Maria Spencer
Lesson Plans
Here's a sampling of some lesson plans I've created. Feel free to use or adapt to your needs. Contact me if you have feedback or suggestions.
This very short video could be a great starter for many of the lessons below. The message is simple:
we're all a family under one sky. Through photographs and music I show children from around the world going to school, having lunch, playing on the playground, attending class.
We're All A Family Under One Sky
The Social Dilemma
This video presents a counseling team's presentation to school administration advocating for approval to implement a schoolwide plan to encourage the healthy use of social media. Though it's my voice you'll hear, the lesson was a collaboration with other counselors at Russell Sage College that we presented as a group.
01
This group lesson plan is designed for 6th or 7th grade students who are chronically absent. The group that I ran was a small group of chronically absent 6th grade students who were in danger of failing one or more classes (thereby needing summer school), so grades were closely tied to attendance.
02
Designed for high school students, this lesson plan serves to bolster students' organizational, time management, and study skills.
03
Designed for juniors, this fun game/lesson will familiarize students with the college admissions process, giving them a window into skills/activities/etc. that they should be developing to optimize their admissions success.
04
Designed for ages 5-7, this 6-week small group lesson teaches children to recognize and express their feelings.
05
This 6-week lesson plan is geared to 4th and 5th graders but could be tweaked to accommodate grades 2-8. Helping students understand the growth mindset can be immensely valuable as they move through their school-age years and beyond.
06
Before we learn how to manage our emotions, it's helpful to know what they are, and to understand why we have them, and how they help us. This lesson plan, designed for students in 3-4 grades, helps students understand and explore their emotions.
07
This is a sampling of career development lesson plans (2 each for elementary, middle, and high school). Lessons can stand alone or can be used as part of a series in career development.
08
Designed for middle school students, this lesson plan asks students to examine how they present themselves online, and in so doing, begin to understand how they can separate their own self worth from online perceptions.
09
This lesson plan could work well for a school working toward No Place for Hate designation, or could stand alone as a lesson in diversity, equity, and inclusion.