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Lesson Plan Image

Monster Fears

What if monsters were afraid of people? Students will imagine that the things they may fear might be just as afraid of them, then create an image of a not-so-scary monster. 

Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

Gather all the supplies needed to bring your craft ideas to life! From paints and markers to glue and scissors, our crafts section has everything to spark creativity and make every project truly special.

  • Paper

Steps

  • Step 1

    Ask children to think about how people sometimes fear things that are unknown or not well understood. For example, they might be afraid of "monsters," but not Cookie Monster or Grover because they're familiar to them. Perhaps monsters are also afraid of people. That's the case in the movie "Monsters, Inc." As the children and monsters get to know one another the fear subsides. 

  • Step 2

    Have children create a painting of a monster-type creature who might be afraid of people.

  • Step 3

    When their paintings are dry have the children present them to the class and tell a story about how the monster learned to overcome its fears by getting to know the children it was afraid of.

Standards

SEL: Self-Awareness: Understand one’s own emotions, thoughts, and values and how they influence behavior across contexts. 

SEL: Responsible Decision-Making: Demonstrate curiosity and open-mindedness.

Adaptations

Read a book such as "The Monster at the End of This Book" by Jon Stone and Michael Smollin or "Good Night Thoughts" by Max Greenfield and James Serafino. Discuss how changing our perceptions can help overcome anxiety.

Have children make up a story that might start out scary but end funny.