Lever TWO: Me and my community

Explore what it takes to be resilient | Song: Eye of the tiger

What it's all about?

Resilience is the ability to cope with difficult situations, mentally and physically. It’s the skill of recovering from things that are tough and it starts with people being aware of situations, their own emotional reactions and the behaviour of those around them. Resilient people think of new ways to tackle problems and to keep going. Building resilience in pupils will help them be better learners and support them when they’re anxious or worried. 

The theme of overcoming adversity is a common one in lots of art forms and song lyrics offer great inspiration for thinking about this topic. For example the song Eye of the tiger deals with the subject matter of resilience.

Try the following:

  • Listen to the song and pay attention to the lyrics. What do pupils think the song is about?
     
  • Ask pupils for examples of when they’ve demonstrated any of the following:
    • Taken on a challenge, dealt with failure 
    • Thought postively about something 
    • Asked for help when they've needed it 
    • Believed in their abilities
    • Looked after their body and mind
    • Set themselves goals 
    • Overcome a problem by using problem-solving skills
  • Ask pupils to think of examples where they have felt defeated, tired or despondent. Discuss these as a class, drawing on their own experiences. These might include races, matches, competitions which perhaps didn’t end as they’d hoped. Use the example of Olympic medallists and the hard work and resilience they display, getting up day after day to train, despite physical and emotional fatigue. Can pupils pinpoint any moments where they might want to give up and what keeps them going i.e. the image of the end goal, the feeling of achievement that they’ll have and the sense of satisfaction when completing something. 
     
  • Decide on a setting (such as sports day) and in groups, ask pupils to create a series of still images (freeze frames) like photographs that show the lead up to the event and the resilience needed. Alternatively draw a series of images like in a comic strip or create a PowerPoint using sources images. Divide the sequence into stages whether working alone or in groups e.g. hours of training, feeling exhausted, physical endurance, being defeated, getting back up , growing stronger, race day, success  and put these together in a montage with the song Eye of the tiger playing in the background. 
RPS Making Music Smart Teacher 2017 Teacher 2018 Besa Music & Drama Education Awards Music & Drama Education Awards 2023 Finalist