MY WELLBEING JOURNEY – YEAR 9 EXTENDING MY BEST SELF as
a Person and as a Student
Extending your best self involves reimagining what your best self can look like, redesigning what you will do to achieve this and choosing to explore the program’s lessons and activities.
A healthy state of wellbeing is feeling optimistic and hopeful about today and for your future, because you know that you are working towards extending your best self.
NAME CLASS
AS A PERSON
What is my purpose this year for making the effort to extend myself as a person? What is a choice that I will need to make to achieve this and who is a role model that will support me?
Choose to:
» make in-person relationships my priority by showing that other people matter to me
» pause, take notice, be curious, be present and talk positively to myself.
AS A STUDENT
What is my purpose this year to extend myself as a student? What is a choice that I will need to make, to pay attention to what I need to pay attention to?
Choose to:
» be flexible in my thinking to have optimism and hope for the future by setting short and long term goals
» use grit & growth mindset to tackle challenges, make mistakes and grow academically by fixing them.
Acknowledgement: Sonja Lyubomirsky & Tal Ben Shahar
STRENGTHS WEEKS
There are six Character Strengths Weeks spread throughout this journey. They provide you and your class with opportunities to practise using your strengths to build a resilient state of wellbeing. They are also fun to do at home with your family. The order of these weeks are: Gratitude, Kindness, Bravery, Honesty, Creativity and Teamwork. From the website www.learningcurve.com.au download the Strengths Weeks sheets from Individual Resources > Character Strengths Weeks and the Wellbeing Awards Certificates from Individual Resources > Wellbeing Awards.
“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.” Henry David Thoreau
CHAMPIONS OF TRUST
This Lesson: WHY: for you to understand that you need trusted adults in your life, your Champions of Trust, to share worries and problems that you have. HOW: choose four people who you know will always be there for you to share any concerns that you have and that they will never give up on you. Your Champions of Trust will stand side-by-side with you through tough times, and celebrate excitedly with you through good times. Everyone needs support from time to time.
CHAMPION ONE
There is always a pathway to follow to feel great again, even if your Champions of Trust help you to create one.
PICTURE OF YOU OR DRAW YOURSELF CHAMPION FOUR
There is no problem which cannot be solved through trust, perseverance and courage. It all starts with you asking.
CHAMPION TWO
CHAMPION THREE
The reality is that nothing can be so bad or shocking that you can’t ask your Champions of Trust. They won’t judge you, just help you.
Acknowledgement: Rita Pierson
“Ask the experienced rather than the learned.” Arabic Proverb
Are there fears you have about asking? How do you want to feel after you have shown the courage to share your concerns?
Lesson 2
GROWTH MINDSETS
This Lesson: WHY: for you to learn that your mindset is about how much you believe that you can grow your brain’s abilities by deliberately practising. HOW: your brain rewires itself after every experience that you have. Therefore, practising more intelligent and challenging tasks will see your brain develop its abilities.
Mark where your mindset is about learning at school FIXED > > GROWTH Can’t grow Can grow
WHICH STEP HAVE YOU REACHED TODAY ?
YES, I DID IT ! I WILL DO IT I CAN DO IT I’LL TRY TO DO IT HOW DO I DO IT? I WANT TO DO IT I CAN’T DO IT I WON’T DO IT
What are things in your life that you believe are fixed and that you can’t change anything?
What can happen if you chose to deliberately practise more intelligent and challenging tasks, accept the mistakes that you make, and seek feedback to learn new ways to fix them? ............................................................................................................................................................................................
What are things in your life that you believe you can develop your abilities in? ............................................................................................................................................................................................
Did you know that growth mindsets are all about setting goals to follow step by step processes (practising) to strengthen existing and to build new brain pathways? For example, I will practise using I can and I will self-talk to contest and change my unhelpful negative thoughts to positive ones.
Write down a growth mindset or process goal for each of the following:
Weekly Big Five Health Check In: I will .................................................................................................................................
