Students will develop skits that deal with the following aspects of decision making: 1) projecting possible long-term impacts of a decision, and 2) taking risks.
View "The Road Not Taken." Instruct students to read it silently, then have one student read it aloud.
Ask the class what the title might mean. Discuss.
Then have students discuss the following:
Who is the speaker in this poem? How can you tell?
Is the poet speaking in the past, present, or future? Explain.
What is the speaker facing? Can you think of an example of this kind of dilemma?
What do you think he will do?
How does he expect to feel about his choice?
Ask: What are some examples of "roads traveled" by middle schoolers? These might include:
decisions about friends, styles, etc.
dilemmas about members of the opposite sex
choices in interests, activities, and ideas
decisions about school subjects
exposure to peer pressure
What might taking "the road less traveled by" mean to a middle schooler? (Choosing the less popular option, saying "no" to peer pressure, not always going with the group, etc.) Why might taking this road end up "making all the difference?" (The rewards of hard work in the present often end up paying off in the future; a less popular choice may become more popular later on; people often strengthen their identity and self-esteem by acting on their own beliefs, rather than on those of a group . . . . )
Have groups of four students brainstorm a list of common dilemmas they face that involve choosing one or more "roads." Share the lists as a class. Ask each group to select one dilemma. Explain that they will write a skit about this problem that shows what might happen in the future as the result of decisions made now. Skits should include:
a realistic portrayal of a middle school situation
a logical outcome based on a decision regarding the "road taken"
When the skits are ready, have each group act theirs out for the class.
Teaching Options
Students may write a private journal entry about a personal dilemma.
Groups might act out their dilemmas without resolutions, and let the class discuss possible alternatives.
The class could select one dilemma for each group to act out. After the various possibilities are presented, the class can vote on the best decision.