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Self-Esteem Lesson: My Positive Traits

ASCA Standards:
PS:A1 Acquire Self-knowledge
PS:A1.1 Develop positive attitudes toward self as a unique and worthy person
PS:A1.10 Identify personal strengths and assets
PS:A2 Acquire Interpersonal Skills
PS:A2.3 Recognize, accept, respect and appreciate individual differences
Grade: 5-12
Time: 50-minute period
Brief Description:
Students gain digital literacy skills and build self-esteem by expressing via social media the
positive traits that best define their character.
Objectives:
Students will:
Express positive feelings about themselves; build self-esteem
Strengthen their own identity
Appreciate positive traits in others
Practice appropriate use of social media and mobile tech tools
Keywords:
Positive, bullying prevention, self-esteem, self-concept, character, traits, icebreaker, social
emotional learning, emotional intelligence, social media, digital literacy, Instagram, photo
Materials Needed:
Mobile device with camera and Internet access
Pencils and bold markers
8.5 x 11 printing paper
Lesson Plan:
1. Preparation
Instagram is perfect for enhancing students ability to use mobile tech tools for academic
purposes. (This project can be done without Instagram, but will lose some elements of positive
social engagement.)
Start a class Instagram account with a designated mobile device. (Make sure to set the account
settings to private. Only people you choose to follow will be able to see material posted to this
account.) Then find other educators and classes at a similar grade level with whom you can
connect. Make sure you have at least some simple photos on your account when you get started
these can include a selfie, classroom pics, and/or an image of your desk. You also could
include a video introduction explaining how your Instagram account is an educational tool.

2. Student Activities
a. Opening discussion
At the beginning of class, have students watch the 13-minute TED Talk video How Do YOU
Define Yourself: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c62Aqdlzvqk.
In the video, Lizzie Velasquez discusses how she suffers from a rare disorder which prevents her
from gaining weight and has caused blindness in her right eye. Once cyberbullied and labeled
the worlds ugliest woman, she decided to turn things around and create her own definitions of
beauty and happiness.
Lizzie asks the audience to consider what defines them. Is it their backgrounds? Friends?
Families? She reminds us that if we can find happiness within, and be the drivers of our own
lives, bullies will always lose.
After they experience Velasquezs explanation of her journey, have your class briefly reflect.
What difficulties did she face in life? How was she treated in school?
What are some of Lizzies positive traits (perseverance, resilience, positive attitude, focus
on what is important in life, etc.) that contribute to her positive self-concept?
What about her do you most admire?
How might her positive traits inspire and help others?
How does Lizzie demonstrate that beauty is on the inside?
Who in her life supported her, and how did this help build her self-esteem?
If she were a student at this school, how could the school community support her?
b. Activity
Students should already be familiar with positive traits linked to good character. It also would be
a good idea to have students check out this list (or print copies of it), with a reminder to focus on
the positive and neutral traits on the list. (The list also provides an opportunity for vocabulary
building!)
Have students get in a circle either by standing or rearranging the desks. Give them a few
minutes to jot down the following with pen and paper:
1. Three characteristics or traits they like about themselves. Rather than listing interests and
talents, they should share core elements of their personalities. Offer examples such as
kind, creative and determined to get students going, and maybe list of few of your
own favorite traits. Encourage sharing of traits that are perhaps less common or are
somewhat unique to themselves.
2. A characteristic or trait they like about the classmate sitting to their left or right (or a
classmate whose name theyve picked out of a hat).
Have the class go around the circle once, with each student saying, My three favorite positive
traits are _________, _________ and ________ and One of [classmate name]s positive traits
is ___________.

Return the classroom to its original arrangement. Pass out one sheet of paper and one bold
marker to each student. Have each identify the one characteristic or trait (out of the three they
shared and the one a classmate shared about them) that s/he likes best.
Ask students to write a statement expressing this positive trait (they can choose a word, a few
words or a short sentence and can even incorporate graphic elements). Have them write the
statement in pencil, using large letters and holding their paper horizontally. After youve
approved each, give students the okay to go over their statements in marker.
Once the class has finished their signs, ask them to volunteer to share. The order doesnt matter,
but everyone must present his/her characteristic in front of the class and express it verbally. Right
before or after a student shares, take a photo or video of him/her affirming the statement aloud or
simply holding up the sign.
Post the photos and/or videos to the class Instagram account. You might also choose to share
with your Instagram audience video of your class process and/or individual character
testimonials. Use hashtags, when appropriate, for engagement purposes. To gain traction for your
posts, be sure to like and comment on other photos and videos posted by users whom you
follow.
Assessment:
At the end of the lesson, have students discuss how their moments of sharing felt, and whether
the experience affirmed something positive about them. Were they surprised by the traits that
classmates identified for them? Were these also traits they identified in themselves? How will
these positive traits help promote their personal well-being? How will these traits positively
impact others?
Use a bulletin board to display students signs. If desired, have students add their names to their
signs.
Every day for a week following the lesson, check the class Instagram account (possibly
projecting it for all to see) and start class on a positive note by sharing the positive comments and
number of post likes that students have received.
Reference
http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/self-esteem-positive-character-traits.shtml

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