Object Lesson

Perseverance Object lesson   https://sites.google.com/site/valueslessons

Equipment: marshmallows (two each)

Preparation 

5 to 10 minutes before this object lesson is due to begin, (perhaps prior to reviewing the previous lesson) or, if this isn't possible, as the students enter the class, give each student one marshmallow and tell them, 'You can eat it now or you can wait. If you wait, you will get a second marshmallow. If you eat the marshmallow, you will not get the second one.'

After 5-10 minutes of 'minding' their marshmallows' begin the lesson.

Lesson

Persisting and persevering is all about sticking with a goal that you're trying to accomplish. Usually this means not giving up on something you're doing. But it can also mean staying true to your decision to not do something. Who decided to not eat their marshmallow so they could get another one?

More than fifty years ago, researchers at Stanford University USA conducted a study on preschoolers, commonly known as the “Marshmallow test.” They were taken into a room and, like you, given a marshmallow and told that if they could wait 15 minutes, they would get a second marshmallow. If they ate the marshmallow, they would not get the second one. The researcher then left the child alone in the room with a marshmallow and a hidden camera and waited.

Watch the Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QX_oy9614HQ

Discussion Questions

There were three types of kids in the study. What were they?

Those who waited patiently – who showed persistenceThose who ate it either immediately or after waiting a whileThose who tried to get as close to eating it as possible without really taking an actual bite. (Licked it, nibbled on it, hollowed it out and hoped no one noticed) Only about 1/3 were willing to wait. In the following years the researcher checked up on the kids as they became adults and progressed in life. 

Those that were able to wait; that were able to persevere, were much more successful in life.

In the Harvard studies, the kids who waited, when they grew up:

had higher SAT (test) scores,

got more education,

were less likely to be overweight. 

had lower levels of substance abuse, 

better responses to stress, 

better social skills as reported by their parents,

better adjusted,

more popular, adventurous, confident, and dependable,

and generally better scores in a range of other life measures.

The children who gave in to temptation early on were more likely to be lonely, easily frustrated, and stubborn. They buckled under stress and shied away from challenges. 

Challenge

If you can learn while you are still young to persevere and not to give up, you too will become more successful in life. 

Congratulations all you who still have your marshmallow. You have shown great perseverance. 

Those who didn't wait, you have found an area that you can improve on that will benefit you for the rest of your life. Set yourself a goal and be more persistent; it's worth it.

(Give the students who still have their marshmallow a second one.)

Reference: http://www.creativeyouthideas.com/resources/object-lessons/marshmallow-olympics/#ixzz3p9FLockG