Grammar focus: Adjectives
Age & Level: 17-26; International Ss at the IEC – Multilevel: CEFR levels A1- thru B1+
Length of Lesson: 90 minutes
Materials Needed: Device to view videos, printed handouts (see appendix),
Learning Objectives (3-5)
SWBAT: Define and describe empathy. Identify how sympathy and empathy differ. Identify why empathy is important.
SWBAT: Using adjectives correctly in sentences to describe empathy.
Time: 25 min
Activity: Anonymous Getting to Know You
1. Students take 2-3 index cards as they enter class.
2. After teacher has greeted students and they have had a minute or two to settle in, teacher can ask the students to write down three things that their classmates do not know about them. Explain that you will be reading them in class but that no one will know the author. Let students know they have 5 minutes to write. Set timer or note time on classroom clock. 6-7min
3. Teacher goes around the room to collect the cards to preserve anonymity. Cards can be shuffled prior to reading. Then, the teacher can read the cards aloud to the students. “The students begin to get an idea of the range of intense experiences and perspectives the classroom community contains,” (Barnwell). 13 min
5. Elicit comments and feedback from the students on what they heard and how they perceive their classmates now. What changed? Did hearing other experiences help the students to understand one another better? And in doing so, feel more accepted themselves, knowing the group is more diverse and experienced than was first thought? Do students feel more empathetic? (They do not have to know this vocabulary word to express and empathetic reaction) 5 min
Time: 40 min
Activity: Explore Empathy
1. Ask the students to define empathy. Help them along if necessary.“Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another person” as if we are experiencing life in their shoes. (QuincyMedGroup). Ask them how empathy is different from sympathy. Sympathy is feeling compassion, sorrow, or pity for the hardships that another person encounters (Dictionary) from our perspective looking at what they are experiencing, from the outside. This step should only take a few minutes as the students will have time to consider these concepts again, after watching the video. 5 min.
2. Assure students they will receive a worksheet with notes on the video after they have watched it and that they should just concentrate on listening and watching the video to understand content. Watch Brené Brown video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Evwgu369Jw 3min
3. Distribute Video Notes Worksheet. 1-2 min
4. Discuss empathy again and see how students perspective has changed. 5-6 min
5. Distribute Empathy Importance and Cultivation Worksheet. Discuss worksheet. Ensure understanding by asking questions. TBD 5-6 min
6. Watch clips of various TV shows clips and have students identify good ways to act empathically and how doing so could change the outcome of the scene. Some good examples: Bob Ross (empathetic to trees and animals! Fun example!) Frasier and Niles (ribbing each other about neuroses) Friends (PIVOT!) 20 min
Time: 15 min
Activity: Adjectives with Empathy Worksheet :This will provide a little quiet time for students so they don’t begin to feel overwhelmed by all the videos and discussions.
1. Fill in the blanks worksheet with adjectives pertaining to empathy. Writing: Describe your best friend. Describe someone you don’t yet like and how you will work to get to know them better using empathy.
Time: 8min
Activity: Anonymous Getting to Know You Revisited
Choose a few of the notecards from earlier. Let the students know they should listen closely to the reading and then come up with a way to show empathy towards the author.
Example: Teacher reads one card and gives a simple but empathic response.
Read student cards and elicit responses.
Because this is still anonymous, the students whose cards are read will feel validated!
Time: 3 min
Activity: Classroom Appreciation Board
1. Explain that the classroom will now have a classroom appreciation board. This can be done several ways: a section of whiteboard that doesn’t get erased, sticky notes on the wall, poster board, etc. Demonstrate how this classroom board will look and work by adding a note to the board.
