What it is
Many youth lack the settings, activities and milestones that create structure in their lives. Encouraging them to set goals can give them some structure to keep them motivated and future-focused. Structuring their goals within the six realms of well-being can help them to have a sense of balance and contentment and increased resilience.
Why it matters
- Goal-setting is a crucial social and emotional skill that helps youth plan for their future. This activity breaks down the process of goal setting into easy, actionable steps.
- The holistic model of well-being can help youth experience feelings of balance and contentment and support the development of perspective when they have negative experiences.
Getting started
- Materials: Pens/pencils, four different colors of notecards or paper - six pieces of each per youth
- Time: at least 40 minutes
- Example goals are provided in each realm of well-being to help the adults leading the activity adapt examples to the developmental range of their group. This activity can be done with groups in grades 3-13, with younger youth needing more assistance from caring adults.
- If the group is meeting virtually, plan how to create the example goal in advance. Options could include: using paper (as youth will) and holding it up to the camera for everyone to see; using a visual aid such as an easel pad or whiteboard; or creating a graphic in Google Slides or Google Docs and sharing the screen.
How to do it
- Explain that the purpose of this activity is to have youth identify six goals and make steps to achieve those goals. Discuss the word, “goal,” and ask youth to think about how it is used in different contexts (e.g., a goal in soccer). Potential questions: What comes to mind when you think of the word “goal”? What are some examples of goals that you have set in the past? Explain that goals are the smaller, practical steps one needs to achieve a dream.
- Tell the group that today they will set their goals in the form of a goal sandwich. Before having students work on their individual goals, explain that you will all work through an example as a group. In each part of the sandwich explanation below, there is an example, but the example can be changed to fit the group.. Ask youth to help brainstorm each part of the sandwich. Write down the components on a white board or large sheet of paper.
- The (name color) card is bread. The bread frames the sandwich. It’s the beginning and the end. Fold the card in half hamburger-style. Title the left panel “Present” and the right panel “Future”. On the left, write a current challenge (I have been spending free time watching tv instead of being physically active). On the right, write a goal to address the challenge (I will improve my physical health by spending at least 20 minutes outdoors at least 5 days each week).
- The (name color) card is jelly. Jelly gives the sandwich flavor. It is motivation to take a bite, but you can’t eat it all in one big bite. Bites have to be manageable. Title this card “Steps to My Goal”. Using checkboxes, list at least 3 steps to complete to accomplish the goal identified (1. Search the internet for fun activities to do outside. 2. Find a watch or a timer to measure my time outdoors. 3. Create a calendar to track the days I reach my goal.).
- The (name color) card is peanut butter. Peanut butter is tasty, but it is thick and slows eating a sandwich. Title this card “obstacles.” This is not to say that peanut butter or eating slowly are bad things, but the illustration demonstrates how goals may be slowed. List 2 or 3 obstacles that might prevent accomplishment of the goal (1. The weather is bad on some days. 2. Many of the outdoor activities I enjoy include groups of friends.).
- The (name color) card is milk. Milk helps the sandwich-eating experience, allowing the sandwich to be ingested more easily. Title this card “People Who Can Help Me,” those who can help with the “how and why” of goal-setting. On this card, list 3 people who will support their completing of the goal (1. My parent or guardian 2. My siblings 3. A friend with a similar goal).
- Introduce the six realms of well-being and provide examples of goals for each realm that are appropriate for the developmental range(s) of your group.
- Health: Health refers to physical, mental, and emotional health. Encourage youth to think about their sleeping habits, how to process their thoughts and emotions, and current responses to stress in addition to nutrition and physical activity.
- Example goals: I will improve my physical health by eating at least one serving of vegetables every day; I will improve my mental & physical health by getting at least eight hours of sleep every night; I will improve my mental & emotional health by journaling for at least 20 minutes two times per week.
- Relationships: Relationships include personal connections to family, friends, and romantic partners (in later developmental stages).
- Example goals: I will strengthen my relationships by texting one friend every day this month to ask how they are; I will strengthen my relationships by offering to play a game with my sibling once a week; I will strengthen my relationships by telling my parent or guardian one thing I appreciate about them every week.
- Security: Security can take on many forms, including steps taken to ensure personal safety, learning to face fears and anxieties, and developing a healthy relationship with money. Security may be a harder concept for younger youth to connect with, but is equally important for them.
- Example goals: I will improve my security by making sure an adult always knows where I am if I leave our home; I will improve my security by asking a friend to support me to try a new experience that makes me nervous; I will improve my security by learning how to create a budget.
- Purpose: Purpose refers to applying values, passions, and abilities to support the greater good. Youth may understand purpose through their religious or spiritual context, while others may understand purpose through service, educational, or vocational lenses
- Example goals: I will explore my purpose by using my favorite hobby to make a gift to brighten someone’s day; I will explore my purpose by creating a fair project in a project area I have never tried before; I will explore my purpose by learning about the education required for a job I am interested in.
- Community: Community can refer to expanding circles that youth inhabit, from their classroom/school community, neighborhood, city, state, nation all the way to their global community.
- Example goals: I will support my community by sending kind emails to three of my classmates by the end of the month; I will support my community by reaching out to my elderly neighbor every week to check on them; I will support my community by getting registered to vote in the next election.
- Environment: Environment can refer to youth’s personal environment (such as a bedroom), their relationship to nature, or to the health of the planet as a whole.
- Example goals: I will improve my environment by picking up my room before bed every night for three weeks; I will improve my environment by making a piece of art or decoration for my family’s living room; I will improve my environment by picking up litter in my neighborhood two times this month.
- Health: Health refers to physical, mental, and emotional health. Encourage youth to think about their sleeping habits, how to process their thoughts and emotions, and current responses to stress in addition to nutrition and physical activity.
- Tell youth that the next step is for them to work on their individual goals. Give students at least 20 minutes to work on their goal sandwiches. Walk around the room to answer questions and help those who might need ideas. If meeting virtually, consider using breakout rooms to create smaller groups where youth can ask questions, and/or providing soft background music to help keep the atmosphere of the meeting more comfortable.
- Wrap-Up: Ask students to turn to the person next to them and share one of their goals with each other. If meeting virtually, consider instead using breakout rooms to create small groups that can share together or using the chat function to facilitate sharing. Each youth should decide which goal they are comfortable sharing, rather than choosing one realm of wellbeing that each youth is required to share from. The listener should support the speaker by asking 4 questions:
- Is the goal attainable?
- Is the list of steps complete?
- Will you accomplish the goal?
- How will you celebrate the accomplishment of this goal?
- Ask the students how it felt when their classmates evaluated their goal. Who might be able to help them set goals in the future?
Take it further
- To further reflect on the activity, consider asking the following questions:
- How did it feel to share your goal with someone else?
- What other goals would you like to set in the future?
- What parts of the sandwich were the easiest to come up with? Which parts were the most challenging?
- The Goal Sandwich could also be used in a one-on-one setting with an individual youth.
Additional resources for youth and families
- Motivation During a Pandemic from Spark & Stitch Institute
- 13 Fun Ways for Kids to Spend More Time Outside from Parenting Magazine
- Journaling with Teens from University of Missouri Extension
- Taking Charge of Your Health & Wellbeing from Earl E. Bakken Center for Spirituality & Healing
Reviewed in 2023