https://nifa.usda.gov/ 

program/4-h-positive-youthdevelopment 

National Institute 

of Food 

and Agriculture 

United States 

Department of 

Agriculture 

lesson plan: activity 2.1 

lesson details introduction 

Cope With it 

A FederAl PArtnershiP For steM educAtion 

expeditionary

skills

for life 

 

 

National Aeronautics 

and Space 

Administration 

age/grade level 

Middle School 

learner outcoMes 

Youth will understand how to 

effectively use stress management 

tools and techniques. 

success indicators 

Youth will identify unhealthy and 

healthy ways to cope with a stressful 

situation. 

life skills 

Personal accountability, interpersonal effectiveness, critical thinking, 

self-awareness, personal credibility, 

flexibility 

national standards 

21st Century Skills / Life and Career 

Skills / FLEXIBILITY AND ADAPTABILITY / adapt to change, be 

flexible 

21st Century Skills / Life and Career 

Skills / SOCIAL AND CROSS-CULTURAL SKILLS / interact effectively 

with others, work effectively in 

diverse teams 

21st Century Skills / Learning and 

Innovations Skills / CRITICAL 

THINKING AND PROBLEM SOLVING / reason effectively, use 

systems thinking, make judgements 

and decisions, and solve problems 

21st Century Skills / Learning and 

Innovations Skills / COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION / 

communicate clearly, collaborate 

with others 

prep tiMe 

15 minutes 

activity tiMe 

2 hours (all activities combined) 

Materials list 

1. White board 

2. Markers 

3. Handout on Coping with It 

4. Paper 

5. Pencils 

6. 	Single piece of rope. The rope 

should be at least 1-2 feet long per 

youth. If more than 10 youth in 

the group, consider multiple ropes. 

suggested space 

Any 

suggested group size 

Any 

references 

Love to Know: Stress Management 

Lesson Plans 

http://stress.lovetoknow.com/ 

Stress_Management_Lesson_ 

Plans#lEhHKXLjOAYJzH3j.97 

Confronting Teen Stress: Meeting the 

Challenge in Baltimore City-A Guide 

for Parents, Teachers & Youth Service 

Providers 

http://www.jhsph.edu/research/ 

centers-and-institutes/center-foradolescent-health/_includes/_preredesign/Teen_Stress_Guide.pdf 

Edutopia: Handbook: Stress-Reduction Activities for Students, Glenview 

Elementary School in Oakland, CA 

https://www.edutopia.org/sites/ 

default/files/resources/stw-glenview-stress-reduction-activities.pdf 

sperson’s life. Stress is any change, 

internal or external, positive or 

negative, to which a young person must 

adapt; simply, “stress is anything that 

causes physical and/or mental wear and 

tear on the body and mind” (Joyce V. Fetro, 

Personal & Social Skills, 2000). 

tress is a natural part of every young 

Youth stress is usually related to everyday 

experiences, worries and challenges at school, 

home, in the community and within their peer 

group. For example, young people may experience stress resulting from bullying, name calling, 

social isolation, not getting what they want, 

body image, academic difficulties, or unsafe 

neighborhoods. 

While each youth will respond to and resolve 

stress differently, the impact of ongoing and/or 

unresolved stress can lead to feelings of anxiety, 

depression, irritability, poor concentration, 

aggression, physical illness, fatigue, sleep 

disturbance and poor coping skills such as 

tobacco, drug and/or alcohol use. 

Stress is not all bad. Stress helps you to deal 

with life’s challenges, to give your best performance, and to meet a tough situation with focus. 

The body’s stress response is important and 

necessary. However, when too much stress 

builds up, you may encounter many physical 

and emotional health problems. If you don’t deal 

with stress, the health problems can stay with 

you and worsen over the course of your life. 

continued next page >> 
page 2

lesson plan: activity 2.1 

Cope With it, Continued 

expeditionary

skills

for life 

>> continued from previous page 

Therefore, young people, like adults, can benefit from 

learning and practicing stress management skills. Youths 

who develop stress reduction skills learn how to feel and 

cope better without hurting themselves or others. Identifying and acknowledging the causes of stress and expressing feelings about them are usually the most effective 

tools youths have to reduce stress, in addition to learning 

practical stress reduction skills. 

activity instructions
 

activity 1: naMe that stress (30 Minutes)
 

Not everyone experiences stress the same way - and it 

can manifest itself through a variety of signs. Let’s talk 

about some of the ways that you can tell that you might 

be experiencing stress, as well as what to look for to see if 

stress may be guiding the actions of another person. 

What are some of the physical signs of stress? Record 

responses on a white board or other space visible to 

everyone. Possible responses may include: 

•	 Racing heart 

•	 Shaking hands 

•	 Shaky legs 

•	 Clenching fists 

•	 Reddening of the skin 

•	 Headaches 

•	 Tenseness 

•	 Muscle spasms 

What are some of the emotional signs of stress? Record 

responses on a white board or other space visible to 

everyone. Possible responses may include: 

•	 General feelings of anxiety 

•	 Feeling overwhelmed 

•	 Inability to focus 

•	 Avoidance behaviors 

•	 Inability to make decisions 

•	 Fight or flight response 

•	 Acting out 

What are some of the health-related conditions that can 

be brought on by stress? Record responses on a white 

board or other space visible to everyone. Possible responses may include: 

•	 Inability to sleep 

•	 Excessive sleep 

•	 Binge eating 

•	 Loss of appetite 

•	 Irrational behaviors 

•	 Bouts with depression 

•	 Mood disorders 

Ask the teens to describe the difference between healthy 

and unhealthy foods. How do they know what is healthy? 

Explain that the ways we cope with stress in our lives also 

can be healthy or unhealthy. 

