Learning Gratitude from a Nonfiction Text

SUGGESTED TIME:

• 1 class period to introduce the text; 1 class period to discuss the text; if desired, additional class periods can be devoted to in-class silent reading of the text  
• Have students complete the following article either for in class silent reading or for homework: “How Gratitude Changes You and Your Brain” by Joshua Browne and Joel Wong. Greater Good Magazine. Published June 6, 2017.
• Students should answer the worksheet questions as they read the article. 
• Allow at least 50 min of class time to have a class discussion of the article.

‍

RELATED SUBJECT:

English Language Arts

‍

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

• Read a nonfiction text and demonstrate understanding of the central ideas 
• Determine the author’s purpose in the text 
• Compose sentences that demonstrate comprehension of the word gratitude 
• Write answers to questions about the article, demonstrating an understanding of standard English sentence structure and grammar   
• Engage effectively in collaborative discussions about the article

‍

REQUIRED MATERIALS:

• Article: “How Gratitude Changes You and Your Brain” by Joshua Browne and Joel Wong. Greater Good Magazine. Published June 6, 2017.
• Video: Hack Your Happiness: How learning gratitude is changing an Illinois middle school by Good Morning America (~5 min)  
• Prohuman Grade 7 Unit 3 Worksheet 2: Learning Gratitude from a Nonfiction Text

‍

ELA COMMON CORE STANDARDS MET

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

CHARACTER AND SOCIAL EMOTIONAL (CSED) NATIONAL STANDARDS MET

‍

‍

‍

‍

LESSON PROCEDURE

Step 1: 

• Explain that we will be reading an article that discusses recent research on gratitude.
• Ask students how they define gratitude.
• Explain that we will watch a video about how gratitude changed an Illinois middle school. Play the video: Hack Your Happiness: How learning gratitude is changing an Illinois middle school by Good Morning America (~5 min)

‍

Step 2: 

• Have students read this article for either silent in class reading or for homework: “How Gratitude Changes You and Your Brain” by Joshua Browne and Joel Wong. Greater Good Magazine. Published June 6, 2017.
• Have students answer the worksheet questions as they read the article.

‍

Step 3: 

• Facilitate a whole-class discussion of the worksheet questions.

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

GRADE 7 UNIT 5 WORKSHEET 2: LEARNING COURAGE FROM A NONFICTION TEXT

‍

QUESTIONS TO ANSWER WHILE READING THE ARTICLE “How Gratitude Changes You and Your Brain” by Joshua Browne and Joel Wong. Greater Good Magazine. Published June 6, 2017.

1. List and explain 2 reasons why some people do not express gratitude.

‍

2. In the second paragraph of the article, what does the author say that many studies have found?

‍

3. What is the problem the authors discuss in the third paragraph of the article? 

‍

4. In the research study the authors conducted, how many people did they recruit? Who were most of the participants?

‍

5. What issue did most of the participants in the study struggle with?

‍

6. What did the researchers assign each of the three groups to do?

‍

7. In paragraphs 6 and 7 of the article, what did the researchers find?

‍

8. What is the first of the four insights? What did the researchers find about the percentage of positive and negative emotion words?

‍

9. What is the second of the four insights? What did the researchers find out about not sending the letters?

‍

10. What is the third of the four insights? Why do the researchers think what they call the “positive snowball effect” may have occurred in their study?

‍

11. What is the final insight shared by the researchers? What does the finding from the fMRI scanner suggest?

‍

12. Provide an example of a time when you expressed your gratitude to someone beyond your family and friends.

‍

‍

‍

‍