Lessons
Lessons featured throughout the 8 sections of We Do It 4 the Culture™ are based in culturally-responsive pedagogy. Culturally-responsive pedagogy is an educational framework that anchors students as the center of their learning through a value-added approach to teaching in which the students’ unique cultural strengths are identified and nurtured to promote student achievement and a sense of well-being regarding the students’ cultural place in the world. At the core of culturally responsive pedagogy lies the innate willingness and urgency to build relationships and connect with students.
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Knowing yourself is the foundation of ALL understanding and growth and is the first competency for social-emotional learning; Self- Awareness. Self-Awareness is the ability to understand one’s thoughts and feelings and connect them to behaviors. Lessons in this section promote self-reflection, self-efficacy, identifying personal truths and self-reliance.
Making responsible choices and taking responsibility for the outcomes; whether the consequences are positive or negative, is a skill developed through the process of reflecting of life experiences. Lessons in this section are based on situational analysis, making decisions and the impact of cause and effect.
What causes some of us to bounce back and persevere in response to failure or disappointment? How do we acknowledge and manifest the resiliency that lies within? Perseverance, the continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition is a quality that one learns over time and helps to build efficacy. Lessons in this section are focused on building self-efficacy, perseverance and resiliency.
Many ask students what do you want to be when you grow up? This question lends one to assume that a young person cannot learn the skills to start a business early while they are still in their adolescent years. Entrepreneurship and financial literacy are two important instruments for the realization of economic potential among marginalized communities; communities that have been isolated from the mainstream economy. Both serve as important components in social upliftment. Lessons in this section focus on financial literacy and entrepreneurship as tools for financial empowerment.
Good health is considered the most valuable and precious resource for every human being. Good health does not simply refer to the absence of disease in the body, but the complete physical, mental, social as well as spiritual well-being of an individual. There is an intricate relationship between income, health and wealth especially for marginalized communities. This relationship indicates that individuals with low levels of income have less access to heathy foods and nutrition education which results in higher rates of chronic diseases. While individuals with higher incomes are able to devote more of their discretionary income to purchasing healthy, nutritious food and have the freedom to exercise without any financial or environmental constraints. Lessons in this section address mental and physical health in addition to nutrition within an equity lens.
Education is the is a process of inviting truth and possibility, while encouraging and dedicating time to discovery. Educators prepare students today to serve as the global leaders of tomorrow. Therefore, 21st century learning skills are needed to prepare students to solve problems in an evolving world. Lessons in this section help to foster transferrable skills such as public speaking, time management, organizing, study habits and others.
Most students have aspirations for their futures. Some may be able to clearly identify those aspirations while others may be in a constant state of discovery. Having multiple options for post-secondary education is more common than ever and the more information students have about what is possible, the better their chances are of future success. Lessons in this section focus on college exploration, building a network and identifying the innate and learned talents which will help to shape their careers.
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GO HARD OR GO HOME
Celebrating Black History & Creating Black Futures
Free Lesson
OBJECTIVES
- Analyze the concept of “black futures” and "freedom dreaming" and how Black social movements have used imagination to inspire change.
- Explore students' own dreams for a better future, connecting individual aspirations to collective action.
- Develop social awareness skills by reflecting on historical movements and their impact on communities worldwide.
KNOW YOURSELF
Latinx Voices in Comics
Free Lesson
OBJECTIVES
- Develop self-awareness and an understanding of social awareness by exploring the underrepresentation of Latinx creators in the comic industry.
- Engage in responsible decision-making by discussing potential impacts of diverse representation in comics on cultural understanding.
GO HARD OR GO HOME
The Come Up
Free Lesson
OBJECTIVES
- Understand the importance of staying focused and motivated on students' journeys.
- Identify strategies for maintaining motivation and overcoming obstacles.
KNOW YOURSELF
Smile Through It All
Free Lesson
OBJECTIVES
- Understand the impact Asian Americans have had on society.
- Identify influential figures within the Asian American Community.
- Reflect on the meaning of J-Reyez’s song titled “Smile Through It All Pt. 2.”
DO THE RIGHT THING
Impactful Women on Social Media
Free Lesson
OBJECTIVES
- Discuss the question, “is social media good or bad for you?”
- Analyze women on social media positively impacting their audiences.
- Create a positive social media post using strong female examples as their guides.
