Help Students Develop Empathy: Teach Empathy via Learning for Justice
When we put ourselves in another person’s shoes, we are often more sensitive to what that person is experiencing and are less likely to tease or bully them. By explicitly teaching students to be more conscious of other people’s feelings, we can create a more accepting and respectful school community.
– Learning For Justice
INTRO
Give students the opportunity to think about and practice empathy. Use lesson plans from Learning for Justice.
GO skills and behaviors include elements of student agency– self-awareness, self-knowledge, and an understanding of who you are in the context of the world around you, including your family and your community. This includes leadership skills, advocacy skills, self-care, and healthy habits as well as skills like kindness and empathy. Many of these skills are necessary to successfully navigate big life transitions such as attending college, enrolling in a vocational program, starting a new job, or even beginning a new personal relationship.
OBJECTIVES
- Give students the opportunity to think about and practice empathy
ACTIVITY
- Give students the opportunity to think about and practice empathy.
- This lesson can be adapted for all grade levels.
- Use lesson plans like this one from Learning for Justice.
- NOTE: You will need to create a free account and/or log in with your account information before being able to access the content. We highly recommend creating an account and signing up for their newsletter as the site provides a wealth of incredible resources and information.
TIPS
- Little Things, such as the above activity, are smaller efforts you can do tomorrow, or within the next week.
- Like this activity? Check out Inflexion’s full-page GO document for more ideas.
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