TED Talk Mental Health and Wellness Bundle | 8 Lessons

This Mental Health Ted Talk lesson bundle is designed to help educators teach students about mental health and wellness. The bundle includes detailed student handouts and various activities for students. The lessons included in this resource cover important topics such as stress management, coping strategies, and reducing the stigma surrounding mental illness. This resource features TED Talks by mental health experts, providing students with real-life examples and insights into mental health. The accompanying activities and handouts are designed to engage students, encourage critical thinking, and help reinforce key concepts. This bundle is an excellent tool for promoting mental health literacy and creating a supportive learning environment.

This TED Talk Unit (8 TED Talk lessons) is appropriate for Psychology, Social Studies, English, or Health courses.

PLEASE PREVIEW TED TALKS BEFORE VIEWING WITH YOUR STUDENTS. Every school has a different culture with regard to what is appropriate and what is not appropriate. YOU know best what is or is not appropriate for the students in YOUR classroom or district. THIS RESOURCE IS INTENDED FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AND COLLEGE-LEVEL STUDENTS.

NOTE ABOUT LINKS: Links to all of the TED Talks for each lesson are included in this resource. If you should discover a broken link, you can find TED Talks online by searching the TITLE of the talk. (The best place to search is YouTube.)

What is included in this product?

-Instruction page

-Cover page (with Table of Contents)

-Back page (Adult Coloring Sheet)

-8 TED Talk Lessons and Answer Keys:

-Getting Stuck in the Negatives (and How to Get Unstuck), Allison Ledgerwood

This resource includes both printable worksheets and a Google Drive (paperless) option. This TED Talk worksheet is intended to be used with Alison Ledgerwood's TEDx Talk, "Getting Stuck in the Negatives (and How to Get Unstuck). The TED Talk, worksheet, and class discussion can be completed in one class period or assigned as homework. TED Talk lessons also make great "Sub Day" lessons or one-day lessons for in-between units!

This TEDx Talk and worksheet are appropriate for high school-level Social Studies and English classes. I use this assignment with my Life Skills and Psychology students.

Description:

Alison Ledgerwood joined the Department of Psychology at UC Davis in 2008 after completing her Ph.D. in social psychology at New York University. She is interested in understanding how people think, and how they can think better. Her research, which is funded by the National Science Foundation, investigates how certain ways of thinking about an issue tend to stick in people's heads. Her classes on social psychology focus on understanding the way people think and behave in social situations, and how to harness that knowledge to potentially improve the social world in which we all live.

-How Childhood Trauma Affects Health Across a Lifetime, Nadine Burke Harris

*Recently Updated! This TED Talk lesson is intended to be used with Nadine Burke Harris' TED Talk "How Childhood Trauma Affects Health Across a Lifetime." This multi-part lesson includes questions pertaining to Dr. Harris' TED Talk, an online activity, and questions relating to the ACES (Adverse Childhood Experiences Study) and a "taking it further" activity regarding treatment for children and adults with high ACES scores.

From TED:Childhood trauma isn’t something you just get over as you grow up. Pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris explains that the repeated stress of abuse, neglect, and parents struggling with mental health or substance abuse issues has real, tangible effects on the development of the brain. This unfolds across a lifetime, to the point where those who’ve experienced high levels of trauma are at triple the risk for heart disease and lung cancer. An impassioned plea for pediatric medicine to confront the prevention and treatment of trauma, head-on.

This assignment is appropriate for a high school Psychology or Health course. I also use this lesson with my Life Skills students. This TED Talk and lesson is in my opinion, the most profoundly important TED lesson I use with my students.

-Overcoming Hopelessness, Nick Vujicic

This worksheet is intended to be used with Nick Vujicic's powerful TEDx Talk, "Overcoming Hopelessness." The video, worksheet, and follow-up class discussion (recommended) can be completed in one class period or the video and worksheet can be assigned as homework with a class discussion taking place the following day.

This talk and worksheet are appropriate for high school-level Social Studies, English, Health, and Life Skills classes.

Description:

Nick talks about the importance of parenting in early childhood and its significance in overcoming hopelessness. Willpower is a driving force for making our big dreams come true, but if we don't get a miracle in life, we can always be a miracle to someone else.

Nick Vujicic was born in Australia to a Serbian immigrant family, with a rare disorder characterized by the absence of all four limbs. Most of his childhood he struggled with depression, and after a suicide attempt, he decided to concentrate on what he did have instead of what he didn't. He realized that his life story inspires many people.

-Texting That Saves Lives and How Data From a Crisis Text Line is Saving Lives, Nancy Lublin

This four-part assignment is intended to be used with Nancy Lublin's Ted Talks "Texting That Saves Lives" and "How Data From a Crisis Text Line is Saving Lives."

This assignment is appropriate for a high school-level Psychology, Current Events, Social Problems, or Health class.

The videos, questions, discussion, and culminating project can be completed in 2-3 class periods or assigned as homework. Use one part or all four parts depending on how much time you have.

