Building Resilience Together

Overview

This 60-minute interactive read-aloud lesson uses the book Fall Again to explore the Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) theme of resilience. Students will develop language arts skills aligned with the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) while reflecting on how characters in the story demonstrate resilience and how they can apply this to their own lives.

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Learning Objectives

• I can listen carefully and explain the main message about resilience from the story.
  CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.2 - Recount stories and determine their central message, lesson, or moral.

• I can identify how characters respond to challenges and describe their emotions.
  CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.3 - Describe characters in a story and explain how their actions contribute to the plot.

• I can discuss how resilience helps people overcome difficulties and share ways I show resilience.
  SEL Competency: Self-Management and Social Awareness

• I can use new vocabulary from the story and use it when discussing resilience.
  CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.3.4 - Determine meaning of unknown words using sentence context.

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Materials

• Book: Fall Again (print copy, large picture book version, or dyslexia-friendly edition)
• Chart paper or whiteboard
• Marker pens
• Resilience Word Wall (with words like “try,” “fall,” “try again,” “strong,” “help,” “hope”)
• Drawing paper and crayons/markers
• Reflection journals or sheets

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Lesson Timeline

1. Introduction & SEL Warm-Up (10 minutes)

• Activity: Start with a brief circle discussion about “What does it mean to be resilient?”
  Prompt: “Can you tell me about a time when you tried something and didn’t get it right the first time but then kept trying?”
• Build vocabulary by adding new SEL words to the Resilience Word Wall.

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2. Read Aloud with Guided Comprehension (20 minutes)

• Read: Teacher reads Fall Again aloud, showing the pictures clearly.
• Use a dyslexia-friendly version or follow reading strategies: clear font, slow pace, and emphasize words related to resilience.
• Pause at critical points to ask:
  • “What is happening here?”
  • “How do you think the character feels?”
  • “What does the character do when things get hard?”

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3. Group Discussion & Character Analysis (10 minutes)

• Ask students to describe the main character’s feelings and actions. Chart their responses.
• Connect character challenges to the students’ own experiences.

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4. Partner Drawing and Writing (10 minutes)

• Students pair up to draw a scene from the story where the character showed resilience.
• Partners write a simple sentence about the scene, using resilience vocabulary:
  Example: “She fell but she tried again.”
• Volunteers share their drawing and sentence with the class.

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5. Reflection and Wrap-up (10 minutes)

• Have students complete a reflection prompt in their journal:
  “One way I can show resilience like the character is...”
• Review and reinforce the “I can” statements and success criteria.
• Praise effort and encourage using resilience language daily.

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Success Criteria

• I listened carefully and can explain the message about resilience in Fall Again.
• I can describe how the character handled challenges and what they felt.
• I used new words to talk or write about resilience.
• I shared my own idea about how to be resilient.

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Differentiation Strategies

• For Diverse Learners:

  • Provide dyslexia-friendly editions or audio versions of Fall Again.
  • Use visuals and gestures when introducing new words.
  • Pair ELL and struggling readers with strong peer readers for support.
  • Sentence starters (e.g., “The character felt ___ because ___.”)

• For Advanced Learners:

  • Challenge them to identify multiple examples of resilience in the story and explain why these moments are important.
  • Encourage writing a short paragraph about a personal experience related to resilience and how they overcame it.
  • Facilitate a small group discussion on how resilience helps people in their community.

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Extension Activities

• Create a “Resilience Tree” bulletin board where students add leaves with personal stories or quotes showing resilience.
• Role-play different scenarios where resilience is needed and practice strategies (e.g., calming down, asking for help, trying a new way).
• Write a class poem or chant using resilience vocabulary.

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SEL Connection

This lesson strengthens two SEL competencies:

• Self-Management: Recognizing feelings of frustration or failure and persisting.
• Social Awareness: Understanding others’ struggles and resilience strategies.

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Teacher Reflection:
After the lesson, review which students participated actively and understood the message about resilience. Note any students who might benefit from additional SEL support or literacy interventions and plan accordingly for future lessons.