Lesson 9.1: Understanding Violent Behavior

Overview

This lesson focuses on understanding what things lead to violent behavior and the consequences violence can have on individuals. Examining prejudice and bias and communicating empathy are highlighted.

Learning Targets

  • Compare and contrast physical and emotional violence.
  • Identify eight things that influence violent behavior.
  • Explain how prejudice, bias, and intolerance are related to violent behavior.
  • Identify five consequences of violent behavior.
  • Communicate respect for others.

Preparation

Chapter Opener: Use the My Knowledge of Anger and Conflict self-assessment to introduce the chapter before moving on to Lesson 9.1, or assign the self-assessment as a homework task before starting this lesson.

For the Warm-Up Activity: Write the journal question on the board, or identify (and copy as needed) the worksheets you plan to use:

For the Content Focus: Open the Lesson 9.1 PowerPoint slides, or make copies of the Lesson 9.1 Note-Taking Guide.

For the Lesson Focus: Copy the Lesson 9.1 Communicating Respect for Others Skill-Building Challenge Worksheet.

Warm-Up Activity

Select a warm-up activity to help get your class focused and on-task.

  • Self-Assessment: Have students complete the My Knowledge of Anger and Conflict self-assessment.
  • Journal Question: How might your opinion of someone else influence the way you treat that person? Do you think opinions can lead to violent behavior? How so?
    • Option: Write or project the question, and have students respond in their journals as they enter class.
    • Option: Have students discuss the question with a partner or in a small group.
  • Vocabulary Review: Have students work individually, in partners, or in small groups to complete the Lesson 9.1 Vocabulary Review Worksheet.
  • Quiz: Have students complete the Lesson 9.1 Quiz to assess their prior knowledge.
    • Option: Collect the quizzes, and use them alongside posttests to demonstrate student learning.
    • Option: Have students share their answers with a partner and then go over the answers together as a class.

Lesson Content

Review the content from the textbook lesson.

  • Option: Use the Lesson 9.1 PowerPoint slides to review the chapter content.
  • Option: Have students use the Lesson 9.1 Note-Taking Guide to review the chapter content. Ask students to work alone, in pairs, or in small groups. Review the questions as a class if time permits.

Lesson Focus: Communicating Respect for Others

  1. Form small groups of three students. Try to make groups diverse relative to gender, race, and family background.
  2. Put the word RESPECT on the board, and have the students review what each part of the acronym means. See figure 9.4.
  3. Have each group select one of the topics below, or assign a topic; then, have them discuss their topic.
    • What gender you are and what it is like to be that gender
    • What race you are and what it is like to be that race
    • What your family is like and how it feels to be you in your family
    • What your hobbies and interests are and how that influences what others think of you
  4. Make sure students use the RESPECT acronym to guide how they engage in the conversation.
  5. After sufficient time has passed, have students reflect on how they did. They will use their handout to evaluate their own performance on all aspects of the RESPECT acronym.
  6. If time allows, switch groups and repeat the exercise, or have them stay in their same groups and discuss a different question.

Challenge Activity

Have students who need an additional challenge work on the following critical-thinking task.

Research one form of violent behavior, and gather information about that particular behavior. Focus on statistics, data, and facts. Write down at least five pieces of information that you learned. Put the information that you think is most important for people to know at the top of the list and the least important at the bottom.

Reflection and Summary

Review the critical content from today’s lesson. Review the learning targets, and ask students to answer each question posed.

Can you…

  • Compare and contrast physical and emotional violence?

    Physical violence uses bodily force and includes things like hitting or kicking someone, forcing someone to do something against their will, or destroying property. Threatening others, destroying another person’s reputation, or causing damage to another person’s relationships are forms of emotional violence.

  • Identify eight things that influence violent behavior?

    Answers can include things such as inability to control anger, peer pressure, rejection by peers, involvement in gangs, social isolation, stressful events and circumstances, rejection of social values, bias and discrimination, physical or mental disorder or disability, history of early aggressive behavior or animal abuse, use or abuse of alcohol or drugs, exposure to media and entertainment violence, lack of parental supervision or involvement, violent behaviors in the home, substance abuse in the home, access to weapons, poverty, lack of community groups, social and medical services, food insecurity, high crime and unemployment rates, lack of community or family stability.

  • Explain how prejudice, bias, and intolerance are related to violent behavior?

    When people aren’t willing to examine their prejudices (opinions without facts) and biases (how we treat others based on our prejudices) and are unwilling to accept the beliefs or behaviors of others, it is called intolerance. Intolerance can lead to hate. When this happens, violent acts can follow.

  • Identify five consequences of violent behavior?

    Answers can include things such as mental and emotional disorders, fear and paranoia, relationship challenges, injury, death, substance abuse, social isolation, jail time, job loss, and more violent behaviors.

  • Communicate respect for others?

    This was done in the Skill-Building Challenge. Ask students to identify one thing from the RESPECT acronym, and comment on how they did on that element.

Assessment

Complete one or more of the following assessment tasks for this lesson.

  • Quiz: Have students take the Lesson 9.1 Quiz.
  • Vocabulary Review: Collect the Lesson 9.1 Vocabulary Review Worksheets, and evaluate them for accuracy.
  • Note-Taking Guide: Collect the completed Lesson 9.1 Note-Taking Guides, and spot check one or more items for completion and accuracy.
  • Skill-Building Worksheet: Have students submit the Lesson 9.1 Communicating Respect for Others Skill-Building Challenge Worksheets, and use the Healthy Communication Holistic Rubric to evaluate their skill development.
  • Journal Question: Ask students to respond to the journal question again, adding information they learned from today’s class. Require a one-paragraph response that uses proper grammar.

Take It Home

Ask a sibling, friend, teammate, or other peer in your community about their cultural, ethnic, or religious background, and use the RESPECT acronym to help you listen and understand their perspective.

Option: Assign the My Knowledge of Anger and Conflict self-assessment as a homework task if it was not used at the start of this lesson.