Identify the Problem
You're out shopping with friends and you notice your friend slip something in her pocket. When you leave the store, the alarm goes off and your friend shoves the merchandise in your bag.
You're about to get falsely blamed for shoplifting.
You don't yet have your driver's license or a vehicle of your own, and your boss keeps scheduling you for shifts that begin before your parents or older sibling gets home to bring you.
What are some solutions to this problem?
Look at the schedule ahead of time and ask the coworker also working that shift if they can give you a ride.
Address your boss about this concern and ask to come in a little later.
Swap shifts with a coworker who is scheduled for a later shift.
Show up late without mentioning your dilemma to anyone. It's your boss's fault for forgetting your hours of availability.
Quit the job and find a new one that will honor your availability.
After being pressured by your friends, you agree to ride the rollercoaster Superman despite your fear of heights. After already boarding the rollercoaster you realize the ride goes upside and you start to panic.
solutions:
Try to get the attention of the operator so you can get off.
Keep your eyes shut for the entire ride and hope and pray you survive.
Hyperventilate and cry- your social worker is always telling you to let yourself feel your true emotions.
Use positive self-talk, deep breathing and other calming techniques to cope with the severe distress you're feeling.
Rip your seat belt off and make a beeline for the sidewalk.
1. Try to get the attention of the operator so you can get off.
2. Use positive self-talk, deep breathing and other calming techniques to cope with the severe distress you're feeling.
3. Hyperventilate and cry- your social worker is always telling you to let yourself feel your true emotions. OR Keep your eyes shut for the entire ride and hope and pray you survive.
4. Rip your seat belt off and make a beeline for the sidewalk.
The second step of problem solving is to brainstorm solutions.
true
You forgot your raincoat at home and it starts raining outside.
small problem - this may negatively impact your day but hopefully won't ruin your day!
In gym class, you're playing basketball and your friend passes you the ball while you weren't looking, accidentally hitting you right in the face. Everyone is laughing at you.
You get embarrassed during gym class.
On the first day of school, the teacher of your Current Events class announces that presentations are a huge part of the grade. You are terrified of presenting but really don't want to switch out of the class.
What are some solutions to this problem?
Refuse to present and hope that if you do all of the other assignments you'll still pass the class
Address the teacher privately about your concern.
Go to your Resource teacher and ask him/her to get you exempt from presenting.
Feign sickness every time you have a presentation scheduled.
You forgot to wash your gym clothes and they smell a little bit. You know there are some jerks in your gym class and are worried they're going to bully you.
solutions:
Wear the smelly clothes and avoid the bullies.
Pretend you don't have any gym clothes and accept the zero.
Text your older brother and ask him to drop you off some clean gym clothes.
Go to the nurse during gym class to avoid a potential conflict.
1. Text your older brother and ask him to drop you off some clean gym clothes.
2. Go to the nurse during gym class to avoid a potential conflict OR Wear the smelly clothes and avoid the bullies.
3. Pretend you don't have any gym clothes and accept the zero.
When brainstorming, all "solutions" are worthy of discussing.
true - during this step, we are identifying any and all potential "solutions" to the given problem. Even solutions you know would probably not be ideal, are worth acknowledging when brainstorming.
You borrow your older sister's diamond earrings for prom and somehow misplace them.
medium or large problem - I guess this is based on how important this jewelry was to your sister! Noting that they're "diamond" earrings implies that they're expensive and important, possibly making it a large problem
Your friend asks for some of your pie. After she's taken a few bites you remember she is allergic to cinnamon. Oops.
Your friend may have an allergic reaction and needs medical attention ASAP.
You learn from a friend that someone has created a fake snapchat account pretending to be you.
What are some solutions to this problem?
Ignore it and hope the person gets bored with it soon.
Make a post on your true social media informing everyone that the other account is not truly you.
Notify a trusted adult.
Threaten the person to remove the account.
You couldn't sleep last night and now you're exhausted. You can't keep your eyes open in school and worry that you're going to get sent out of class for falling asleep.
solutions:
Ask your parent to come pick you up.
Go to the bathroom to splash your face with cold water.
