New Year’s resolution worksheet for kids
Back to school. Image from Flickr.
I can imagine that after a couple of weeks off work, in the wake of celebrating the holidays, schoolteachers are probably feeling more than just a little bit tired and uninspired. Downloading a New Year’s resolution worksheet for kids sounds like a fun, easy way to start the year off in the classroom.
For some reason, though, there’s something about the idea of a New Year’s resolution worksheet for kids that rubs me the wrong way. First of all, what do you need a worksheet for? A lined piece of paper will work just fine.
Why a worksheet?
You don’t need cash now for a New Year’s resolutions worksheet for kids — you can download free ones that will only cost the price of the paper they’re printed on. But perhaps teachers just like to feel that they’re putting some effort into their classroom activities. I’m sure the kids appreciate the brightly-colored clip art.
So, that leads us to think about the underlying social messages that come with having kids fill out a New Year’s resolution worksheet. I wonder if the teachers will discuss the fact that not everyone in the world follows the same calendar? I hope so.
An optimist’s view of New Year’s resolutions
Of course, it’s hard to argue that there is really anything inherently wrong with setting New Year’s resolutions. Any time of year is a good time to better oneself, right? So as long as right after New Year’s Day isn’t the only time of year when children are encouraged to set goals for how to better themselves, there’s nothing wrong with having a New Year’s resolution worksheet for kids.
A pessimist’s view of New Year’s resolutions
Of course, the trouble with New Year’s resolutions is that they give people a very simplistic view of goals. For instance, many people seem to think that just because it’s the beginning of a new year, they’ll be able to quit eating junk food, stop gossiping, exercise more, etc., but these are all major behavioral changes that take planning, perseverance and an overall lifestyle change.
That is the reason the majority of New Year’s resolutions don’t end in success. If a person wants to achieve a certain goal, it’s best to break it down into several smaller steps, come up with a long-term, specific plan and then have some way of being held accountable or holding yourself accountable. Is there a New Year’s resolution worksheet for kids that has that on it?
