Here's one of the three reusable chapters in this book. There is an extensive resource section (show below) to help in reusing this lesson model many times.
Lesson 3 of 3
Moral Discussions
Students consider unique situations and reflect on their own moral choices. Then, with each case, ask, "What would you do?" More than any other, this lesson will show what makes students who they are.
Objectives
1 To talk about morals and ethics
2: To look at situations from new perspectives and understand different points of view.
Choose a dilemma from Resources at the end of this lesson, for example, "Money: You buy some goods online, but when they arrive, you get double for the same price."
Research two stories related to the topic. Create a simple reading activity from the stories.
Choose six words from around the saying and the description to check comprehension.
Lesson
1 Warm-up and Objective
Introduce morals and ethics to students.
Introduce the main topic of the lesson chosen in the preparation work.
Talk about the lesson's final goal: students will discuss moral and ethical choices within a situation.
2 Exploration and Comprehension
Write the subject on the board and ask for students' thoughts.
Go through the preparation keywords and work through a brief brainstorming of each word.
Next, introduce the dilemma to get an understanding of what it means.
3 Guided Student Practical
After understanding the dilemma, the class should now be open to the fun of discovering each other's characters.
Students must reflect on the situation and argue whether they think it is good or bad.
This becomes a creative role-play.
Write up a list of words suggested by the students and build a scenario that includes everyone's contributions.
4 Student Presentation and Evaluation
After looking at the dilemma, ask students to suggest what they think is the right course of action.
Also, ask students to present the person's viewpoint who might make the wrong choice. Might they do it again?
Would they stop cheating after this one opportunity? Again, these are valid points to consider.
As the judge's role, listen to arguments for and against a course of action and give all points of view a fair hearing.
5 Review and Assess
To wrap up the activity, compare students' initial thoughts at the beginning of the lesson with the balanced view on both sides of the argument.
It is interesting to compare how students deal with alternative views and how much they will accept.
Remember, this is supposed to be for fun, so force no issues if some students are uncomfortable.
6 Bonus Activity - Twenty Questions Game
Select one student from the class.
Choose a word and tell the student. They have kept it secret.
The other students ask questions that can only be answered "yes" or "no." Students have a limit of 20 guesses.
If they guess the word, restart the game with another student.
Tell them the word if they do not guess correctly, and start again.
Resources
Below are many dilemmas and discussion starters categorized by the topic. The lists vary in their advanced-level topics.
Damage
A child throws a ball, and it breaks your car mirror.
You are on vacation and lock the keys in the car.
You dropped your new phone, and now it is damaged.
Your car was bumped and scratched, but the person who did it drove away.
You have broken your computer. You need to fix it.
Your teacher wants to know who in the class broke a chair.
Education
A competent friend fails a test for no apparent reason.
You feel under-prepared for a test coming up soon.
A student is cheating at school. She is from a family, you know well.
You take a test and glance at someone else's paper. You pass the test.
Frustration
A student is having a tough time with home life.
Someone you know annoys you too much.
Someone you live with is messy.
You can never park your car near your house.
You go shopping, but you lack enough money when you get to the cash register.
Your family wants to live in the city, but you want to live in the country.
Your friend always gets angry if anyone makes a noise in the house.
Honesty
A child in a supermarket forgets to pay for a snack and leaves the shop.
A friend wants your opinion about something, but you do not want to say what you think.
An A-grade student has copied someone else's homework.
Someone gets hurt because of something you forgot to do.
Someone tells you a story, but you find it boring.
Friends have invited you to listen to a choir group, but you hate singing.
You promised a friend you would spend time with them, but something prevented you from meeting them.
One of your friends acts dishonestly.
Medical
You phone a friend you know is sick, but you get no response.
A child in the street was bleeding.
Something has bitten you, but you do not know what.
Memory
A friend borrowed money, but they forgot to return it.
A friend asks you to buy something. So you go shopping but forget to buy what they asked you to get.
It is Christmas, and you have forgotten to buy someone a present. You will see them soon.
Money
A member of your friend's family has a gambling addiction.
In the mart, you see an item marked with the wrong price - it is lower than it should be.
Someone offers $1,000 for something you own that only costs you $100.
You buy goods online, but you get double the goods for the same price when they arrive.
You find money in a bank ATM.
You win the lottery. You know your family will argue.
Pressure
A friend's family gets a pet dog. Now your family wants one.
An old friend asks for forgiveness after a fight.
Someone falls asleep on your shoulder while you are on the train.
A friend has invited you to lead an activity, but you hate being in charge.
You are tired, but you need to drive to get home
You get a dull coat as a present from a family member.
You see someone you know do something wrong.
You want to change your job, but you know your family will disapprove.
You have been invited to your friend's party, but you've had a better invitation from another mutual friend.
Your friends like to share food, except with one person more friendly to you.
Secrets
A child you know confides in you about a dangerous situation.
A friend is becoming distant, and you feel something is wrong.
A friend is getting married, but you know something is wrong with the person they marry.
Someone you know tells you they love you.
You must lie to protect a friend.
You know a secret about one of your friends that your other friends do not know.
You know you are in denial about a bad habit of yours.
Stealing
A friend has stolen money from work.
The company you work for is fiddling with the books.
You find a child's bag with some expensive items in it.
You witness a pickpocket stealing from someone.
You see someone drop banknotes out of their wallet at the shop, but they do not notice.
Timing
A younger brother or sister is spending too much time on the computer.
Two critical events you need to attend have happened on the same evening.
You are making dinner for guests, but it tastes terrible.
You are on vacation with other friends, but one wants to go home.
You are outside and notice you are wearing an odd pair of shoes.
