Second - Third Grade
Developmental Characteristics
Physical
Enthusiastic about games
Experiencing improvement in both gross and fine motor skills
Possess a high activity level
Practice to master variations of movement for physical activities
Enjoy games that allow for comparison of skills
Enjoy games that allow for self-f-improvement
Social Emotional
Have a strong drive toward independence
Develop a strong sense of loyalty to friends
Need to belong to a group
Play with and are friends with same-sex peers
Like to take on responsibility
Live in a world of games, rituals and humor inhabited only by children
Like to have a best friend
Have a rigid sense of right and wrong
Need help accepting peers who are different or left out of a group
Cognitive
Like to talk; use language to express feelings/tell stories
Developing a sense of time
Enjoy collecting things
Enjoy problem-solving games like treasure hunts
Can plan and carry out projects with adult support
Becoming more self-directed in activities
Better able to understand and appreciate differences of opinion
The Power of Yet Wall
Students will name a skill they have not mastered yet, make a short practice plan, and start a simple habit tracker to build confidence through visible progress.
Strengths Detective
Students will identify their top three character strengths from a kid-friendly list, give evidence for each, and explain how a strength helps them and others.
Confidence Comic: My Brave Moment
Students will recall a time they acted with courage, identify the self-talk that helped, and retell the moment as a short comic to strengthen their confident identity.
Proud Pockets
Students will identify what it means to feel proud, name one thing they did that made them feel proud, and share it with confidence.
Mistake Of The Week
Students will share a mistake and what it taught them, reframe mistakes as evidence of courage and learning, and contribute to a class Mistake Celebration board.
Brave Steps
Students will identify what being brave means, share a brave thing they did, and choose one small brave step to try.
Mistake Monsters
Students will understand that mistakes are a normal part of learning, name a mistake they made and what they learned, and practice a class response that makes mistakes feel safe.
Goal Garden
Students will set one small, specific goal and name one step they can take toward it, connecting confidence to trying and growing.
Strength Badges
Students will name a strength they see in a classmate and receive a strength badge from a classmate, building confidence through peer recognition.
Famous Failures, Future Wins
Students will learn about people who failed before succeeding, connect setbacks to persistence, and write their own "I haven't ___ yet" story with a next step.
My Name, My Story
Students will explore the story and meaning of their name as part of their identity, and share one thing about their name with pride.
Not Yet! Flipping Thoughts and Growing Confidence
Students will identify unhelpful self-talk ("I can't," "I'm bad at this") and flip it into helpful, growth-minded self-talk. Students will connect confidence to practice and effort by making a short, specific practice plan for one skill they want to improve.
All About Me Shield
Students will identify parts of who they are (family, favorites, strengths, what makes them unique) and present their shield with pride.
Super Me: I Can Do Hard Things
Students will identify personal strengths and parts of their identity (culture, family, interests, talents, values) as sources of confidence rather than obstacles. Students will write and share a "My identity is a superpower because..." statement and recognize how positive self-talk and self-knowledge support confidence.
Red Light, Green Light: Self-Control and Thoughtful Giving
Students play a Squid Games-style red light, green light game, practicing self-control and encouraging peers who are out, then create personalized "blind bags" for a randomly assigned mystery partner based on their likes, opening them together at closing circle.
Simon Says and Musical Chairs: Practicing Self-Control
Students play Simon Says to practice following directions and self-control, then build a class playlist and play high-expectation musical chairs, practicing safe bodies and encouraging peers who are out, closing with reflection on managing excitement and frustration.
Zones of Regulation Collages: Naming My Emotions
Students face the unknown in the "Mystery Box Challenge," then create magazine collages representing the blue, green, yellow, and red zones of regulation, matching images to emotions and coping strategies for each zone.
Running Up That Hill: Staying Motivated and Self-Regulated
Students build a class playlist by sharing favorite songs, then play a Stranger Things-inspired "self-regulation dodgeball" where runners focus on their chosen song to stay calm while dodgeballs are thrown, closing with a reflection on staying motivated when things get hard.
Pinch Pots: Practicing Patience and Self-Control
Students shape air-dry clay into pinch pots, practicing patience and self-control as they manipulate the material into a smooth, crack-free form, then sketch or paint a design before reflecting on what it felt like to work with the clay.
Impulse Control: Statues and Marshmallow Towers
Students practice staying still and quiet in "Night at the Museum," a freeze game with a roaming "janitor," then build marshmallow-and-toothpick structures while resisting the urge to eat any pieces until they finish, reflecting on delayed gratification.