Unit Plan 18 (Grade 3 Counselor): Safe and Responsible Choices Across School

Focus: Review safe, respectful, and responsible choices in classroom, hallway, cafeteria, restroom, playground, bus, and group-work settings. Students analyze scenarios that involve peer pressure, unsafe play, disrespectful words, or ignoring directions. The counselor helps students explain how responsible choices protect learning, safety, and belonging for everyone.

Grade Level: 3

Subject Area: School Counseling (Safety • Responsibility • Schoolwide Choices)

Total Unit Duration: 1–2 weeks, 30 minutes per session

I. Introduction

This Grade 3 counseling lesson helps students understand that safe and responsible choices matter across the whole school, not just inside the classroom. Students review how their choices affect learning, safety, respect, and belonging in classrooms, hallways, bathrooms, cafeteria, playground, buses, online spaces, and group settings. The counselor emphasizes that responsible students think about how their actions affect themselves and others.

Students analyze realistic Grade 3 scenarios involving peer pressure, unsafe play, disrespectful words, ignoring directions, rough behavior, teasing, leaving messes, unsafe bus choices, or group-work problems. They decide whether each choice is safe, respectful, and responsible, then identify a better choice when needed. The goal is for students to understand that responsible choices protect people, help learning continue, and make the school community feel safer and more welcoming.

Essential Questions

• What does it mean to make a safe, respectful, and responsible choice?
• How do student choices affect learning, safety, and belonging across school settings?
• When should students try a better choice, and when should they tell a trusted adult?
• How do attention, organization, listening, and responsibility help students make better choices?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Identify safe, respectful, and responsible choices in classroom, hallway, cafeteria, restroom, playground, bus, online, and group-work settings.
2. Explain how unsafe or irresponsible choices can affect learning, safety, respect, or belonging.
3. Analyze scenarios involving peer pressure, unsafe play, disrespectful words, ignoring directions, or group-work problems.
4. Name trusted adults who can help when a situation is unsafe, repeated, confusing, or too big to handle alone.
5. Connect responsible choices to school-success behaviors such as listening, following directions, organizing materials, completing routines, participating, and staying on task.
6. (Optional Session) Practice rewriting unsafe or irresponsible choices into safer, more respectful, and more responsible choices.

Standards Alignment — Grade 3 (ASCA-based Custom)

• C:S6.3c — Make Safe, Respectful, and Responsible Choices
  • Choose actions that support safety, learning, respect, and responsibility in classrooms, hallways, bathrooms, cafeteria, playground, online spaces, and group settings.
  • Example: A student chooses not to join unsafe playground behavior and tells an adult when someone could get hurt.
• C:S6.3a — Identify Trusted Adults and Appropriate Help-Seeking
  • Name trusted adults at school and explain when to seek help for themselves or others.
  • Example: A student knows to tell a teacher, counselor, nurse, principal, or playground supervisor about unsafe behavior, strong worries, or repeated peer problems.
• C:S5.3a — Practice Attention, Organization, and Responsibility
  • Use school-success behaviors such as listening, following directions, organizing materials, participating, completing routines, and staying on task.
  • Example: A student brings needed materials, starts work promptly, and follows a multi-step classroom direction.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can identify safe, respectful, and responsible choices.
• I can explain how choices affect learning, safety, and belonging.
• I can make responsible choices in different places at school.
• I can ask a trusted adult for help when someone could get hurt or a problem keeps happening.
• I can use attention, organization, and responsibility to help myself and others learn.