Patience Tool

Concept: Patience is the ability to wait quietly. When we have patience we can tolerate situations that are not in our control. The only way for children to learn patience is for adults to model it. If we do not model it, children will learn to be demanding, impatient and impulsive.

Tagline: I am strong enough to wait

Hand Gesture: Place palms together in front of you, fingers straight. Slowly rub hands together, slowly and gently. Feel the sensation of the hands warming each other.

Icon: The Patience Tool icon is a wood plane. A wood plane is used to smooth away the rough surface of wooden objects, but it must be used slowly, gently and patiently, or it will leave a scar.

Ask students “What does it mean to be patient?” Brainstorm ideas & list them:

Some ideas may include:

Setting goals and stick with them until they are finished
Be willing to wait for things you want
Be tolerant when mistakes are made
Accept things you can’t do anything about-maybe even find something funny in it.

Ask students “What happens when we are not patient?” discuss experiences they have had when they were not patient in the past. Or you may have to help out, depending on the grade.

Some ideas may include:

Getting stressed out or angry
Loosing my temper and saying something mean that I don’t really feel.
Other people getting upset with me.
Getting in trouble at home or at school

Coach students on the impact of their impatience with each other in academic discussions. Discuss how judgement, impatience, and sarcasm make it more difficult to learn.
Invite students to demonstrate using the Patience Tool by giving them familiar scenarios to act out in class.

Remind students of the concept that most Tools can be used both privately within yourself and also with others.

How is the Patience Tool a “me” tool? (i. e., something you would use on your own without anyone knowing) I can use Patience when I want to feel peaceful instead of “antsy” or “hyper”

When does the Courage Tool become a “We” Tool? Examples: in a classroom, in line, waiting to go to lunch

Ask, "What happens when we have something that may be challenging to complete?
- For example, what happens when we have a challenging assignment, sport, or we are just trying something new that's tough?"
  - Listen to their answers, and mention that we may give up or say, "This is too hard."
- Ask the student, "What may help us when we are faced with a challenge or a new task?"
  - Build upon their answers, and share that we can ask for help and change our mindset if we are faced with a challenge.
- Explain that today, we will be practicing changing our mindset and using the phrase, "This may take time," instead of "This is too hard," when faced with a tough task.

Page updated

Report abuse