Lesson 217: Thinking before acting

❤️ SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING (40 Lessons) • 🟡 C. Making Good Choices

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Objective

I can stop for a moment, think about what might happen, and choose a safe and kind action instead of acting too fast.

Materials

Mini-lesson — What is "thinking before acting"?

Sometimes our body wants to move fast: shout, grab, run, or react right away. Thinking before acting means pausing for a short moment to choose what to do.

Three simple steps: Stop, think, choose

  • Stop — pause your body for a moment.
  • Think — ask, "What might happen if I do this?"
  • Choose — pick a safe and kind action.

Example 1 — Someone cuts in line

  • Your feeling: angry or annoyed.
  • Fast reaction: shout or push.
  • Think-first choice: take a breath, say "Excuse me, I was here", or tell an adult.

Example 2 — You feel like throwing a toy

  • Your feeling: excited or frustrated.
  • Fast reaction: throw the toy and maybe break it.
  • Think-first choice: squeeze a cushion, ask for help, or put the toy down gently.

Example 3 — You want to run into the street

  • Your feeling: in a hurry, excited.
  • Fast reaction: run without looking.
  • Think-first choice: stop at the edge, look both ways, wait for an adult's hand.

Adults can say the steps out loud: "Let's stop, think, and choose a safe action."

Picture strip: "Stop, think, choose"

Guided Practice — Stop–Think–Choose stories

You and an adult will practise short stories where you stop, think, and choose.

  1. On a notebook page, draw three boxes across the page and label them: "Stop", "Think", and "Choose".
  2. In the first box, the adult tells a small story, such as: "Your friend took the red crayon you wanted."
  3. Under "Stop", draw yourself pausing and breathing instead of shouting.
  4. Under "Think", draw or write ideas like: "I can ask for a turn", "I can choose another color", or "I can ask the teacher".
  5. Under "Choose", pick one safe, kind idea and draw yourself doing it.
  6. Repeat with one or two more stories (for example, someone bumps you, or you feel like running). Say the three steps out loud together: "Stop, think, choose."
Tracing Pad
Tracing snapshot for print
Tip: As you trace, say a sentence such as "I can stop, think, and choose a safe action."

Practice — My "think first" traffic light

Use this practice to help your child remember when to pause and think.

  1. On a new page, draw a big traffic light with three circles: red at the top, yellow in the middle, and green at the bottom.
  2. Next to the red circle, write or trace: "Stop my body" and add pictures of times they need to stop (for example, about to shout, about to push, about to run into the street).
  3. Next to the yellow circle, write or trace: "Think about choices". Draw a small thought cloud with two or three choices.
  4. Next to the green circle, write or trace: "Choose a safe action". Draw themselves doing one safe, kind choice.
  5. Talk together: "When do you need a red light?", "What do you think about at yellow?", and "What green actions can you choose?"
  6. Hang the traffic light picture in a place where the child can see it and use it as a reminder to think before acting this week.

Quick Check — Thinking before acting

Answer each question about stopping, thinking, and choosing safe actions.

1) What does it mean to think before acting?

Thinking before acting means pausing and choosing.

2) Which three steps did we learn?

The steps are stop, think, and choose.

3) Your friend takes the toy you wanted. What is a "think first" choice?

Stopping and asking kindly is a think-first choice.

4) You feel like running into the street to chase a ball. What should you do first?

We stop and think about safety before crossing.

5) Which picture fits the red light in our traffic light?

Red means stop and pause.

6) What do you do during the "think" step?

Thinking means planning safe choices.

7) In class, you feel like shouting the answer. What is a "thinking before acting" choice?

Stopping and raising your hand shows self-control.

8) Why is thinking before acting helpful?

Thinking first helps us stay safe and kind.

9) When should you ask an adult to help you think before acting?

Adults can help when you feel upset or things might not be safe.

10) What is one big goal of this lesson?

The goal is to remember stop–think–choose before acting.

Assessment (parent/teacher)

Exit ticket (student)

Next time I will practise…

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