries: Learn to say no, protect your focus time.
- Taking Breaks: Recharge to stay productive.
Present several practical time management strategies. Explain each briefly and why it's effective. This slide sets up the worksheet activity.
Put It Into Practice!
Let's use the Time Management Toolkit Worksheet to apply these strategies.
- Think about your current responsibilities.
- Choose 1-2 strategies you want to try.
- How will you implement them this week for your academic or future goals?
Distribute the 'Time Management Toolkit Worksheet' and guide students to apply the strategies to their own situations.
Your Future, Your Focus: Next Steps
What's one time management tip you'll try this week?
Remember:
- Self-awareness and self-management are ongoing skills.
- Practice makes progress!
You've got this!
Conclude the lesson by asking for a takeaway from each student and reinforcing the idea that self-management is a journey. Encourage continued use of the tools.
Worksheet
Self-Management Self-Assessment: Your Path to Readiness
Instructions: Read each statement carefully and rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 5, where:
- 1 = Rarely / Not at all like me
- 2 = Sometimes like me
- 3 = Often like me
- 4 = Mostly like me
- 5 = Always / Exactly like me
Be honest with yourself! This is for your personal growth.
Self-Awareness
- I can identify my strengths and talents.
- I understand how my emotions influence my decisions and actions.
Self-Management
- I set realistic goals for myself.
- I can manage my impulses and make thoughtful choices.
Time Management
- I typically complete assignments and tasks on time.
- I prioritize my tasks effectively, focusing on what's most important.
Reflection Questions:
- Looking at your scores, what is one area where you feel strongest? Why?
- What is one area where you see the most room for growth? How might improving in this area help you with college or career readiness?
- What is one specific action you can take this week to improve in an area of self-management or time management?
Worksheet
Time Management Toolkit: Planning for Success
Instructions: Review the time management strategies we discussed. Then, think about your current academic and personal responsibilities. Choose 1-2 strategies that you want to try or improve upon, and plan how you will implement them.
Time Management Strategies Reminder:
- Prioritization: What tasks are most important and urgent?
- Scheduling: Use a planner, digital calendar, or app to block out time.
- Breaking Down Tasks: Divide big projects into smaller, manageable steps.
- Avoiding Procrastination: Start small, set mini-deadlines.
- Setting Boundaries: Learn to say no, protect your focus time.
- Taking Breaks: Step away to recharge and maintain focus.
My Current Responsibilities & Goals:
List 3-5 current academic or personal responsibilities/goals that require good time management (e.g., upcoming essay, studying for a test, college application tasks, extracurricular commitments, part-time job).
My Time Management Action Plan:
Strategy 1: Choose one strategy from the list above that you want to focus on.
My Chosen Strategy:
How I will implement this strategy for my responsibilities/goals (be specific!):
What challenge might I face when trying this strategy, and how will I overcome it?
Strategy 2 (Optional): Choose another strategy you want to try.
My Chosen Strategy:
How I will implement this strategy for my responsibilities/goals (be specific!):
What challenge might I face when trying this strategy, and how will I overcome it?
One Small Step:
What is one concrete, small step you will take today or tomorrow to put one of these strategies into action?