Practicing Agency

Courage Museum • Brave Space • Practicing Agency

Calming and Grounding

Information

From the Exhibit: Empathy Mirrors
Optional connections: Activating Courage, Change is Rea

Time to complete: 45-60 minutes

Intensity Level: This lesson can feel empowering, but it may also surface areas where students feel overwhelmed, stuck, unsafe, or unsupported.

Facilitation Level: Some facilitation. Facilitators should be prepared to hold conversations about choice, control, safety, and support without implying that students are responsible for solving problems beyond their power.

Materials: Paper or student journals, pens or pencils, sticky notes or chart paper

Audience

Recommended Grade Level(s): 9-12

Individual reflection, pair share, small-group or whole-group discussion

Purpose

Students explore the meaning of agency and identify where they have power, choice, influence, and support in their own lives

Intended Outcomes

Students will be able to:

Define agency in their own words
Distinguish between a realm of concern, a realm of influence, and actions connected to self
Identify one area in their life or community where they have some agency
Explain how agency can include asking for help, setting a boundary, making a decision, pursuing a goal, or taking a small next step
Create a realistic action step that reflects courage, care, and personal choice

Facilitation Guide

Opening Frame
- Say something like: “Today we are going to explore agency. Agency does not mean we control everything. It means we can notice where we have some choice, some influence, some support, or some next step available to us.”
- Add: “Some problems are bigger than one person. This activity is about noticing where we do have power, where we might need support, and what small action could make sense.”
- Introduce the Agency Map
  - Invite students to draw three circles in their notebook:
    - outer circle: Realm of Concern
    - middle circle: Realm of Influence
    - inner circle: Me
Explain each circle:
- Realm of Concern: Things I care about, worry about, or notice in my life, school, community, or world.
- Realm of Influence: Things I may not fully control, but where I may have some voice, choice, relationship, resource, or possible action.
- Me: Things I can practice, decide, ask, name, try, or seek support around.
Individual Reflection
- Give students a few minutes to complete their map.
- Prompts:
  - What are some things you are concerned about in your school, community, relationships, or world?
  - Which of these concerns do you have some influence over?
  - What is one small thing you could do, ask for, practice, or learn more about?
  - Who could support you?
- Remind students: “You can keep this private. You do not need to write about anything personal. You may choose a school, community, or general issue.”
Think-Pair-Share
- Invite students to share only what they are comfortable sharing.
- Partner prompts:
  - What did you notice about your map?
  - Was anything hard to place?
  - Where did you notice you have more influence than you first thought?
  - Where might support from others matter?
- Optional whole-group discussion:
  - Why might it be helpful to separate concern from influence?
  - What can happen when we focus only on things outside our control?
  - What can happen when we notice even one small next step?
Define agency
- Offer this student-friendly definition: “Agency is the ability to make choices and take action in your own life, especially when things feel difficult, confusing, or outside your control.”
- You can also share the fuller definition from the source activity, which describes agency as the ability to cut through what pulls at us, find emotional and physical balance, think clearly, advocate for ourselves, and take a course of action that makes sense.
- Ask students:
  - What words or phrases stand out?
  - What does agency feel like?
  - What can make agency easier or harder?
  - How is agency different from control?
Agency in action
- Invite students to return to their map and choose one item from their Realm of Influence
- Ask them to complete:
  - One thing I care about is…
  - One part I may be able to influence is…
  - One small next step I could take is…
  - One person, place, or resource that could support me is…
  - One thing I need to remember is…
- Examples of next steps:
  - Ask a trusted adult for help
  - Set a boundary
  - Talk with a friend
  - Learn more about an issue
  - Join or start a school club
  - Take a pause before responding
  - Make a safety or support plan
  - Share an idea with someone who can help
  - Choose one goal to work toward this month
Closing reflection
- Students complete one of the following
  - Agency does not mean…
  - Agency can look like…
  - One place I have influence is…
  - One small next step I can take is…
  - One support I can reach toward is…

Educator support
- Facilitation tips
  - Build in choice throughout:
  - Students may write privately
  - Students may pass during sharing
  - Students may choose a low-stakes issue
  - Students do not need to discuss personal relationships
  - Students should not be asked to disclose anything personal
- For students who need more structure, provide sentence starters
  - I care about
  - I can influence
  - I can ask
  - I can try
  - I need support from
Assessment
- Students demonstrate understanding when they can
  - Explain agency in their own words
  - Distinguish concern from influence
  - Identify a realistic next step
  - Name support or resources
  - Recognize that agency exists within real constraints

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