Social Emotional Activities

Curiosity Over Fear

In Alice in Wonderland, Alice leads with curiosity! She faces new things around every turn but does not let fear get the best of her. How can we be like Alice and not let fear guide our daily actions? How can we embrace our curiosity so that we see our world as a place to learn rather than a place to fear?

• Paper Ball Crumple: Ask students to write one thing on a piece of paper that they feel like they are not good at or have been told they can't do. Then after everyone has time to write, tell students to crumple up their ball- step on it!- rip it!- a physical reminder that we are not guided by our cant's!

• Writing Mantras: Have students create a phrase they can repeat to themself when they start to feel fear creep in. This phrase might be something about their personal worth, about actions, or just a reaffirming statement. Students should create it for themselves so it is personal and meaningful to them.

• Wonder Walls: Have students create a wonder wall in your classroom with things they are wondering about. Students can use sticky notes to post their wonders and then sticky notes to answer the wonders as they discover new things.

• Re-writing Fears: First, acknowledge that we all have things we worry about or fear- this is okay! BUT we can't let our fears and worries overtake our lives! Have students create a t-chart with one column that says "I fear" or "I am scared" or "I am worried..." and another column that says "Rewording my fears". Then have students write statements about what they are fearful of/worried about. For example, "I am worried that I won't do well on my quiz today." Then in the second column, have students rewrite this fear/worry with a positive spin. For example, "I will do the best that I can on my quiz today!" or "I am so happy I am in school today to take my quiz." The goal is for students to change their mindsets about worries and fears so that they are easier to confront.

Read Alouds About Being Curious