Reappraising Conflict Situations

Curriculum	Transforming Conflict p.76
Lesson Name	Reappraising Conflict Situations
Grade Band	Middle School (6-8) High School (9-12)

Curriculum

Transforming Conflict p.76

Lesson Name

Reappraising Conflict Situations

Grade Band

Middle School (6-8)

High School (9-12)

Required Material/s	Handout 1: Reappraisal Internet access Make enough copies of Handout 1 for each student to have one. Display for students the following definition of reappraisal: “Reappraisal: to evaluate or assess someone, something, or a situation again in a different way; the process of examining a situation or activity again in order to make changes to it, or in order to change your perception of it.”
Standards / Competencies	CASEL Core Competencies Relationship skills Responsible decision-making Self-awareness Self-management Social awareness Common Core ELA-Literacy Standards Listening and speaking  Writing NCSS Social Studies Themes Individual development and identity Global connections Individuals, groups, and institutions
Recommended Time	50 minutes

Required Material/s

Handout 1: Reappraisal
Internet access

Make enough copies of Handout 1 for each student to have one.
Display for students the following definition of reappraisal: “Reappraisal: to evaluate or assess someone, something, or a situation again in a different way; the process of examining a situation or activity again in order to make changes to it, or in order to change your perception of it.”

Standards / Competencies

CASEL Core Competencies

Relationship skills
Responsible decision-making
Self-awareness
Self-management
Social awareness

Common Core ELA-Literacy Standards

Listening and speaking 
Writing

NCSS Social Studies Themes

Individual development and identity
Global connections
Individuals, groups, and institutions

Recommended Time

50 minutes

Essential Question	How can tools like reappraisal increase our capacity to engage in conflict?
Learning Objectives	Learn the meaning of reappraisal. Recognize how to use reappraisal to de-escalate anger. Connect the value of using reappraisal to effectively respond to others.
Important Vocabulary	Reappraisal

Activating Prior Knowledge	Review the definition of reappraisal. Explain that with reappraisal, a person examines a situation and rethinks its possible meaning. If you have a different way of thinking about a situation based on reappraising it, the different thoughts you have might generate different emotions.
Core Instruction	Ask: How many of you have seen a TV show or read a book in which there is a misunderstanding between two characters? What usually creates this kind of misunderstanding? Generate a list of responses. Ask: When we watch characters in this kind of situation, what do we wish we could do or say to the person who misunderstands or assumes? Ask: How can making assumptions impair our ability to understand other people? Can you think of examples of people making assumptions based on others’ identities or personal characteristics? Say: The perceived reason behind a person’s words or actions influences the way we understand the situation. Today we are going to practice the technique of reappraisal so we will know how to use it. Ask students to share an example of a time they were initially angry until they found out the reason the other person said or did the thing that made them angry. List the reasons on the board. Say: When something a person says or does makes us angry, our anger is often based on what was done rather than why it happened. One way to transform anger is to reappraise actions and situations to see if there is additional context that helps explain why something happened. Divide the class into groups. Distribute Handout 1. Assign each group one of the three scenarios on the handout. Tell each group to read their scenario and work as a team to find and list elements that could provoke anger. Next, use reappraisal skills to first brainstorm reframing questions and then brainstorm reasons which could explain the situation(s) from different perspectives of all involved. Ask for two volunteers from each group to share with the class their group’s reappraisals.
Wrap-up	Ask: What are the benefits of using reappraisal as a technique for addressing anger? How might it help us in conflict situations?
Assessment	Read the New York Times Learning Network article How Well Do Your Parents Deal With Sibling Conflicts? Then reflect on the following questions shared as part of the article: How well do your parents deal with sibling conflicts? What kind of approach or strategies do they use? Overall, how effective are the interventions? Write about a recent or memorable experience when a parent intervened in a sibling fight, and how you felt afterward. Ms. Turgeon provides examples of how parents typically approach sibling conflicts. Which resonated with your own experiences? Which alternative parenting strategies recommended by the author, such as “narrate like a sportscaster,” would you like to see your parents try? Why? The author writes, “Kids are capable problem solvers, even the youngest ones. Assume they have good ideas and you’re there for support.” How good are you and your siblings at resolving conflicts on your own? Do your parents intervene too much? Too little?

Activating Prior Knowledge

Review the definition of reappraisal. Explain that with reappraisal,
a person examines a situation and rethinks its possible meaning. If you
have a different way of thinking about a situation based on reappraising
it, the different thoughts you have might generate different
emotions.

Core Instruction

Ask: How many of you have seen a TV show or read a book in
which there is a misunderstanding between two characters? What usually
creates this kind of misunderstanding? Generate a list of
responses.

Ask: When we watch characters in this kind of situation, what do
we wish we could do or say to the person who misunderstands or
assumes?

Ask: How can making assumptions impair our ability to understand
other people? Can you think of examples of people making assumptions
based on others’ identities or personal characteristics?

Say: The perceived reason behind a person’s words or actions
influences the way we understand the situation. Today we are going to
practice the technique of reappraisal so we will know how to use
it.

Ask students to share an example of a time they were initially angry until they found out the reason the other person said or did the thing that made them angry. List the reasons on the board.

Say: When something a person says or does makes us angry, our
anger is often based on what was done rather than why it happened. One
way to transform anger is to reappraise actions and situations to see if
there is additional context that helps explain why something
happened.

Divide the class into groups. Distribute Handout 1. Assign each group one of the three scenarios on the handout. Tell each group to read their scenario and work as a team to find and list elements that could provoke anger. Next, use reappraisal skills to first brainstorm reframing questions and then brainstorm reasons which could explain the situation(s) from different perspectives of all involved.

Ask for two volunteers from each group to share with the class their group’s reappraisals.

Wrap-up

Ask: What are the benefits of using reappraisal as a technique
for addressing anger? How might it help us in conflict
situations?

Assessment

Read the New York Times Learning Network article How Well Do Your Parents Deal With Sibling Conflicts? Then reflect on the following questions shared as part of the article:

How well do your parents deal with sibling conflicts? What kind of approach or strategies do they use? Overall, how effective are the interventions? Write about a recent or memorable experience when a parent intervened in a sibling fight, and how you felt afterward.
Ms. Turgeon provides examples of how parents typically approach sibling conflicts. Which resonated with your own experiences? Which alternative parenting strategies recommended by the author, such as “narrate like a sportscaster,” would you like to see your parents try? Why?
The author writes, “Kids are capable problem solvers, even the youngest ones. Assume they have good ideas and you’re there for support.” How good are you and your siblings at resolving conflicts on your own? Do your parents intervene too much? Too little?

Download this lesson to access handouts.

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