One of the more powerful skills anyone can possess is a sense of control over one’s life. Having a strong sense of self-awareness and responsibility can enhance the quality of your experiences. In order to help develop that sense of control, students need to understand the meaning of life balance and priorities.

Introduce the idea of “balance” to students by asking them if they have ever heard adults talking about balance in their lives, and what they think it means.  Responses will vary from: how to spend your time, who you spend time with, the role of work and family, struggles, etc.  All are correct.  However, we want students to make the connection that if their path is lifestyle, strengths and then job, balance becomes a much easier task to tackle.  It is those who figure out lifestyle AFTER they begin a career whose life becomes all out of balance.  

In order to achieve balance, one must understand the core needs that have to be met before one can move towards a balance in their life. Refer to the Teacher Aid – Lost At Sea Story. Read the story aloud to the class, pausing for student responses where indicated.

Assign the Lost At Sea Activity prior to reading so that students can record their responses. Alternatively, for an offline version, have students record their responses on a piece of paper. 

Note: To enhance the experience for students, set the scene in your classroom by turning out the lights, have them close their whiles while reading the story and turn on wave sounds etc. Be creative! 

After the interactive story has been completed, display and work through the attached Teacher Aid presentation on the Hierarchy of Needs to teach the concepts related to Maslow’s work and how it affects one’s quality of life.