VIP – Grade 10 – 12 Lesson Plan and Ministry of Education Curriculum

PRESENTATION OPTIONS

If you do not have time to offer all four presentations, we suggest offering just the first lesson plan or offering a condensed version of the four presentations in two 60 to 75 minute sessions. You can do this by combining Day 1 and Day 2 into a single presentation, and Day 3 and Day 4 into a single presentation.
The videos recommended throughout the Grade 10-12 curriculum outlines can be watched on their own or in combination with other content. Depending on how long you have in a particular classroom and how many topics you are hoping to cover, videos can be used to create meaningful conversation and enhance classroom engagement.
Through your work and personal research, you may come across other videos, relevant resources and media coverage that support the dialogue for students in your community. Please use these curriculum outlines and resources as an inspiration as you connect with teachers and students and share the work in a way the feels effective in your community. If you do find other videos are working well, please consider sharing them with the VIP listserv.
As a part of the CLC curriculum, students are asked to “engage in a substantive experiential learning opportunity of 30 hours or more to expand and deepen student exposure to career-life possibilities, such as service learning, volunteerism, employment, fieldwork projects, entrepreneurship, and passion projects.” PEACE Program counsellors might consider working with local schools to provide senior students with a unique leadership opportunity by having CLC students help to present the VIP curriculum to elementary grades.

DAY 1: VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND SAFETY PLANNING

Explain to students that you plan to share media and statistics about domestic violence and that your intention is to share tools and resources that support children and youth with experiences of domestic violence, in addition to growing the collective awareness of violence against women and domestic violence.

Length of Session: 45 – 60 minutes

What You Need for this Presentation:

Safety planning worksheets, VIP slide set, flip chart, markers, laptop, projector, speaker, blank paper, pens and Wi-Fi.

Introductions

Take a few minutes to introduce yourself, where you are from and why are you are here today.

Acknowledge the traditional territory you are on.
Thank the teacher for having you in their classroom.
Have the class tell you what their “agreement” or “rules” are. Come up with a list together on the board or a flip chart so it’s visible throughout the presentation.
Let the class know what to expect, if you are just there for 1 session, or if you are doing a workshop series.
Address any housekeeping, such as one person speaking at a time, raising hands for questions and comments, self-care and cellphone use.
Take the time to acknowledge that the issues of this presentation can be uncomfortable to talk about. These topics can be upsetting to think about or discuss. Remind the students to take care of themselves. You can ask the teacher beforehand as to what is appropriate in terms of self-care in the school setting, such as stepping outside of classroom for a few minutes, going to the bathroom or visiting the school counsellor. Remind the class that you will be available after every session if anyone needs support or has questions, and this includes wanting support because you know someone else is having this experience.
If you are offering a workshop series, let students know that they will have the opportunity to share an anonymous questions and comments at the end of the first workshop. These comments and questions will be addressed in subsequent workshops in a way that maintains anonymity but gives space for the issues that are relevant for the individuals in the classroom.

Introduce the Objectives of the Presentation

The objective is to raise awareness about violence against women and domestic violence in our society.
Inquire if students remember receiving the VIP presentation in the past year. If so, ask them what they remember.
Explain to students that you plan to share media and statistics about domestic violence and that your intention is to share tools and resources that support children and youth with experiences of domestic violence, in addition to growing the collective awareness of violence against women and domestic violence.
Define domestic violence and abuse.
Explain the VIP and PEACE Program goals locally and around the province.
Answer any questions.

Dialogue to Introduce the Presentation

“We are talking about violence in relationships today. Many people get into their first romantic relationship in their teen years. Romantic relationships can be fun, supportive and meaningful. Students like yourselves may also have negative, hurtful and violent experiences in their romantic relationships.”

“Today we are going to be watching a short video, “Don’t Confuse Love and Abuse.” This video depicts the difference between love and abuse and the specific ways this may look in a real-life relationship. Please pay attention to the behaviours and feelings of the two main characters who are in a relationship. This video illustrates a couple in a romantic relationship. Notice the behaviour and think about whether the actions of the characters are healthy or unhealthy while you are watching. We will have an opportunity to discuss the video afterwards.”

Watch & Discuss Videos

DayOneNY (February 9, 2018). Sunshine – Don’t Confuse Love and Abuse

A 3-minute animation that demonstrates some of the common ways a teenage relationship can be abusive.
WellCast (April 23, 2013). How to Leave an Abusive Relationship

This 5-minute video articulates the various warnings signs that a relationship could be abusive and gives young people tools to help them leave an abusive relationship safely.

Next, facilitate a class discussion using the following questions:

What were the main messages in the video?
What are some strategies you can use to keep yourself safe?
Did you see any abusive or violent behaviour in the video?
Can we brainstorm the types of violence and abuse that can occur in a relationship? Such as physical, emotional, verbal, sexual, financial, technology-facilitated gender-based violence, etc.

Define abuse. You can share the definitions below with the class after the group brainstorm to provide students with examples of some types of abuse. Highlight that the examples are not comprehensive, and that abuse comes in many other forms.

Physical: hitting, slapping, choking, kicking, grabbing, pulling hair, pushing and shoving.
Emotional/Verbal: name calling, putting you down, embarrassing you in public (online or offline), threatening you in any way, telling you what to do or what to wear, threatening to harm themselves, or accusing you of cheating.
Sexual: pressuring or forcing you to do anything sexual that you are not comfortable with and or do not consent to, including sexting, restricting access to birth control, and unwanted kissing or touching.
Financial: demanding access to your money, preventing you from working, insisting that if they pay for you, you owe them something in return.
Digital: sending threats via text message, social media or email, stalking or embarrassing you on social media, hacking your social media or email accounts without your permission, forcing you to share passwords, constantly calling or texting to check up on you, frequently looking through your phone or monitoring texts and call logs.

Activity – Support Network Brainstorm

Direct the class in a brainstorming session about how to stay safe in potentially abusive or violent situations. This activity might be done in small groups or as a whole class. What are some important things we can do to stay safe? What does it mean to stay safe in a relationship?

It may be interesting to ask the students to write out their individual safety plans. You can ask them to create one for at home, and one for at school, if they were to be facing these situations. Use the Safety Planning worksheet below to assist with this conversation, and if appropriate, provide a copy of the handout to review and discuss.

An age-appropriate description of the Kids Help Phone can also be useful here. Kids Kids Help Phone is Canada’s only national 24-hour, bilingual and anonymous phone counselling, web counselling and referral service for children and youth. You can reach a counsellor by calling 1-800-668-6868 or texting the number 686868. You may wish to write these numbers on the board or flip chart paper for students or provide it to the school staff if they do not have the phone number.

Activity – Anonymous Question or Comment

Provide all students with a blank piece of paper and a pen. Request that each student take the time to write something on the paper related to the presentation. They can write a comment about something that was interesting or a question about something they might be wondering about. Be clear that these comments and questions are totally anonymous and request that no real names are used. If they have a question about a scenario, they can use pseudonyms.

This part of the presentation can be a powerful tool for seeing what is relevant for the classroom you are presenting to. Let students know that you will begin your next session by addressing themes and questions which emerge through their questions and comments.

Closing

Thank the students and communicate clearly with the students about when you will return. Give students a way to contact you and encourage them to reach out if they have any questions or concerns about the presentation. Let the class know what information you will be sending home with them, such as VIP post cards, VIP wallet cards, agency brochure, PEACE Program brochure, and any other additional resources. This may vary for each VIP site.