Chug a caffeinated soda and cancel your evening plans so you can nap after school.
Take your chances and hope your teachers are understanding enough to not throw you out of class for snoozing.
Tell your teacher about the situation and ask if you can go to the Reset Room for 15 minutes.
1. Tell your teacher about the situation and ask if you can go to the Reset Room for 15 minutes.
2. Go to the bathroom to splash your face with cold water.
3. Chug a caffeinated soda and cancel your evening plans so you can nap after school.
4. Ask your parent to come pick you up.
5. Take your chances and hope your teachers are understanding enough to not throw you out of class for snoozing.
The Steps of Problem Solving is only relevant to teenagers.
false
You oversleep and miss your Saturday detention. Now it's going to be doubled or upgraded to an ISS.
medium problem
You've recently transitioned from individual counseling to group counseling. One of your good friends is in the group and you're both so excited. Your friend keeps talking over you and the teacher, making it difficult to progress through the activity.
The excitement and interruptions are making it difficult to remain on task and complete the group activity.
When you enter the bathroom, your friend is in there vaping. You chat with them, do your business and then leave. After returning to class, you're called down to the admin's office. Admin tells you they were made aware that you were using drugs in the bathroom and are calling your parents.
What are some solutions to the problem?
Take a deep breath and calmly state that you were not using drugs in the bathroom.
Tell him to buzz off.
Call your parents yourself and let them deal with it.
Accept that you're getting suspended even though you did nothing wrong.
Your friend is using Google translate to complete his Spanish homework. You assume that is allowed, since he is doing it, so you follow suit. Your teacher approaches you and snatches the paper out of your hands, exclaiming, "That'll be a zero for cheating!"
solutions:
Accept the zero and make a mental note to not repeat that mistake.
Tell her the specific classmate you saw using it and insist he gets a zero also.
Use assertive communication to explain you genuinely misunderstood and thought using Google translate was permissible since you saw some other classmates doing so.
Tell her to go fly a kite.
Make up an excuse or lie to try to persuade her you weren't cheating.
1. Use assertive communication to explain you genuinely misunderstood and thought using Google translate was permissible since you saw some other classmates doing so.
2. Accept the zero and make a mental note to not repeat that mistake.
3. Tell her the specific classmate you saw using it and insist he gets a zero also.
4. Make up an excuse or lie to try to persuade her you weren't cheating.
5. Tell her to go fly a kite.
A mnemonic device can help you remember the five steps of problem solving.
true
Your brother ate the last Little Debbie zebra cake.
Your friend snaps at you for what feels like no reason. You're confused and hurt and don't want to cause an argument. But at the same time, you don't feel you deserved to be treated that way and want to let her know that....
You want to stand your ground because you don't like the way your friend treated you, but you aren't comfortable confronting her.
Your friend is smoking in the bathroom. You know that soon the smoke detector will go off, so you climb up on the toilet and remove it from the ceiling. Somehow admin finds out and the SRO tells you it's a federal crime to dismantle a smoke detector from a public building. You had no idea.
What are some solutions?
Apologize and tell the SRO you had no idea it was illegal to remove a smoke detector. Promise it won't happen again.
Lie and blame your friend.
Accept the punishment without saying anything. You don't want them to think you have an attitude.
Tell them to mind their business and stop stalking you and your friends.
Your teacher made a comment to you that made you feel uncomfortable.
solutions:
Avoid him and his class at all costs.
Ask your guidance counselor to swap you out of his class.
Use assertive communication to tell a trusted adult that he made you feel uncomfortable.
Purposely make a comment you know will make him feel uncomfortable. Karma is real.
1. Use assertive communication to tell a trusted adult that he made you feel uncomfortable.
2. Ask your guidance counselor to swap you out of his class.
3. Purposely make a comment you know will make him feel uncomfortable. Karma is real. OR Avoid him and his class at all costs.
There are very clear "correct" and "incorrect" solutions for each social problem scenario.
false - sometimes it's not obvious what the positive and negative solutions are. Often times, there are multiple solutions that could be positive or effective in resolving a conflict.
Your mom calls you at school to tell you a hurricane ripped the roof off of your cousins' home in Florida.