In this episode of the SuperD! Show, Jace is upset because he got five out of ten words correct on his spelling test. He says, “I’m never going to be good at spelling…I’m just going to give up!” Ellie and Jordan remind Jace that if he “keeps working at it, he’s only going to get better at it.”

Today, we will take a photograph or self-portrait of ourselves and frame it!  On the frame, we’ll put images, writing, and symbols of things we are good at and love to do! Then we’ll think about the areas or skills that are hard for us, the activities we sometimes want to give up on!  We’ll attach words or drawings of these to the bottom of the frame, reminding us that if we keep working at the hard things, over time we’ll get better at them!

• Have students place their photograph in the middle of the construction paper. The area around the photo will be their frame. If you don’t have photographs, students can draw a self-portrait instead, leaving a wide space around the edge of the page to be the frame. 
• Direct students to decorate the frame with images, writing, and symbols representing them, their strengths, or the things they love doing.
• Next, have students think of three or four areas that are challenging or hard for them and draw each in a small circle or square of paper roughly the size of a Post-it note. 
• Take string, yarn, or ribbon and attach the small drawings to the bottom of the frame so that they hang down three-five inches below.

• Students can share their decorated frames.  Some options for sharing include:
  • Museum Walk–The finished pieces are placed around the classroom, and students pretend they are in a museum as they view the work.  
  • Partner Share–Students share their picture frames with a partner, in person or online breakout rooms. Then each student shares a strength and area of growth they learned about from their partner’s piece.
  • Whole Class Lightning Share–Each student quickly shows the class their frame and states one thing they are good at and an area for growth.

Closing discussion questions:

• Why did we take time today to identify both the things that you are good at and those that are hard for you?
• What do you notice you have in common with your classmates when you look at all of our self-portraits?

We have learned about perseverance and the importance of remembering that when we struggle or fail, our frustration is a sign that we are in the process of growing and improving. Sometimes giving up seems like the easy choice, especially when it is difficult to imagine what it looks or feels like to keep going.

Today, we will work in groups to act out different scenarios. Each group will get to imagine what would happen when their character gives up and what might happen if they keep a learning at their own pace.

• Put students in groups and pass out a scenario to each group. Each scenario requires at least two students, but scenarios one and three have extra supporting characters so that all the kids get a role. 
• Give the groups five minutes to practice each outcome. They will act out the scene twice. During the first round, the main character should imagine how things could go if they gave up. During the second round, they redo the scene showing someone persevering with praise and motivation from others.
• Bring the class back together and allow each group to perform their scenes in front of the group. Encourage students to clap after each performance.

After all the groups have taken their turn, lead the class to discuss the questions below.

• What did you notice about how each group showed the feeling of giving up? Were each of the groups the same, or did you see any differences?
• What did you notice about how each group showed what it is like to persevere? How realistic did the scenes seem? How is it different to persevere or give up in real life?

When thinking about our growth and learning new things, it can be helpful to use the idea of the comfort zone, stretch zone, and stress zone. Our comfort zone is where we feel things are easy, relaxing, or boring. In our stretch zone, we would put activities that feel difficult and exciting too. Stretch zone activities are great for helping us discover all we can do! The stress zone is where activities go that are so scary or hard they aren’t fun anymore.

Complete the comfort zone worksheet as a class. 

• As a class, go through the following examples with each student writing them in on their handouts in the zone that feels right for them.
  • Math homework
  • Doing a cartwheel
  • Swimming with sharks
  • Singing in front of others 
  • Reading chapter books
  • Skydiving
• Next, allow kids to complete the handout independently. Challenge them to think of at least a few activities in each zone.

Do a lightning round where students pick and share one of their stretch zone activities.

In “Never Give Up,” the SuperD! kids talk about feeling frustrated with their schoolwork and wanting to give up. This is a feeling all of us have had at some point, but we don’t always talk about it with each other. Today we are going to share some examples where we or our friends felt like Jace and Jordan did.

• Have students sit in a circle to see everyone in the group. Ask the following questions and go around the circle giving each child a chance to answer. Students may choose to pass or ask the group to come back to them at the end of the round. 
  • What is one word you think of when you hear the phrase “I give up!”
  • Even though Jace got a better score on his spelling test than last week, he still didn’t pass. It may seem like he will never get better at spelling. In your life, have you ever felt like Jace did in the episode? 
  • If you had a chance to give Jace advice, what would you want to say to him?

• For groups where students have difficulty sitting quietly to listen, it may help to have a special object they can pass around to show whose turn it is to speak. 
• Teachers may let students hold fidgets or other supports to help them focus.

Lightning Round–What is one idea you will take away from our discussion?

1. Why do you think Brad quit Chinese class when he was younger?
2. What does it mean to be “glum”?
3. What lesson does Brad learn by the end of the story?
4. What lesson from the book can you use in your own life?