For educators, setting goals is second nature. We’re planners– and I imagine there were several times in the last hour where your mind whirled through goals for the day, the week, the semester or even the year. With our students, they often understand the goals and expectations for completing assignments, or performing well with tests, and committing to class projects. But how often do we take it a step further and lead them through a goal setting activity that’s more future-oriented?
Exploring goal setting with students is a great way to instill a growth mindset in your classroom: when your students believe that they can achieve a goal through persistence and hard work, they learn to be resilient and that overcoming small failures can lead to larger successes. As the saying goes, writing something down is the first step to making it happen. And as it turns out, there’s science to show that people who write down their goals are more likely to achieve them. So how can you get your students excited about future goal setting?
Goal Setting for Students Starts with SMART
Start by sharing a personal goal with your class, but keep it vague. Then, ask your students to turn it into a SMART goal: Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic and Timely. For example, if your goal is “I want to eat healthy,” a SMART version could be: “Starting next week, I will bring a lunch to work from home (that I prepared myself) 4 days a week for the rest of the school year.”
Next, ask your students to write down a long-term goal. Explain that long-term doesn’t have to be about life after school (but it can be). It can be about making lifestyle changes, volunteering some of their time, or helping out more around the house. Have them form small groups (2-3 students) and turn their goals into SMART goals with the help of their partners.
For younger students, provide a planning chart with the 5 SMART guidelines in a column along the left. Guiding questions will help direct them:
Specific – What exactly do I want to happen?
Measurable – How will I know when I am reaching my goal?
Actionable – What actions will I take to achieve my goal?
Realistic – Why is my goal important and what plan will I follow to reach it?
Timely – When will I reach my goal?
Once their goals are ready, have your students write or type them on a clean sheet of paper (or if they’re young, encourage decorating their goals). Then have students tape the final version to the top or inside of their desk or locker where they can reference their goal daily.
Original Source: https://everfi.com/blog/k-12/student-goal-setting/