-To This Day ... for the bullied and beautiful, Shane Koyczan

This resource includes both printable worksheets and a Google Drive (paperless) option. This TED Talk lesson is intended to be used with Shane Koyczan's powerful TED Talk, "To This Day ... for the bullied and beautiful."

From TED:

By turn hilarious and haunting, poet Shane Koyczan puts his finger on the pulse of what it's like to be young and … different. "To This Day," his spoken-word poem about bullying, captivated millions as a viral video (created, crowd-source style, by 80 animators). Here, he gives a glorious, live reprise with backstory and violin accompaniment by Hannah Epperson.

This TED Talk lesson is appropriate for high school English, Life Skills, Health, Social Studies, or Psychology courses. I often incorporate this TED Talk and lesson into any unit that deals with the issues of bullying, stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination. No prep is necessary. This lesson is ready-to-go. Link to the video is included in the lesson and can easily be found on the TED website or YouTube.

This TED Talk is a little over 12 minutes long, allowing time to watch the TED Talk in class, complete the TED Talk video guide and engage in small or large-group discussion about the topic in one class period. If your schedule does not allow for more than one class period to be spent on a TED Talk lesson (for example if the discussion goes long or some students are unable to finish the video guide), this TED Talk includes an interactive transcript tool which is extremely helpful for students working independently or finishing TED Talk assignments at home as homework. My students LOVE the interactive transcript feature.

WARNING: Language some might find offensive is included in this TED Talk. It may not be appropriate for middle school students.

CLEAN (SCHOOL) VERSION: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIBosgwzwlo

-Why We All Need to Practice Emotional First Aid, Guy Winch

This TED Talk worksheet is intended to be used with "Why We all Need to Practice Emotional First Aid " by Guy Winch. This resource also includes a follow-up activity.

This TED lesson and follow-up activity is appropriate for most high school-level Psychology, Social Studies, Health, or Life Skills courses. The link to the TED Talk is included in the lesson and easily found on both the TED website and YouTube.

This lesson is prep-free and ready-to-go! Perfect for "sub" days!

The TED Talk video and lesson can be completed in one class period. The follow-up activity spans one week. The TED video and lesson can be used alone or with the follow-up activity.

From TED:

We'll go to the doctor when we feel flu-ish or a nagging pain. So why don’t we see a health professional when we feel emotional pain: guilt, loss, loneliness? Too many of us deal with common psychological-health issues on our own, says Guy Winch. But we don’t have to. He makes a compelling case to practice emotional hygiene — taking care of our emotions, our minds, with the same diligence we take care of our bodies.

-Why Students Should Have Mental Health Days, Hailey Hardcastle

This digital resource is intended to be used with Hailey Hardcastle's TED Talk, "Why Students Should Have Mental Health Days". Hardcastle, an advocate for mental health for young people, delivers this short, powerful TED Talk about the importance of mental health education and support services in our nation's schools.

This TED Talk lesson is appropriate for students in grades 7-12.

TED lessons make great lesson plans on "sub days." Very little prep!

(This resource can be saved and printed as a PDF if you prefer to offer students paper copies!)

From TED:

School can be rife with stress, anxiety, panic attacks, and even burnout -- but there's often no formal policy for students who need to prioritize their well-being. Hailey Hardcastle explains why schools should offer mental health days and allow students time to practice emotional hygiene without stigma. Follow along to learn how she and a team of fellow teens transformed their advocacy into law.

-How Gratitude Rewires Your Brain, Christina Costa

This digital resource is intended to be used with Christina Costa's TED Talk, "How Gratitude Rewires Your Brain." Christina Costa, a teacher, Ph.D. student, and advocate for mental health delivers this short, powerful TED Talk about the role gratitude can play in building resilience.

This resource includes before, during, and after viewing questions and activities. A bonus hexagonal thinking activity is also included in this resource. (The bonus hexagonal thinking activity is DIGITAL.)

What is Hexagonal Thinking? Hexagonal Thinking is a visual tool to help students make connections and organize ideas on a topic. This activity is great for strengthening and deepening understanding of content, and utilizing different learning styles! Students will be engaged and having fun!

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This TED Talk lesson is appropriate for students in grades 8-12.

TED lessons make great lesson plans on "sub days." Very little prep!

(This resource can be saved and printed as a PDF if you prefer to offer students paper copies!)

Description of TED Talk:

When a psychologist who studies well-being ends up with a brain tumor, what happens when she puts her own research into practice? Christina Costa goes beyond the "fight" narrative of cancer -- or any formidable personal journey -- to highlight the brain benefits of an empowering alternative to fostering resilience in the face of unexpected challenges: gratitude.

If you liked this TED Talk resource, you might like these resources:

Ted Talk Bundle (6 TED Talk Lessons About Mental Health and Wellness) Bundle #2

Mental Health Awareness Bulletin Board

Design a School Project (Based on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs)

Abnormal Psychology Mood Disorders Hexagonal Thinking Activity