Module Introduction
Just like taking care of our own health and well-being allows us to better care for our students, seeking, identifying, and living our own sense of purpose can help us be more present to inspire and guide students towards their own life of meaning.
Purpose takes time to discover and can change throughout our lives as new responsibilities and life circumstances emerge. Being able to identify our purpose and where we find meaning in life provides numerous benefits for our own well-being, as well as for those in our care.
Spark Interest
How strong is your sense of purpose? Take a Purpose Quiz and find out!
Reflection
- Did your results surprise you?
Learning Objectives
In this module, we will explore the importance of investigating your own purpose by addressing these questions:
- What is purpose, why is it important, and how can we uncover ours?
- How does my purpose relate to my work as an educator?
- What is the difference between passion, meaning, & purpose – and how can I harness all three?
Module Resources
This toolkit includes additional resources, including classroom lessons and practices organized by developmental level, staff meeting activities, videos, podcasts, articles, and professional learning opportunities, as well as supporting materials for group facilitation on the topics of "Purpose for Adults" and “Purpose for Students”.
Individual Exploration
As educators, we can better inspire a life of purpose and meaning in our students by connecting with our own purpose and what drives us in our lives.
Having a sense of purpose in life contributes to our well-being and positive relationships and provides us with motivation and persistence – especially through difficult times. In turn, this makes us better educators and more able to be present for and inspire our students.
What is Purpose?
In this first segment (7:17), purpose expert Dr. Kendall Cotton Bronk defines purpose and describes its benefits. As you watch, consider how some of these benefits may have shown up in your own life—or how a sharper sense of purpose might help you as you move forward.
Purpose Across the Lifespan Video Transcript
Reflection
- What is one takeaway you have from this video about purpose? Did anything inspire you to think differently about the role of purpose in education?
- Why do you think having a sense of purpose might be linked to so many benefits for our psychological, physical, and/or social well-being?
Why is Purpose Important for Educators?
In this next video, learn what researchers have discovered about why purpose is important for educators. [4:59]
Why is Purpose Important for Educators? Video Transcript
Reflection
- Where do you find purpose in your work and life?
How to Discover Your Purpose
In this final video, learn how adults can clarify and/or discover their sense of purpose, along with practical strategies to use either individually or with staff. [10:17]
How to Discover Your Purpose Video Transcript
Reflection
Links from video
- Magic Wand (Middle school-college, but adaptable to all ages) Reflect on what you’d like to change in the world and how you can help move the world closer to this ideal. (15 minutes/1x/day)
- Meaningful Photos (student version here – adaptable to all ages) Take photos of things that make your life feel meaningful or full of purpose, then reflect on them. (15 minutes/1x/day)
- Affirming Important Values (High school-adult) Rank a list of values in order of importance to you, and then write a brief account of why your #1 value is important to you. (15 minutes)
- Lester Strong Meditation for Purpose (4:45) Lester Strong is the founder of the Peaceful Guardians Project, which serves as a bridge-building tool to foster greater communication and trust between groups with strongly divergent views. He is the former chief executive of AARP Foundation Experience Corps, which tutors and mentors 30,000 elementary school students with reading deficits annually in 23 cities across the United States. He was also a television journalist and producer for 25 years in New York City, Boston, Atlanta and Charlotte, and he has studied and practiced Eastern philosophies and meditation for four decades in India, Australia, Europe, and the United States.
- Greater Good Purpose Challenge (Middle school-adult) A series of online exercises to help youth and adults discover a sense of purpose. (multiple sessions; can be done as homework)
- VIA Character Strengths Survey (student version here) – Take a free, simple, 10 minute survey to discover your strengths.
- Best Possible Self (student version here, Middle school-college) – Write a description of the best possible life for yourself you can imagine. (15 minutes, 1x/day)
- Happiness Break: Visualizing Your Purpose [9:02] Finding a greater sense of purpose can help us achieve our goals and strengthen our relationships. Dacher leads a meditation to find purpose by imagining a better world.
- Happiness Break: A Meditation to Inspire a Sense of Purpose [8:38] Take a few minutes to reflect on someone who inspires you, and how you can embody the values you admire in them.
For additional purpose activities for adults, see the Purpose for Adults and Students Professional Learning Toolkit.
7.1 Take It Deeper: Purpose Map Activity
Use the handout “Purpose Map Activity” (linked below) to help you map two dreams for yourself and two dreams for the world, helping to clarify a sense of purpose.
Module Resources
This toolkit includes additional resources, including classroom lessons and practices organized by developmental level, staff meeting activities, videos, podcasts, articles, and professional learning opportunities, as well as supporting materials for group facilitation on the topics of "Purpose for Adults" and “Purpose for Students”.
A worksheet to help you map two dreams for yourself and two dreams for the world, helping to clarify a sense of purpose.
Group Facilitation
Before facilitating groups, spend time in individual exploration in order to experience and embody the learning. And if you haven’t yet explored our introduction to SEL in California, make sure you explore those resources.
Module Resources
This toolkit includes additional resources, including classroom lessons and practices organized by developmental level, staff meeting activities, videos, podcasts, articles, and professional learning opportunities, as well as supporting materials for group facilitation on the topics of "Purpose for Adults" and “Purpose for Students”.
A revisable, turnkey powerpoint slide deck to use for professional learning sessions on the topic of "Purpose for Students".
A powerpoint slide deck with welcoming and closing activities to include in professional learning sessions.
A worksheet to help you map two dreams for yourself and two dreams for the world, helping to clarify a sense of purpose.
“When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bounds. Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties, and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.”
Do you want to dive deeper into the science behind our GGIE practices? Enroll in one of our online courses for educators!
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