Perseverance and Resilience Teaching Resources
Are you teaching perseverance and resilience to your students this year? These core components of social and emotional learning help kids learn to bounce back after challenges and move forward in the face of struggle, so how do you teach them? The Teach Starter teacher team has the activities, worksheets and more resources you need to do just that!
Explore teacher-created digital and printable resources created to help you foster these skills in your classroom this school year and set your students up for success.
Is this your first year teaching this part of the SEL curriculum? Read on for a primer from our teacher team, including some helpful kid-friendly definitions of both perseverance and resilience that you can share with your students!
What Is Resilience? A Kid-Friendly Definition
Perhaps the first step to teaching kids to be resilient is actually giving them a definition so they know what the word means! Here's a handy definition we use with our students:
Resilience is the ability to bounce back or recover quickly from challenging situations. When we show resilience, we show that we have the strength and mental toughness that helps us adapt and keep going, even when we face setbacks or we fail at a particular task.
What Is Perseverance? A Kid-Friendly Definition
Of course, you can't define one term and not the other. What does it mean when you ask your students to persevere? Here's how we define perseverance for students:
Perseverance means not giving up even when we face challenges or obstacles. When we persevere, we show determination and persistence to keep going toward our goals.
Perseverance vs. Resilience — How to Explain the Difference
Perseverance and resilience are both important aspects of achieving our goals and overcoming challenges, which can make it hard for younger students to tell the difference. So how do you explain how they're different? Try this:
- Perseverance is about moving forward — no matter how hard things get.
- Resilience is about bouncing back — even when things get hard.
It's subtle, but putting these SEL skills in terms of movement can make them easier to understand!
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Printable Anti-Bullying Posters
Decorate your classroom and school during National Bullying Prevention Month with printable Anti-Bullying Posters!
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Resilience Writing Prompts
Use this set of resilience writing prompts to help your students reflect upon times they have observed resilience in themselves and others.
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Anti-Bullying Coloring Sheets
Discourage bullying and promote kindness in the classroom with a set of printable Anti-Bullying Coloring Sheets.
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Becoming Resilient Mini-Book
Use this printable resilience book to teach your students what resilience means and how it can be used as a tool in their everyday lives.
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Perseverance or Not? Scenario Cards
Get students to explore real-life examples of perseverance with this set of 16 scenario cards perfect for developing students' social-emotional skills.
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Perseverance Posters
Teach students the meaning of perseverance with these beautifully designed classroom posters based on a mountain climbing theme.
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Resilience or Not? Scenario Task Cards
Get students to explore real-life examples of resilience with this set of 16 scenario cards perfect for developing students' social-emotional skills.
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What Is Resilience? Teaching Slides
Teach your students the meaning of resilience with this age-appropriate slide deck perfect for your social-emotional learning lessons.
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Resilience or Not? Interactive Sorting Activity
Explore examples of resilience by playing this interactive sorting game perfect for your social-emotional learning lessons.
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Exploring Resilience Worksheets
Explore what resilience looks like and sounds like with your students with this set of three worksheets perfect for your social-emotional learning lessons.
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Resilience Word Search
Use this resilience word search to immerse your students in the key vocabulary related to this important social-emotional skill.
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What Is Perseverance? Teaching Slides
Teach your students perseverance strategies with this comprehensive slideshow perfect for your social-emotional learning lessons.
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Perseverance Strategies Mini-Book
Teach your students perseverance strategies with this printable mini-book perfect for elementary students!
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The Pillars of Perseverance – Bulletin Board Display
Teach students the definition of perseverance with this beautifully designed bulletin board display based on a rock climbing theme.
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Resilience Posters
Teach students the meaning of resilience with these beautifully designed resilience posters for your elementary school classroom.
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Resilience Acrostic Poem Worksheet
Have students write a resilience poem to help them understand the meaning of this crucial social-emotional skill.