Teaching sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

15 minutes

Explore: Positive role models

30 minutes

Discover: Researching role models

15 minutes

Thrive: Learning from role models

Explore: Positive role models

Step 1

Ask students to explain the purpose of a role model and capture their answers on a whiteboard.

Examples:

They give me someone to look up to.
Provides inspiration for my own life.
When you are feeling lost, you can look to your role models.
It is comforting to know someone else has achieved what you want to do.

Step 2

Next, invite students to suggest some traits/characteristics of a positive role model and create a list on the board. Once you’ve devised a list of 10 or more, ask students to pair up and discuss why it is important for role models to possess one or more of these traits. Invite some students to share their answers with the class.

Examples:

Motivated
Determined
Resilient
Willing to fail
Kind

Step 3

Ask students to identify role models they believe possess one or more of these traits and discuss them as a class.

Examples:

Taylor Swift
Local community members
Malala Yousafzai
Mr Beast
Parents or family members
AFL players
Sam Kerr

Discover: Researching role models

Step 1

Explain that students will be working in pairs to investigate a positive role model of their choice. Ask students to form pairs with someone who admires the same or similar type of role model.

If students are unsure who to choose, they could select from the following list:

Ellie Simmonds
Michael Jordan
Emma Watson
Simone Bile
Steve Jobs
Malala Yousafzai
Lin-Manuel Miranda
Tony Hawk
Serena Williams

Step 2

Provide pairs with the worksheet, Role Model Research and announce they have 10-15 minutes to gather and record as much information as possible.

Step 3

Explain that students will select from one of the following creative tasks to represent their findings:

A compelling podcast script featuring their role model and an interviewer.
A visual presentation (Slide deck, infographic, comic strip, animation, etc).
An Instagram carousel post featuring up to 10 tiles (using a combination of visuals and text).

Regardless of the task they choose, students should focus on the following:

Emphasising the qualities of the role model and why those qualities make them a positive influence.
What the role model has achieved, and why their achievements are admirable.
The challenges or obstacles they faced when working toward their goals.
What others can learn from the role model and apply to their own lives.

Step 4

Once students have completed the task, they can present their work to the class and/or school community.

Teacher note: Before students begin investigating their role model, check their role model is a suitable and positive choice.

Thrive: Learning from role models

Step 1

Invite students to form pairs and identify 1 significant takeaway message based on their findings. Encourage some pairs to share their answer with the class.

Examples:

It’s okay to fail; it’s actually necessary to find success.
It’s not about what you do but who you are while doing it.
Say yes to opportunities that arise; you never know when they’ll come around again.
I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but it has always been worth it.
Your dreams don’t work unless you do.

Step 2

Continuing to work in pairs, ask students to design a motivational poster based on the message they identified. This could be hand drawn or created digitally. Once completed, the posters could be displayed around the school (for example, on the back of toilet doors) or taken home to serve as a constant reminder.

Step 3

To wrap up the lesson, encourage students to evaluate how they can apply what they’ve learned to their own lives, specifically in regard to goal setting.

Use the following questions to prompt discussion:

What are your current goals?
How could the message on your motivational poster help you achieve your goal?
How could your role model help inspire or motivate you to achieve your goal? How would they approach it?

Provide the following explanation to assist their thinking:

When thinking about people we admire or aspire to be like, it’s important to recognise that their success wasn’t achieved in a day. Success takes time, dedication and continual effort. It’s not enough to simply set and forget your goals. You must be prepared to fail, take risks and actively work on them in order to succeed.

Skills: Examining the Values of Role Models

Go to

Summary

Lesson guides and printables

In this lesson