Learning and Thinking: I will
Respectful Relationships: I will
Your Choice: I will
Acknowledgement: Dweck & Ericsson
“Don’t be pushed around by the fears in your mind. Be led by the dreams in your heart.” Roy T. Bennett
Sharing Intentions
WHY: by understanding that everyone has mirror neurons, which copy others’ moods, intentions, and body language, so you will more likely to share happy moods, intentions and facial expressions. HOW: about 90% of your communication with others is done via messages sent and received by body language and voice tones. When you meet others, you know very quickly whether they are interested in getting to know you or not. Practise smiling, listening, and being welcoming to show others that your intention is to be friendly.
Acknowledgement: Greenfield & Iacoboni
DO: when you meet someone, what are two body language or voice tone signals that you use to show that you are friendly?
1
2
What are two types of body language that you need to avoid using if you want to show that you have friendly intentions? 1
2
Which of the Classes Growing Together C’s can help you with Sharing Intentions? (pages 8 & 9)
“We know what we are but know not what we may be.” Shakespeare
RESPECTFUL RELATIONSHIPS
Positive stress, called eustress, are the pumped up feelings that you experience while you are using your strengths to overcome a challenge. What is a challenge where you felt eustress while pushing through it, what is an emotion that you felt and what is a strength that you used?
FEEL GOOD STRETCHING
BALANCING STRETCHING: Stand on your left leg leaning forward pushing your right arm out in front of you and count to five and then on your right leg pushing your left arm out. Repeat 10 times. How did you feel?
Acknowledgement: 9-10 RRRR, Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne
How often did you do Balancing Stretching this week?
Acknowledgement: Gozen
Fabulous First 5 Minutes: what are two strengths that can help you to build respectful relationships?
MY THOUGHTS
WEEKLY HEALTH FOCUS
Colour the sections to reflect how well you went.
Exercise daily
BARELY LITTLE BIT ENOUGH MOSTLY HEAPS
Sleep well
BARELY LITTLE BIT OK MOSTLY HEAPS
Drink water
BARELY LITTLE BIT ENOUGH MOSTLY HEAPS
Eat healthy
BARELY LITTLE BIT HALF HALF MOSTLY HEAPS
Feel positive
BARELY LITTLE BIT OK MOSTLY HEAPS
WHAT ARE YOU GRATEFUL FOR?
MINDFULNESS COLOURING IN
Firing Neurons
WHY: by understanding that when you practise something, the millions of neurons in your brain will fire together to build stronger brain pathways, so that you will be able to plan how you practise.
HOW: every experience that you have rewires your brain. By deliberately increasing the difficulty of what you practise, you will create new pathways to grow your brain’s abilities. Always aim to practise better things, and not just same old. The opposite is also true: no practice, no brain growth.
Acknowledgement: Pascual-Leone & Dweck
DO: when is a time that you made the effort to practise more difficult tasks, and what happened?
How can making mistakes, and then learning new things to fix them, grow your brain’s abilities? .................................................................................................................................................................................
Which Resilience Quality can help you with Firing Neurons? (pages 124 &125)
“Why fit in when you were born to stand out?” Dr. Seuss
RESILIENT THINKING HABIT
When is a time that you were proud of how you persisted to overcome an obstacle by trying other ways to solve the problem, and then stuck to the task until you completed it?
WELLBEING@SCHOOL
When you find yourself in uncomfortable, challenging or unsafe situations, what is a strength that can help you to cope and how, and an emotion that you need you control?
Which Character Strength can help you to persist? (page 10)
Acknowledgement: Costa & Kellick
Acknowledgement: ACARA 9-10 HPE
Positive: what is an experience that fills you with positive feelings when you think about it?
WEEKLY HEALTH FOCUS
Colour the sections to reflect how well you went.
Exercise
daily
BARELY LITTLE BIT ENOUGH MOSTLY HEAPS
Sleep well
BARELY LITTLE BIT OK MOSTLY HEAPS
Drink water
BARELY LITTLE BIT ENOUGH MOSTLY HEAPS
Eat healthy
BARELY LITTLE BIT HALF HALF MOSTLY HEAPS
Feel positive
BARELY LITTLE BIT OK MOSTLY HEAPS
WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK?
