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Self-Awareness: Emotions & Strengths

Sixth graders deepen their self-awareness — naming complex emotions, recognizing their strengths and growth areas, and identifying the values that guide their choices — building a clearer understanding of who they are.

Grade 6CASEL: Self-Awareness40 minutes1 class periodCASEL SELExplicit teaching4 StandardsCASEL
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Name complex emotions.
  • ✓Identify personal strengths.
  • ✓Name growth areas.
  • ✓Identify your values.
Essential Question

By middle school, feelings get complicated — you can be nervous and excited at the same time! Really knowing yourself — your emotions, strengths, and values — is a superpower. What does self-awareness look like?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Explore · Interactive

The Self-Awareness Explorer

Project this and tap each idea. Have students explore emotions, strengths, values, and self-reflection.

🧠 Explore self-awareness — tap eachTry it

The Lesson · SEL Flow (Check-In · Learn · Practice · Apply · Reflect)

40 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Check-In — Knowing Yourself

5 min

Feelings get complex in middle school — what does it mean to truly know yourself?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Do a check-in.
  • Ask what self-awareness means.
  • Set a caring tone.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Check in.
  • Reflect.
  • Get ready.
2

Learn — Emotions & Strengths

11 min

Students learn.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to the Self-Awareness Explorer.
  • Note emotions and strengths.
  • Note values.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Tap each.
  • Note them.
  • Reflect.
3

Practice — Practice

11 min

Students practice.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name a complex emotion.
  • List personal strengths.
  • Name a growth area.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Name one.
  • List them.
  • Name one.
4

Apply — My Values

8 min

Students apply.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Identify a personal value.
  • Explain how it guides choices.
  • Reflect honestly.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Identify it.
  • Explain it.
  • Reflect.
5

Reflect — Reflect

5 min

Students close.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Share a strength.
  • Name a value.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Share it.
  • Name it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the CASEL 5 Social & Emotional Learning Competencies.

CASEL
Self-Awareness

Identify and name complex emotions.

CASEL
Self-Awareness

Recognize personal strengths and areas for growth.

CASEL
Self-Awareness

Identify personal values that guide behavior.

CASEL
Self-Awareness

Demonstrate a growth mindset.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Emotion + strength word banks.
  • Sentence frame: “A strength of mine is ___.”
  • Use a values list.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with strengths.
  • Use a word bank.
  • Focus on one value.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Write a self-reflection.
  • Map strengths to goals.
  • Explain growth mindset.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Projector / board
  • 📓Reflection journals
  • 💻The Self-Awareness Explorer
  • ⭐A values list
  • ✏️Pencils
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

self-awarenessknowing your own feelings and traitscomplex emotionfeeling more than one thing at oncestrengthsomething you are good atgrowth areasomething you are working to improvegrowth mindsetbelieving you can improve with effortvaluesomething that matters most to youself-reflectionthinking about yourself honestlyidentitythe sense of who you are
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
What is a complex emotion? Give an example.
Feeling more than one thing at once — like nervous and excited.
QUESTION 2
What is a growth mindset?
Believing you can improve at things through effort and practice.
QUESTION 3
Why is knowing your values helpful?
They guide your choices and help you act like the person you want to be.

Reflect: know yourself.

Have students write a short reflection naming one strength, one growth area, and one value that matters to them. A printable self-awareness sheet is in the SEL library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Self-Awareness: Emotions & StrengthsFlip
Card 1
Term
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Meaning
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Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Self-Awareness: Emotions & StrengthsQuiz
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Question 1
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Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Self-Awareness: Emotions & StrengthsPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: complex emotion, growth area, growth mindset, identity, self-awareness, self-reflection, strength, value
  1. believing you can improve with effort
  2. thinking about yourself honestly
  3. feeling more than one thing at once
  4. the sense of who you are
  5. something that matters most to you
  6. something you are working to improve
  7. something you are good at
  8. knowing your own feelings and traits

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What is a complex emotion? Give an example.
  2. What is a growth mindset?
  3. Why is knowing your values helpful?
Answer key — Part A: 1) growth mindset · 2) self-reflection · 3) complex emotion · 4) identity · 5) value · 6) growth area · 7) strength · 8) self-awareness
Part B: 1) Feeling more than one thing at once — like nervous and excited. 2) Believing you can improve at things through effort and practice. 3) They guide your choices and help you act like the person you want to be.