ECONOMIC POWER
The Youngest in Charge
Free Lesson
OBJECTIVES
- Understand the process taken by students' peers to create successful businesses.
- Develop ideas and action steps to make students' business dreams a reality.
YOUR CHOICE : CHOOSE WISELY
Hip-Hop: Voices for Justice
Free Lesson
OBJECTIVES
- Understand the history of social justice and social awareness in hip-hop culture.
- Cite evidence from various sources to support a claim.
- Develop rebuttals to claims made by their classmates.
COLLEGE & CAREER
Each One Teach One
Free Lesson
OBJECTIVES
- Understand how mentors can foster college success.
- Make connections between mentor advice and students' own lives.
- Identify resourceful ways to advocate for their needs.
GOT SKILLS?
False Narratives
Free Lesson
OBJECTIVES
- Discuss false narratives in students' worlds related to students' identities.
- Explore the complexity and power of code-switching.
- Write a new narrative in their own words highlighting their strengths and abilities.
KNOW YOURSELF
Eliminating Impostor Syndrome
OBJECTIVES
- Define impostor syndrome.
- Analyze rapper Dee-1’s song “Impostor Syndrome.”
- Identify positive traits students love about themselves.
- Construct a positivity playlist to overcome moments of discouragement and eliminate impostor syndrome.
KNOW YOURSELF
Using Affirmations to Start the Year Out Right
OBJECTIVES
- Understand the concept of affirmations and their role in self-awareness and self-management.
- Reflect on students' relationships with affirmations and explore their hesitations, beliefs, and potential benefits.
- Create personal affirmations to support students' growth and resilience.
HEALTH IS WEALTH
Remembering to Breathe
OBJECTIVES
- Discuss the importance of using breathing exercises to handle emotions.
- Reflect upon the role of breathing in our everyday lives.
- Evaluate the breathing practices appearing in Stormzy’s song “Don’t Forget to Breathe.”
DO THE RIGHT THING
Safe Spaces
OBJECTIVES
- Define and understand the concept of a safe space.
- Analyze and reflect on CHIKA's spoken word for themes of respect and inclusivity.
- Connect spoken word lines to SEL competencies and real-world actions.
KNOW YOURSELF
Connect With Your Guidance Counselor
OBJECTIVES
- Gain a clear understanding of each SEL competency and how it applies to students' relationships with their guidance counselor.
- Learn about the guidance counselor’s role and how to effectively use their support for personal and academic needs.
- Discover how hip-hop can serve as a powerful means for self-expression and fostering a sense of community with students' peers and guidance counselor.
YOUR CHOICE : CHOOSE WISELY
My Vote Counts
OBJECTIVES
- Understand how emotions can influence civic responsibility and the decision to engage in political actions like voting.
- Explore different perspectives on whether voting makes a difference in everyday life.
- Reflect on personal emotions connected to community issues and consider how responsible decision-making can impact positive change.
YOUR CHOICE : CHOOSE WISELY
From Bystander to Upstander: Responding to Bullying (Lesson 2)
OBJECTIVES
- Analyze the social-emotional skills demonstrated by the characters in a short film, and identify specific moments where these skills are used to address bullying.
- Evaluate the impact of responsible decision-making by examining how choices influence the character's relationships.
- Reflect on students’ personal growth opportunities such as developing empathy, assertive communication, and conflict resolution, particularly in situations involving bullying or conflict.
YOUR CHOICE : CHOOSE WISELY
From Bystander to Upstander: Responding to Bullying (Lesson 1)
OBJECTIVES
- Identify and assess how key relationship skills, such as empathy, assertive communication, and conflict resolution are demonstrated in scenarios related to bullying and cyberbullying.
- Evaluate responsible decision-making strategies that can be used in a bullying situation.
- Reflect on areas for personal growth in both relationship and decision-making skills, identifying specific ways to improve students’ abilities to handle bullying situations effectively.
KNOW YOURSELF
Emo Check
OBJECTIVES
- Recognize emotions and understand how emotions relate to self-awareness and self-management.
- Develop emotional road maps and strategies to help students manage their emotions.
YOUR CHOICE : CHOOSE WISELY
Don't Kill My Vibe
OBJECTIVES
- Engage in a reflective conversation, using four quotes to analyze personal growth, relationships, and challenges.
- Choose an SEL competency that will help students apply the lessons from the quotes as they navigate the remainder of the school year.
- Develop and review tips to help students improve their SEL skills.
