California Career and Technical Education Standards

• ANR.FS.10.1 Understand the aims, purposes, history, and structure of the FFA student organiz...
• ANR.FS.5.3 Use critical thinking skills to make informed decisions and solve problems.
• ANR.FS.7.3 Understand the need to adapt to varied roles and responsibilities.
• ANR.FS.7.5 Understand the importance of time management to fulfill responsibilities.
• ANR.FS.9.3 Understand how to organize and structure work individually and in teams for effe...

California Academic Content Standards (Reinforced)

• ELA.9-10.R.CAGT.2.3 Generate relevant questions about readings on issues that can be researched.2
• ELA.9-10.R.CAGT.2.5 Extend ideas presented in primary or secondary sources through original analysis...3
• ELA.9-10.W.RT.1.3 Use clear research questions and suitable research methods (e.g., library, elect...2

• Interest Approach--Putting the Pieces Together - Hooks / Set

  Instructor will either assign groups and post them before students enter or arrange desks (if applicable) into groups of 4-5. Each group will be given a small puzzle kit. Instruct students to leave all materials where they sit until you give the instructions. Make sure that one group has a picture to the puzzle, one group has a picture to the WRONG puzzle and the rest of the groups have no picture at all. Tell students "When I say go, you will be timed on how fast you can put the puzzle together on your desk...GO!" You may end the activity when the first team wins or continue on for some time to focus on the difficulties of the groups with no or the wrong picture. Have a prize available to the winners (candy bars for example). When you end the activity, ask students to share how the activity went, what was good/bad? Why did some groups finish faster than others? Be sure to point out that not everyone had the picture or PLAN available to them. These groups likely struggled. Make the connection that having a plan generally leads to more success. "Thank you for your level of competition in the puzzle activity. As we have seen having a plan is important to our success, and it can't just be any plan as a couple of the groups found (the ones with the wrong picture). Over the last few days, we have explored the history, benefits, and reasons for being an FFA member. Today, we are going to make sure that you are successful in your FFA career over the next 4 years, so you have success rather than frustration--this all begins with a good PLAN!
• myPLAN - Assessment

  Students will be guided through a 4 year FFA LEADERSHIP plan, which
  will complement the SAE plan. A blank word template included as well as
  a sample doc. Instructor should have a list of ALL ACTIVITIES the
  chapter participates in, and be ready to describe them to the students. "To begin our planning, think back to the last few days and the activities an opportunities available to you in the FFA. What were some of the highlights?" Allow for student sharing. This time should be built into the lesson (instructor sharing about each activity), and may take 15-20 minutes depending on how much was covered in the previous lessons. Students should also have a calendar available to record dates related to the activities (could be the record book calendar for current year). Teacher can either go through all activities at once, or cover template using the categories listed--for example explain the degree section, then give students time to complete template, followed by explanation of the leadership development category and so on. Depending on instruction time, lesson plan may continue into following day. Give students a clear working time and check in with them as you circulate around the room.

  • myPLAN Blank (PDF) [ Download ] Best graphics, but can't edit.
  • myPLAN Example (PDF) [ Download ] Best Graphics, but you can't edit.
  • Template in myPLAN (word) [ Download ] Unlocked for editing.
  • Example template (word) [ Download ] Unlocked for editing.
• Review Summary - Closure

  "Thank you for all of your work on your plan! I am very excited by all of the goals you have set forth! As you know, it always helps to have others help us on our plans, and people we trust to hold us accountable. In a moment, we are going to share our myPLANS. Please be considerate listeners and encourage each other. You will choose a partner that you know fairly well, who can hold you accountable to your plan. After sharing, please switch and repeat. Some of you may wish to take the ultimate step and share your myPLAN with the entire class, we encourage you to do so! The more people you tell and ask for support from, the more likely you will be successful in your plan." To reinforce the myPLANs, ask students to share their plan with a partner they trust and who will hole them accountable. This person should check in with them on their plan at random times during the school year for encouragement. Choose or solicit volunteers who are willing to share their plans with the class. (You may wish to have every student share to reinforce its importance). Make sure to create a safe environment for sharing. An applied activity would be to have the students take the plan home, share it with their parents, and get it signed by them. Instructor should make a copy to keep in the student's file and return one to the student in a frame (one of those plastic ones is fine) to post in a prominent location.

  "You all have some pretty amazing plans! As we get ready to leave today, here are a couple things to think about: 1. These plans are considered 'living' documents. What does that mean?" Allow for sharing. "Great, please rememebr that our lives are constantly changing, and though we have a plan in mind, we can revise them when we need to!"

  In addition, ask them to think about what their myPLAN might look like for non-FFA activities such as sports, school, job, etc. They could share these plans the next day as an optional activity.