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Children need these critical thinking skills to make better choices and responsible decisions. When they have these skills they have fewer problems. They understand other people's points of view and they stop and think before they act. Without them, children have no impulse control and lack the fundamental social skills to function easily with their peers. Emotions are powerful and children who are unaware of this power can fail to see the consequences of their actions. They are unable to communicate their feelings appropriately or handle themselves in difficult situations. When this occurs, they can make decisions that can ruin their lives.

STOP AND THINK

Wise Ways 1Wizard Brain vs. Lizard Brain

In order to stop and think, thinking skills must be learned to engage the section of the brain where problems are assessed and analyzed before responding. Otherwise, the reptilian or "lizard" part of the brain the section housing emotions and the fight or flight response takes over, triggering impulsive, non-thinking responses.The Brain

Wise Ways 2Constellation of Support

Awareness of people and what resources to go to for help involves knowing how to evaluate the type of help you need and identifying the best place to get it. This includes learning how to recognize people who will help you succeed, and understanding why people close to you may not be able to give you the support you need.Who is your constellation of support?

AnyaMom

DadFriend 1Friend 2

JoannaWise Ways 3Red Flag Warnings

Thinking skills involve recognizing internal (what you feel inside) and external (what you see or do) red flags. The red flags warn of something about to happen, and awareness of these warning signals gives you time to stop and think.RED FLAG WARNINGINTERNAL (what you physically feel INSIDE) when something is going to happen):

EXTERNAL (things you do or see, or things you see other people do, signaling that something is going to happen):

Wise Ways 4Exit the Emotional ElevatorThink of emotions as an elevator in a ten-story elevator the higher up the elevator rises, the more intense the emotion and the probability of Lizard Brain responses. A number of strategies help keep emotions low or off the elevator, including control self-talk, stop talking, leave the situation, redirect the emotions, deep breathing and relaxation methods, and recognizing and changing Lizard Brain response patterns.

10 ecstatic

9 overjoyed

8 jubilant

7 thrilled

6 satisfied

5 playful

4 cheerful

3 excited

2 joyful

1 happyExit the Emotional ElevatorThe way you express yourself is your choiceThere are many ways to get your point across and get others to listenYou must decide if the way you express your emotions gets you what you want without creating problems

Skills you can use to Exit the Emotions ElevatorControl Self-talkInvolves learning to talk to yourself in such a way that you are able to calm yourself down and think clearlyI need to handle thisI cant let this bother meI dont want to get in trouble

Negative Self talk thoughts that are likely to increase your frustration and anger and cause you to be out of controlStop Talking and Leave the SituationSometimes you need to leave a situation and the conversation in order to maintain control of your emotions and lower your emotional elevatorShows that you are in control of your actionsYou are able to recognize that you may say or do something that can cause bigger problems

This does not mean that you do not go back later to solve the problem or address the situationRedirect your EmotionsRedirecting negative energy into something physicalDoing something for othersHelps you transfer negative energy to something else until you regain controlStill need to address the problem Relaxation Techniques Mediation Self - talk

ALWAYS BE LOWER ON THE EMOTIONS ELEVATOR THAN THE PERSON OR PERSONS YOU ARE DEALING WITH

DO NOT TRY TO SOLVE A PROBLEM WITH A PERSON WHO IS VERY ANGRY, VERY FRIGHTENED OR VERY EXCITED

Wise Ways 5Separate Fact from Opinion

The root of many problems is the inability to separate fact from opinion. A fact is what you know to be true, an opinion is what you think is true. Used in conjunction with Wise Ways 1-4, the process of separating fact from opinion is easier to understand and do.Fact vs. OpinionFact something you can prove is trueOpinion something you think is true but cant proveConfusing fact & opinion is also the foundation for gossipOpinion words: everything, never, always, all, nothing

Wise Ways 6Ask Questions

Having access to the right information requires the ability to recognize what questions to ask, and knowing how to ask them. This involves integrating Wise Ways 1-5 into the question asking process.She looked at him, turned and ran.Wise Ways 7Identify Your Choices (IDC)People who use their Lizard Brain respond one way, believing they only have no choices. This creates a feeling that their lives are controlled by fate, luck, chance or powerful others. Wizard Brain thinkers recognize that they have more than one choice, and use thinking skills to assess and analyze all their choices so they make the best choice possible.

Identify All Choices (IDC)Lizard Brain one choiceWizard Brain additional choices are considered

When you jump to conclusions, you cause problems for yourself and others because you dont Stop and Think that there may be other ways to deal with the problem

The more choices you come up with, the more likely you are to think of a solution that helps resolve the problemWise Ways 8Consider Consequences

Consequences Now and Later (CNL), Consequences Affecting Others (CAO). Wizard Brain thinkers are aware of the consequences of their choices. They use thinking skills 1-7 to help them assess and analyze the consequences of their choices now, the consequence later (CNL), and the consequence affecting others (CAO).Consequences Now & Later (CNL)Teens need to think about the consequences of a choice BEFORE they make their decisionThey need to learn to think about the future as well as the presentConsequences Affecting Others (CAO)Looks at the need for rules and the consequences of not following themIDC, CNL and CAO are thinking skills that buffer the Lizard Brains impulsive response to a problemWise Ways 9Set Goals and Form an Action Plan

Wise Ways 1-8 help build a foundation to understand the importance of setting goals and making plans to reach them. Within this framework, it is easy to build connections among and between the Wise Ways, creating awareness of the importance of goals, and why successful achievement must be accompanied by a plan to reach them.Whats My Goal?Uses the skills for Separating Fact from Opinion, Asking Question, Gathering Information, Identifying your Choices and setting a Goal to form an Action Plan

All action plans start with two words: HOW TO..

This skill does not solve the problem, but it does make what you want and what you need to do more clearUsing "I" Messages, taking other people's Point of View (POV), using Positive Body Messages, and using Assertive Statements. Communication involves using all the 10 Wise Ways, not at the same time, or in the order learned, but integrated throughout conversations and different methods used to send and share information.

Wise Ways 10Effective communication involves understanding other people's points of view recognizing how using thinking skills helps to deliver information and messages clearly.In order to communicate effectively use:Non Verbal CommunicationSending positive body messagesVerbal CommunicationUsing I MessagesRecognizing differences without making judgementsSending double messages (mixed messages)Summary Activity

Limbic System (Lizard Brain)WW1WW2WW3WW4WW5WW6WW7WW8WW9WW10It is important to practice your 10 Wise Ways in order to strengthen your thinking skills. The connection between the thalamus and the prefrontal cortex will disappear if not used, unlike the stronger bonds between the thalamus and the limbic system.Prefrontal Cortex (Wizard Brain)Thalamus (Relay Center) PROBLEMS LIFE SUCCESS Lizard Brain Wizard Brain

Weak or no Support Constellation Strong Support ConstellationIgnore Internal Warnings Know Internal Red FlagsIgnore External Warnings See External Red Flags10 on Emotions Elevator Exit Emotions ElevatorImpulsive Control Self- TalkReact to Opinions Stop Talking and Leave the SituationRuled by Emotions Relaxation ControlNo Information Get the FactsDont Question Ask QuestionsDont Examine Your Choices Identify ChoicesNo CAO/CNL Consider CAO/CNLNo Clear Goals Set GoalsDisplay Negative Body Language Display Positive Body LanguageUse You messages Use I messagesBehave Aggressively/Passively Behave Assertively (Poor Choices) (Good Choices)Act Without Thinking Stop and Think CHOICE