”Sad Over Loss of Purse” - Accompanies Lesson: 2
Objectives
Students will:
- Understand that sadness usually follows the loss of something valued, such as money, a job, a goal, or dream.
Teacher Notes
Overview: All people typically feel sadness from time to time. There are some general facts regarding sadness which are important to know. These can help your students manage their sadness in ways that are healthy. The first step in this process is understanding that there are common sources of sadness which are more or less universal and can effect all of us to various degrees.
Additional Note: Some of the activities below ask students to share events and feelings from their own experience.
Caution students not to share any information that is personal and might lead to embarrassment. Also, remind students to be respectful of all disclosures made by fellow classmates.
Discussion
Ask: ‘’Why is this woman sad?” (She lost her purse by leaving it at the bus stop.) Sadness usually follows the loss of something valued, such as money, a job, a goal, or a dream. In this case, the woman remembers she left her purse at the bus stop. She is sad because it contained money she had saved to buy some new clothes. It also had pictures of her family that can’t be replaced.
Ask students to give examples of having experienced sadness over loss of some material “thing.” Write “I was sad when I lost...” on the board and list student responses. Point out to students that as loss leads to sadness, so can loss lead to anger (as we learned in Scott’s story), and that many times we can experience more than one feeling at the same time! (Save student examples for use during discussion in "Lesson 4: Anger and Its Sources.")