Reach for Your Dreams

Sam Gullickson                                                                         Shane Steele

Professional School Counselor                                                   MSUM Intern, Spring 2000

Waseca Central Intermediate School                                         Waseca Central Intermediate

Waseca, Minnesota                                                                   Waseca, Minnesota

Description of Program:

Reach for Your Dreams is a serious of activities geared for use with elementary age children and their families.  Reach for Your Dreams is a family activity book that contains a story line with corresponding activities.  This program is designed to assist student recognition and development of their gifts, talents, dreams, and increase self-esteem.  The thirty-six activities, along with the story line, provide opportunities for students to explore the areas of:  self-discovery, communication skills, getting along, choices, exploring emotions, and recognizing dreams.  Many of the activities are adaptable to be used within the classroom, small group settings, or in one-on-one meetings.  Other activities require family involvement and include the parents in supporting their son or daughter’s growth.

Reach for Your Dreams was presented as a series of guidance lessons within fifth grade groups at Waseca Central Intermediate School.  A variety of activities selected from the workbook were selected to help students identify their strengths, feelings, interests, and dreams.    Careers are also explored.  Each lesson is designed to be delivered within a 30-minute period.  A typical lesson is as follows:

Description of Lesson (from the program)

Lesson:  Exploring Emotions (Objective #5) First Activity

Materials Needed:  Reach for Your Dreams workbook, Lunch bags, Crayons or markers, Buttons, Yarn, Scissors, and Glue.

Activity: 

Have students complete page 45 of the workbook labeled “I Feel ___ When . . . ”  that allows students to identify ways they might feel in certain situations.  Students are asked to circle the face that represents how they feel in each situation listed on the page.  If students are not sure how they may feel in a certain situation, have them ask other members of the group how they think they would feel in that same situation.  Discuss with students how there are no right or wrong answers.  Also discuss with students how each of them is different and, therefore, they will react in a different way than other students might in the same situation.  (10 minutes)

Next, have students create a bag puppet.  Using the materials provided, instruct students to create a puppet that they feel represents them.  Warn students that they have a short amount of time to create these puppets.  Also inform students that they may add to their puppets at a later date.  (5 minutes)

Using the puppets, have students choose one of the situations listed on either page 45 or page 46 of the workbook.  Once the student has chosen a situation, have students use their puppets to act out the situation.  Included in this role-play (using the puppets), students should show by using the puppet how they may feel in that situation.  Students may enact each situation alone or you may divide the group into pairs.  Another option with this activity is to have other situations not mentioned on pages 45 or 46.  These extra situations should be written on a separate piece of paper.  Student can then draw the situation that they have to share about.  This may be shorter, however students are not allowed to share something they may relate to or that was a situation they experienced.  (10 minutes)

In closing, process with students how it felt to share their feelings.  It is also important to process with students what it means to have different feelings from others in reaction to similar situations.  Another issue that students should discuss is the factors that influence how people might react to certain situations such as stress, amount of sleep, family situations, etc.  (5 minutes)

Connections to Related Standards, Competencies, and Domains:

Reach for Your Dreams correlates with Minnesota Graduation Standards Preparatory Content Standards in Learning Area Seven: People and Cultures (3501.0466), primary content standard related to family, school, and community, and Learning Area Eight: Decision-Making (3501.0448), middle level content standard relating to career exploration.  Throughout the workbook, students explore their feelings and the impact that family plays in their life along with how such feelings, interests, etc. relate to a variety of careers.

Lessons within Reach for Your Dreams are reflective of the Personal/Social and Career developmental domains of the Minnesota School Counselors’ Model of Developmental Guidance and Counseling.  Lessons require students to explore both themselves and careers through a variety of means.  Each of the objectives within the program includes at least one activity that relates to the student on a personal level, requires feedback and/or interaction with the student’s family, and requires interaction within the community.  As in the objective exploring emotions, students identify:  how they help around their house or school, create a family book of emotions that represents different family events and how each family member felt about them, and career charades in which each student has an opportunity to act out a variety of jobs.

 References and Resources:

Petersen, Katia S., & Walter, Nancy (1999).  Reach for your dreams! Family activities for children’s self-discovery.  Minnesota Department of Children, Families and Learning; Minnesota.

* Contact person:  Diane Miller, Minnesota Department of Children, Families and Learning.

For Further Information

Sam Gullickson

Professional School Counselor

Waseca Central Intermediate School & Southside Elementary, Waseca MN  56093

Phone:  507-835-3000