MY GOAL THIS WEEK
What do I want to achieve this week?
MY GOAL NEXT WEEK
What do I want to achieve next week?
WELLBEING WORD SEARCH
body copy emotions facial felt friendly intentions listening meet message mirror moods neurons practice sharing signals strength together tones voice
HEALTH + STRENGTHS
Habits That Matter
WHY: by understanding that many habits that you have were only created because you had several key habits called Keystone Habits, you will be able to use them more. HOW: learn what habits create other habits. For example, using a timetable and planner as habits enables habits such as time management, prioritising, planning ahead, completing learning on time, avoiding time wasters, and having time for your interests. Developing Keystone Habits relies on you practising using your strengths effectively and deliberately.
Acknowledgement: Duhigg & Wade
DO: what is a Keystone Habit that you can practise which would create other habits to help you achieve your goals?
What is a Keystone Habit that you could develop to enable you to do the Big Five for Health well?
Which Character Strength can help you with Habits that Matter? (page 10)
“Patience and vision are the answer to any decision.” Verka Paunovska
MINDFULNESS PUZZLE.
Enjoy the challenge of placing the tools in the empty spaces so that each line has one of a kind.
Answers page 133
Future Positive:
what is something that you are really looking forward to?
WEEKLY HEALTH FOCUS
Colour the sections to reflect how well you went.
Exercise
daily
BARELY LITTLE BIT ENOUGH MOSTLY HEAPS
Sleep well
BARELY LITTLE BIT OK MOSTLY HEAPS
Drink water
BARELY LITTLE BIT ENOUGH MOSTLY HEAPS
Eat healthy
BARELY LITTLE BIT HALF HALF MOSTLY HEAPS
Feel positive
BARELY LITTLE BIT OK MOSTLY HEAPS
WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK?
MY GOAL THIS WEEK
What do I want to achieve this week?
MY GOAL NEXT WEEK
What do I want to achieve next week?
Nicky Laatz
MIRRORING STRENGTHS
This Lesson: WHY: for you to raise your self-awareness of how to use your strengths by noticing how others use theirs. HOW: your strengths are similar to your muscles, they only get stronger when you regularly use them. Often the best way to learn how to use your own strengths, is to watch how other people use their strengths and jot down things that you could then do to use your own.
Ask two people you spend plenty of time with what two of their top strengths are. Write their names and strengths in the left hand column. Then, for three days concentrate on what they do to use each of their strengths and write done brief notes in the table below. From what you learned by observing, for three of your top strengths, write actions that you can take.
Person 1 and Strengths What
they did to use each of their
strengths
Person 2 and Strengths What they did to use each of their strengths
Your Strengths Things that you could do to use each of your top strengths
Acknowledgement: Seligman & Peterson
“Mental fitness comes from consciously using your strengths.” MW
3 F’s FOR LEARNING GROWTH
This Lesson: WHY: for you to learn about the 3F’s process which is a tried and proven way to improve how well you learn. H0W: focus to pay attention to what you need to pay attention to, ask for feedback from your teachers about your progress, learn new things to fix mistakes, and put in the effort to deliberately practise your learning and thinking skills. Remember, achievement is public that everyone sees, and effort to practise is private, which only you see.
FOCUS: paying attention in class, asking questions and setting three goals each term to work towards. What is a choice that you need to make in class to do this?
FEEDBACK: regularly asking your teachers for advice on how you can learn in better ways. What areas do you need feedback about to improve your progress?
What is a FOCUS goal that you can aim for?
What is a FEEDBACK goal that you can aim for?
FIX MISTAKES: using your mistakes to guide what new things that you need to learn to fix them. What is a mistake you made that you need to fix?
EFFORT to PRACTISE: making the effort to sit down to practise what you learn to build faster brain pathways to improve.
What is a choice that you need to make to put in effort to practise?
What is a FIX MISTAKES goal that you can aim for?
Acknowledgement: Dweck, Ericsson & Anderson
What is an EFFORT to PRACTISE goal that you can aim for?
“I will study and get ready, and perhaps my chance will come.” Abraham Lincoln
