Slide outline for Lesson 3.7. Eleven slides. Slide 10 carries the who-to-ask list; Sal fills in the counselor's name, the nurse's room, and the help line your school approves before this runs. The map is private; slide 6 says so and Sal says so twice.
Stress: What It Is, and My Stress Map
- Lesson 3.7: Self-Concept, Peers, and Stress
- Unit 3: Growing Up, Getting Along
- Do now, private: rate how stressed you feel right now, 1 (calm) to 5 (a lot). One word for why. Nobody collects this
Teacher notes
Hands if 4 or 5. Hands if 1 or 2. Both go up. That is the point.
The smoke alarm
- It goes off when there is smoke
- It also goes off when you make toast
- It is doing its job both times
- So is your stress. Today: tell the toast from the fire
Teacher notes
Image: a round ceiling smoke alarm, drawn plainly, with a small piece of toast under it.
What stress is
- The body's response to a demand or a threat
- Heart speeds up, muscles tighten, mind focuses or races
- It is not a flaw. It is an alarm
- The adolescent brain (Lesson 3.3) feels it strongly. Short sleep (Lesson 2.6) makes it louder
Teacher notes
Students copy the definition onto Part 1.
Good stress, bad stress
- Good: short, pointed at something you can do (a game, a test you studied for, a performance). Sharpens you, then leaves
- Bad: too big, too long, or pointed at something you cannot control. Wears you down. Does not leave on its own
- Same alarm, different fire
Teacher notes
One example of each on Part 1. Whiteboard check: "Nervous before a game you practiced for all week: good or bad?" Good.
Body signals
- Headache. Stomach ache. Tight shoulders. Fast heart. Sweaty hands
- Trouble sleeping. Not hungry, or very hungry. Cannot focus. Tired all the time
- Snapping at people. Going quiet
- Mark where yours shows up first. The first signal is the early warning
Teacher notes
Image: a plain body outline, no features, with the signals labeled around it.
Build the list from the room before showing it. Students mark Part 2.
Your stress map
- Two grids: when (time of day by day of week) and where (home, school, bus, phone, practice, other)
- Shade the boxes where stress shows up most. Light for a little, dark for a lot
- Then list your stressors in the margin, a few words each
- This page is yours. It stays in your folder. Nobody reads it unless you want them to
Teacher notes
Say the privacy line now. Say it again at the exit strip.
Five categories
- S: school (a book). A test, a project, a grade
- F: friends (two people). A group chat argument, being left out
- H: home and family (a house). A sibling, a rule, a worry at home
- P: phones and online (a phone). A post that got no likes, a chat that will not stop
- M: money (a coin). A thing everyone else can buy
- Tag each stressor with a letter. Star the biggest one
Teacher notes
These are general examples. Do not ask anyone which one is theirs.
Patterns
- Sunday night shows up on a lot of maps
- So does the bus
- Grade 8 stretch: find a pattern (same time every week, same place). What could change the pattern, not the feeling?
Teacher notes
Name Sunday night out loud without asking anyone to own it.
Handle it, or bring it
- Handle it yourself with a tool (tomorrow): a test, a game, a busy week, an argument that will blow over, a Sunday night
- Bring it to an adult: anything that lasts for weeks; anything about safety; anything that makes you not want to be here; a friend who says any of those; anything you are not sure about
- Not sure which pile? That is a "bring it"
Teacher notes
Students sort their starred stressor on Part 4.
Who to ask
- The school counselor: [Sal: name and room]
- The nurse: [Sal: room]
- Any teacher, including me
- The main office
- An adult at home
- A help line the school approves: [Sal: the number your school uses]
Teacher notes
Students copy this onto the back of the map for keeps. This is the one thing nobody leaves without.
Exit strip and tomorrow
- Tear off the strip. Turn it in
- 3 body signals. 2 categories most common for people your age. 1 adult (a role) you would bring the big kind to
- Tomorrow: six tools, tested in this room, on your own number. Keep the ones that work
Teacher notes
The two categories named most become the example stressors on the Lesson 3.9 Stress Plan slide.