#3870. The Difference Between "Trying" and "Doing"

Special Ed, level: all
Posted Mon Jan 22 14:18:13 PST 2007 by Ruth Wells (dwells@youthchg.comg).
Teacher Lesson Resources for Classroom Management
Youth Change, Woodburn, OR, USA
Materials Required: 1 pen
Activity Time: 15 min
Concepts Taught: Teach difference between doing and talking about doing

The next time a student says "I'll try" instead of "I will," throw a pen on the floor and ask the student to "try" and pick it up. Be sure you don't allow the child to actually pick it up-- just to try. The student will quickly experience and understand the big difference between doing and trying, and this understanding will quickly spread to other students who watch this exercise. Find dozens more interventions like this in our Coping Skills Sampler book. It has a wide range of creative ideas to help students function better emotionally. For details on this book, visit our site at the link shown below. There are hundreds more free lesson ideas on the site too.