UNHEALTHY coping strategies may harm you or others 

and in the long term they don’t reduce the stress. Getting 

into a fight is an example of an unhealthy coping strategy. 

HEALTHY coping strategies focus on the positive and 

what you can change or control in your life. Writing in a 

journal or playing a sport are examples of healthy coping 

strategies. 

What are some of the healthy coping strategies you can 

use to reduce stress? Record responses on a white board 

or other space visible to everyone. Possible responses may 

include: 

•	 Listening to music 

•	 Playing with a pet 

continued next page >> 
page 3

lesson plan: activity 2.1 

Cope With it, Continued 

expeditionary

skills

for life 

 

>> continued from previous page 

•	 Laughing or crying 

•	 Writing, painting, or doing other creative activities 

•	 Exercising or getting outdoors to enjoy nature 

•	 Discussing situations with a parent or close friend 

•	 Practicing deep breathing, meditation, or muscle 

relaxation 

Ask each youth to write down one thing in their life that 

causes them to feel stressed and two strategies they will 

take to cope with that stress. Challenge them to implement these strategies and share with someone how well 

the strategies worked. 

activity 2: all tied up (30 Minutes) 

Directions: 

1.	 Take the piece of rope and tie a knot about every 1 to 2 

feet. There should be one knot per youth. Lay the rope 

out and have each youth stand by a knot. 

2.	 Have each youth grab the rope with one hand, holding 

onto a side of a knot. 

3.	 The youth have to use their free hand to untangle the 

knot. Youth have to work together to figure out how to 

untie the knots without letting go of the rope. 

Discuss: 

1.	 Did this activity create any physical or emotional 

stress? Why or why not? 

2.	 If stress was created, how did you cope with it? 

3.	 What role did communication play in this activity? 

4.	 Was any part of the communication stressful? Explain. 

5.	 What did you learn about coping with stress from this 

activity. 

and ask each participant to say “one word” that comes 

to mind when they think about the activity. 

3.	 Once everyone has had a chance to respond, you 

should bring the process to an end by summarizing 

themes that might have appeared during the debriefing. 

applied challenge 

Directions: 

1.	 In your team, plan a short skit with a role for each 

person using the assigned situation. 

2.	 Pick an unhealthy way that the teen in your skit will 

cope with the stressful situation. 

3.	 After practicing, present the skit to the entire group. 

4.	 After you present, the large group will comment on the 

unhealthy coping strategy. 

5.	 Choose one volunteer from the large group to take the 

place of the stressed teen and act out a healthy coping 

strategy. The volunteer should tell you the plan. 

6.	 For a second time, your team should act out the entire 

skit with the volunteer, this time with the stressed 

teen coping in a healthy way. 

Example Scenarios: 

A. 	 Bobby is 17 years old. He is having some problems 

with his girlfriend. He feels that she is always checking 

up on him and says that she doesn’t trust him. He is 

feeling a lot of stress from this situation. He can’t 

seem to concentrate or getting anything done at 

school. 

B. 	 Sherry is 14 years old. She can’t stand walking home 

from school every day. She gets harassed and called 

names by men in her neighborhood. She is so anxious 

and stressed by the problem that she hasn’t been able debrief activity: Word circle (10 Min- to get enough sleep. utes) 

1.	 Participants should sit in a circle. 

continued next page >> 2.	 The facilitator should start with the person to their left 
page4

lesson plan: activity 2.1 

Cope With it, Continued 

expeditionary

skills

for life 

 

 

 

continued from previous page >>	 instructor’s notes 

C. 	 Alan is 12 years old. Every day, he is getting into 

arguments with his math teacher. He feels that his 

teacher is treating him unfairly. Since he is so stressed 

out over this problem with his teacher, he gets angry 

with everyone in his life including his mom and his 

little brother. 

D. 	 Angela is 13 years old. She feels like her mom puts too 

many responsibilities on her at home, such as taking 

care of her little sister every day. She can’t stop 

thinking about all that she has to get done at home 

and at school. 

E. 	 Gretchen is 15 years old. She just heard that someone 

at school has been talking about her and telling 

stories that are not true. This problem is really getting 

to her. 

Ask the youth if they can tell when others might be feeling 

stressed. Then have them discuss ways that they might be 

able to help that person cope with their in a healthy 

manner. 

Variations 

Create videos with unhealthy coping strategies and 

healthy coping strategies instead of live skits. 
activity 2.1: learner assessMent 

These questions are about things you learned during this 

activity. Please check the circle that best describes you. 

Q1 

Q2 

Q3 

activity 2.1: learner assessMent 

These questions are about things you learned during this 

activity. Please check the circle that best describes you. 

Q1 

Q2 

Q3 

activity 2.1: learner assessMent 

These questions are about things you learned during this 

activity. Please check the circle that best describes you. 

Q1 

Q2 

Q3 

activity 2.1: learner assessMent 

These questions are about things you learned during this 

activity. Please check the circle that best describes you. 

I know how to identify when I am feeling stressed. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

I know how to cope with my stress in a healthy manner. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

I ask for help when I need it. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

I know how to identify when I am feeling stressed. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

I know how to cope with my stress in a healthy manner. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

I ask for help when I need it. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

expeditionary

skills


for life

expeditionary

skills


for life 

I know how to identify when I am feeling stressed. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

I know how to cope with my stress in a healthy manner. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

I ask for help when I need it. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

I know how to identify when I am feeling stressed. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

I know how to cope with my stress in a healthy manner. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

I ask for help when I need it. 

Not at all like me 

A little like me 

Somewhat like me 

A lot like me 

expeditionary

skills


for life

expeditionary

skills


for life 

Q1 

Q2 

Q3