Aguilar, Elena. (2018, February 6). The Power of Empathy. Retrieved February 22, 2020, from, https://www.edutopia.org/article/power-empathy
Brown, Brené. (2013, December 12). Brené Brown on Empathy. Retrieved February 22, 2020, from, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Evwgu369Jw
Colrín Colorado. (2018). How to Provide Social-Emotional Support for Immigrant Students. Retrieved February 22, 2020, from, https://www.colorincolorado.org/immigration/guide/student#empathy
dictionary.com (N.D.). Empathy vs. Sympathy: Which Word To Use And When. Retrieved February 22, 2020, from, https://www.dictionary.com/e/empathy-vs-sympathy/
Krznaric, Roman. (2012, November 12). Six Habits of Highly Empathic People. Retrieved February 22, 2020, from, https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/six_habits_of_highly_empathic_people1
Seltzer, Leon, F. (2017, June 28). Feeling Understood—Even More Important Than Feeling Loved? Retrieved February 22, 2020, from, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/evolution-the-self/201706/feeling-understood-even-more-important-feeling-loved
Shields, Nicky. (N.D.) The Behavioral Health Blog: The Magic of Empathy. Retrieved February 22, 2020, from, https://quincymedgroup.com/news/the-magic-of-empathy/
Brené Brown on Empathy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Evwgu369Jw
1. The ability to take the perspective of the other person.
2. Staying out of judgment.
3. Recognizing emotion in other people. (Empath)
4. Communicating the emotion we see in other people.
Definition of Empathy-Feeling with people.
Sympathy=I see your pain. Empathy=I feel your pain.
How not to be empathetic:
Don’t use at least.
Don’t tell someone the silver lining.
Don’t try to make it better.
How to be empathetic:
I don’t know what to say right now, I’m just so glad you told me.
Make it better by making a connection.
BE THE BEAR!
Why is Empathy Important?
Helps us to understand others
Helps others feels understood (this is a basic human need) This fosters inclusion.
Feel known
Feel validated
Feel a sense of belonging
Feel a part of something that is bigger than ourselves
Experience more satisfaction in relationship with others (Seltzer)
Empathy can open your heart, letting in more feelings, but also softening some of the tough experiences. As we build empathy for others, we understand them more and can connect with them differently, which boosts our resilience—the ability to bounce back after challenges (Aguilar).
Cultivate Empathy:
1. Curiosity about others (instead of judgement)
2. Challenge prejudices and discover commonalities.
3. Try another person’s life.
4. Listen hard and open up.
5. Inspire mass action and social change.
6. Develop an ambitious imagination.
Empathy in Action
It’s the ability to step into the shoes of another person, aiming to understand their feelings and perspectives, and to use that understanding to guide our actions (Krznaric).
We can nurture its growth throughout our lives—and we can use it as a radical force for social transformation. Research in sociology, psychology, history—and my own studies of empathic personalities over the past 10 years—reveals how we can make empathy an attitude and a part of our daily lives, and thus improve the lives of everyone around us (Krznaric).
careful / careless fat / thin friendly / unfriendly funny / serious
healthy / sick lazy / hardworking old / young polite / impolite or rude
shy / outgoing smart / stupid special / ordinary strong / weak
My friend likes to run in the mountains and eats fruits and vegetables, so she is ___________.
Do you like to lay around the house doing nothing or are you a _________________person?
My dog Ringo is very ________________ because he is only 7 months old.
Nikolas is very ____________so he puts the star on the Christmas tree for me.
My coworker likes to talk and laugh at the water cooler. He is very _______________.
Brett is a banker and is very _______________with money.
Fred quit smoking and started eating tofu so now he is _______________.
Rubena always says, “Thank you.” She is a very _______________ person.
Raquel got an A+ on my exam so she must be very _______________.
Uncle Galen is very _______________ because he tells us jokes when we visit.
Jimmy lifts the truck tire so he is very_______________.
Kellyn is very_______________ and looks twice before crossing the street.
Jeff has dozens of friends so he is very ________________.
Rhea is always smiling and is a _______________ person.
Jessie has three Mercedes so he must be very _______________.
Adjective:
Opposite: