Purpose

Write

Let’s brainstorm! Write your name in the center of the page and draw a circle around it. Now, write what you love to think about, how you enjoy spending your time, what you like to learn about, and what makes you happy all around your name. Connect each of these things back to you with a line.

Write

Think of at least 3 things you might be interested in doing as a career when you are grown up. Write them down.

Draw

Draw at least 3 pictures of things you might be interested in doing as a career when you are grown up.

Extend

Play dress-up today! Role play a scenario from a career you are interested in.

Write

When do you feel the happiest? Write about that.

Draw

Draw a picture of when or where you feel the happiest.

Extend

Take a mirror and practice making happy faces. How many different happy faces can you make?

Write

Who is someone you want to be like? This person can be from your family, your school, your neighborhood, or any other community. Why do you want to be like them?

Draw

Draw a picture of you and the person you’d like to be like.

Extend

Play dress-up today! Role-play something the person you'd like to be like would do.

Write

What quality do you most want to develop in yourself right now? Kindness? Honesty? Respect? Working hard? Something else?

Draw

Draw yourself being kind/honest/respectful/working hard, etc.

Extend

Share your qualities with your microschool. Take a tally count of each quality. Did any repeat? Which has more? Which has less?

Write

Pretend that you are calmly floating in a pool. You can feel a warm, gentle sun on your skin. Think to yourself, life is good!

In your journal, write about what makes life good and enjoyable.

Draw

Illustrate a picture of what you imagined at the beginning of this prompt.

Extend

Create a collage of all the things that make your life good and enjoyable.

Write

Move like a superhero. What qualities do you share with superheroes?

Draw

Create a superhero identify for yourself. Draw a picture of what you look like as a superhero.

Extend

Create a cape based on your superhero identity.

Write

Lay down and spread your arms and legs out like a starfish. Close your eyes, take a deep breath in, and relax.

In your journal, write about ways you like to relax, either at your microschool or at home.

Draw

Yoga helps lots of people relax! Think of a new yoga move and draw it in your journal.

Extend

Pretend like you are a yoga teacher and lead your microschool in a yoga session.

Write

Pretend that you are entering a time machine. Travel to the future and meet your future self. What are you doing and what are you like?

Draw

Think of three things that you are good at. Draw them into your journal.

Extend

Design and build your time machine. Be sure to include all the years it can travel to.

Write

Copy this sentence into your journal and fill-in-the-blank:

I am proud of myself when….

Draw

Think of two things you learned and feel proud of. Draw them into your journal.

Extend

Design medals for the things that you are proud of and award them to yourself!

Write

Write about an achievement that makes you feel proud.

Draw

Paint some of these achievements onto rocks.

Extend

Start a Kindness Rocks Club at your microschool!

Write

What are the 10 things you’d like to accomplish in life?

Draw

Imagine what it will look like to accomplish these things! Draw a "selfie" of one of these moments.

Extend

Create a personal life timeline. Start when you were born and go ten years into the future.

Write

If you had the power to help anyone in the world, who would you help, and why?

Draw

Create a 2D or 3D piece of art that demonstrates your "why."

Extend

Create a community service project for your microschool.

Read

"The Word Collector" by Peter H. Reynolds

Listen

Click here to view the read aloud.

Discuss

Do you have any collections? What is your collection? Why do you love collecting it?

Make

Invite students to bring their collections for a show and tell tomorrow.

Encourage students that when they do Treasure Hunt Reading word hunts, they are being a word collector like Jerome.

Read

"Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type" by Doreen Cronin

Listen

Click here to view the read aloud.

Discuss

How did the cows use the typewriter to accomplish their purpose? How can writing help you get what you want?

Make

Write a letter asking for something you'd like at your next birthday, or about a change you'd like to see in the world.

Read

"The Dot" by Peter H. Reynolds

Listen

Click here to view the read aloud.

Discuss

At the end of the book, a little boy tells Vashti she is an artist. She shares how she started her journey as an artist by drawing a line and signing her name. What do you know how to do that you could teach your class right now?

Make

Invite students to draw their best dot or line drawing, or a drawing made of only lines and dots. Be sure to sign it!

Learn about pointillism for Hands On Art and create art made entirely of dots! Remember, it's okay for Create to take more than one day as students learn and iterate on their designs.

Read

“Try, Try Again” by William Edward Hickson

Discuss

Think of a baby learning to walk. What connections can you make between that image and this poem?

Make

Design a custom set of rose colored glasses!

Read

“You Tell On Yourself” by Unknown Author

Discuss

Do you agree with this poem? What would someone say about you based on your actions?

Make

Make a self-portrait using only yarn.

Read

"Which Loved Best" by Joy Allison

Discuss

What does "actions speak louder than words" mean to you?

Make

Do something today that will pleasantly surprise your family or caregivers, like cleaning your room.

Read a Picture Book

"The Three Questions" by Jon J. Muth

Listen

Click here to listen to a read aloud.

Discuss

How do we know the right thing to do when we are faced with a difficult decision? What does it mean to do the right or wrong thing?

Make

This book is popular in part to its beautiful watercolor illustrations. Experiment with watercolors and see if you can recreate an illustration in this book.

Read a Quote

"I didn't come this far to only come this far, so we've still got further to go." Tom Brady

Discuss

Do you share the same drive Tom Brady exhibits? Explain your thinking.

Make

Create a collage of successful leaders that exemplify leading with purpose.

Read a Quote

"Don't let fear stop you. Don't give up because you are paralyzed by insecurity or overwhelmed by the odds, because in giving up, you give up hope. Understand that failure is a process in life, that only in trying can you enrich yourself and have the possibility of moving forward. The greatest obstacle in life is fear and giving up because of it." Sonia Sotomayor

Discuss

What does persistence mean to you? Does persistence help us realize our purpose? Explain your thinking.

Make

Sonia Sotomayor is a judge on the Supreme Court. Mock trials are recreations of real-life trials for students. With the help of your Guide, have a mock trial in your microschool!

Class Flag

Get a piece of white fabric and some fabric markers. Have the students draw a picture that represents them and draw it on a space on the flag--have each student do this. Have them add their name to their drawing. Then attach the class flag to the wall. Have each student stand and explain the drawing and why they did it. The Guide should also add their drawing and explain it to the class.

LEGO Building Challenge

Communicate with purpose! To play, the Guide must create a simple(ish) structure using LEGO pieces, divide the class into groups of 2, and provide each group with a bag filled with each of the LEGO pieces used to create the structure. The structure is placed somewhere out of sight (i.e. on a table in the hallway), and one person in the team is tasked with walking out to view the structure and reporting back to their team with verbal instructions on how to replicate it. The clue-giver cannot use their hands at any time. This is all about communication and can be both fun and frustrating!

Turning Over a New Leaf

Have everyone in the class stand on a good-sized blanket. The purpose is to turn the blanket over without anyone breaking contact with the blanket. Knowing your purpose makes it easier to work together.

The Book of Microschool Records

Start your own Guinness Book of Records! Keep your own Micro school book of records and have the kids try to set records for things such as:

• Records could be academic, social, athletic, and more.

• Most jumping jacks

• Jumps in jump roping

• Running laps outside

• Most crafts made for the month or year

• Longest handstand

• Most books read, puzzles completed, etc.

• Anything else that you can think of!

Birthday Line-up

This is a fun activity to get kids lined up. It may take 5–10 minutes, depending on the age of your students, so plan accordingly. The objective is to have students line up in order of their birthdays—January 1st through December 31st and by year. To do this, they will need to know the order in which the months fall as well as their own birthday. They will also need to talk with one another in order to figure out who goes in front of whom. To make it super challenging, tell them they must do it without speaking at all, only using hand signals.

Magic Wand

Ask each student to describe the ideal world they would create if they had a magic wand. Then ask what they can/want to do in order to contribute to that ideal world. Have each student share their ideal world and point out any patterns/themes you notice among the group.

Purpose Concept Map

Task each student to create a concept map with the question- how do I want to impact the world? - in the center. Have students share their maps with the group and point out any patterns/themes you notice.

Famous People

Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr., Henry Bergh, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Gandhi. Ask: in what ways did this person live their purpose?