Winning Futures – Inspiring and preparing youth to succeed through mentoring.

Archive for August, 2012

Every person faces obstacles in life. Some obstacles are small and can easily be dealt with. Others are extremely difficult to overcome. By identifying all of the issues students may face and incorporating them into their plans, students will be less stressed and not caught off guard when they come up in their lives. Use this fast and fun activity to help students identify and eliminate obstacles that may prevent them from reaching their goals!

We begin by giving each student a brown paper bag and some magic markers. Next, work with the students to take a realistic look at their lives and address their concerns and issues. Work with students to identify the things at home, school, and in their personal lives that may stop them from achieving their goals. For example, if a student has an issue getting transportation to school, which in turn effects their attendance and ability to reach their academic goals, have them write “getting to school” on their bag along with any other items they think of.

Once the bags are completed and list all of the students’ obstacles, have them inflate their bag, hold it over their head, and pop it! This symbolically enables students to “eliminate” their obstacles and clear a path for successfully achieving their goals. Popping the bag demonstrates that anything is possible as long as we know the challenges we face in achieving our goals and are prepared to deal with them.

Now, students can start planning their futures with a clear understanding of their world. Many more lessons like these are outlined in Winning Futures’ “Achieving Success” workbook. Click on the “Purchase Books” button at left to learn more.

You know the old saying “Don’t drop the ball?” This activity puts those words into action! The balls represent all the activities and responsibilities that we have to deal with on a daily basis. Time management enables us to keep all our balls in the air, especially during times when there’s a lot going on in our lives.

For example, we all have things we have to do (such as work and chores) and things we want to do (like hanging out with friends or seeing a movie). Managing our responsibilities – our “have to dos” – makes it a lot easier to make room in schedule for our “want to dos.” Establishing a regular routine and using tools such as a calendar and a to-do list are simple and effective ways to manage our time.

Here’s how this activity works:

Round One
• Have students and mentors stand in a circle.
• Explain that you are going to gently throw a ball to someone.
• Pick someone out and ask them their name.
• Then say: “Hi Brad, my name is Laurie… here you go!”
• Laurie then throws the ball to Brad, then turns around backwards. (She is now out for the rest of the round.)
• Brad then says: “Thank you Laurie.”
• Brad then picks someone else out and asks their name.
• Brad then says: “Hi (Student’s Name), my name is Brad… here you go!”
• Brad then throws the ball to that student and turns around backwards. (He is now out for the rest of the round.)
• Continue this until the entire group has received the beach ball.

Round Two
• Take the second round slow, helping the group to have a successful second round.
• Then say to the group: “Let’s see if we can do this again making sure we use the same order and using each other’s names. Remember to say the name of the person you are throwing to, and thank the person, by name, for throwing it to you.”

Round Three
• Repeat the process described above, but during this round, increase the speed at which the balls are thrown.

Round Four
• During this round, you want to really pick up the speed of the game. With enthusiasm, say: “I think we can do this faster!”
• After the first ball has passed through a few hands, take a second ball out by surprise, and say: “Hi Brad….” and repeat the process described above.
• By now everyone is so well trained, the second ball will automatically keep going, and there will be a detectable sense of challenge and excitement.
• After a bit, introduce a third, fourth and possibly fifth ball into the group.
• At this point the game get a little crazy and the group will lose control!

As this activity shows, setting a routine and managing to keep one ball in the air was a lot easier than trying to “wing it” and keep several balls in the air. Life is exactly the same way: Pace yourself, manage your time and establish priorities, and you won’t drop the ball on any of your “have to-dos.” Procrastinate and try to do everything at once or put your “want-to-dos” at a higher priority than your “have-to-dos,” and things will get hectic, stressful and eventually, a ball or two will get dropped.

This fun and easy exercise takes just 20 – 30 minutes. Many lessons like these that you can implement in your own classrooms and youth programs are outlined in Winning Futures’ workbooks; this one will be included in our new edition which is set to be published soon. Click on the “Purchase Books” button at left to learn more.