*Community+&+No+Put+Downs

__**HOW FULL IS YOUR BUCKET? FOR KIDS:**__ read the story by Rath (Lori Valent owns it if needed). The story is about how kind words can fill your bucket, and negative words can empty your bucket. Then make each child a bucket from a cup, bucket, etc. Cut out shapes of water drops and write a few kind sayings on a few for each child. Then encourage your SSG to write kind words on other drops for others' buckets so they can be filled!

__**Help Others Website**__ - Here is a website with ideas for encouraging acts of kindness that counter put-downs and help build community. They have some great stories that you could share with kids. Then brainstorm some ways to be kind at PFE and to encourage other to be kind. They have really some cool kindness cards and a deck of kindness cards that you may apply for from them by sharing how you might use them in a classroom or with your small school group. Here is the web address - http://www.helpothers.org (Let me (Donnan) know if you want some SMILE cards - I will make some to share)

__**Daily Good Website**__ - Here are some kindness ideas from a story from the Daily Good website - http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4031

__**IALAC**__ - Many of you are familiar with the IALAC (I Am Lovable And Capable) materials. Here is a link to the story - http://www.nadaskysnest.com/IALAC%20story.htm

Activity: I am Lovable and Capable This activity is a variation on Sidney Simon and Merrill Harmin’s IALAC exercise. It will require two large paper hearts (cut out) on which is written “I am lovable and capable.” Explain to students that for open and honest communication to happen, it will be important to be as supportive of each other and as caring as possible. In order to talk, freely, people need to feel that this is a place where we respect and trust one another. Hold up one of the hearts, tape it to your chest and explain that every person starts out in life with a concept of themselves as someone who is important, someone who thinks important thoughts and has important feelings--someone who matters. This is called our “self-concept.” Explore the idea of self concept with the class. What do we mean by self concept? Where do we get the message about ourselves that from our self concept? Then begin the story. Tell the story you have developed. As you tell it tear off pieces of the hear with each put-down the student endures and drop it to the floor. By the end of the story, there will be only a shred of the heart left. Tell the story as dramatically as you can. Your story might run along these lines:
 * Directions ** : You will also have to make up a story about a day in the life of a student about the age of the students in your class which illustrates the typical put-downs he or she might hear in the course of a day from parents, peers, and teachers. You can use the story outlined below as an example to work with. (**MAKE THE STORY REAL FOR YOUR STUDENTS!)**
 * // A student about the same age as those in your class. (let’s say the girls name is Sandra) gets up in the morning. Her mother complains that her hair looks like she hasn’t combed it in a month and asks her why she never irons her clothes. (Tear off a piece of the heart.) Her sister tells her she looks like she’s been out all night. (Tear off another piece) //**


 * // She leaves the house late and is rushing for the bus when she realizes she’s forgotten her house keys. If she doesn’t have them she’s not going to be able to get in when she comes home at the end of the day. She goes back for the keys, but now she’s going to be good and late for her first block of Humanities. //**


 * // When she gets to school, her Humanities teacher, Mr. Jones, says sarcastically, “There are some people in this class who seem to have a problem telling time.” (tear off a piece of the heart.) Then he reads, without naming the student who wrote the paper, an essay that he says illustrates a piece of writing that is very poor and disorganized and has no point of view. It’s Sandra’s paper. (Tear off a piece of the heart.) //**


 * // at lunch time in the lunchroom, she trips over someone’s foot and spills her tray full of food all over the floor. All the students start laughing and applauding!! (Tear off a piece of the heart.) //**

**//Continue the story until Sandra gets home at the end of the day with a heart the size of a dime.//**

Now take the other heart and tape that to your chest. Tell the story over again, but this time have the students contribute comments that “put Sandra up”. This time the heart stays intact and you respond with pleasure, thanking people for their respectful comments. (You may want to photocopy the story to hand out so that students can easily say their positive comments at the right time!!)

Discuss: How do put-downs make people feel? How do put-ups make people feel? Why do people use put-downs? How can put-downs lead to conflicts or make conflicts worse?

Put-downs, Put-ups

Have the class think of things people say that put other people down. Take two or three examples. Say that we’re all familiar with put downs; we hear them a lot. Now ask for examples of put-ups (comments that make people feel good. Continue this for a minute or two. List contributions on the board.

Ask, where do people learn put-downs? What would be the effect on the group if everyone always put everyone else down? What would be the effect if everyone always used put-ups?

[|http://vanguard.r9tech.org/www/r9tech_vanguard/site/hosting/advisory%20circle/ac.htm#_Lesson]

=**Here is the primary version of the story:**=

IALAC

I told a fictional story about a student who was happy from the day he was born and who felt loved and capable because of his peers. I made sure to specify that the student wasn't the best or the worst-- he was just capable of working his hardest and being successful. The story takes a turn, and I start telling the students how his interactions begin to change and his peers begin to put him down and treat him meanly. He begins to feel unlovable and uncapable. Throughout the story I held a heart with the letters IALAC on it. As bad things begin to happen in the story, I slowly tear of pieces of the heart. I explain that by the end of the year, the student is feeling horrible and only has a little bit of his heart left. I think that most of my students understood the story. We discussed the words lovable and capable and took time to share why we were lovable and capable. They had so many great reasons. This morning when they arrived, they decorated their own IALAC hearts and placed them in their cubby. They decided if something happened to make them feel badly they could go to their cubby and tear away a piece of their heart.

Class Quilt
http://www.ehow.com/way_5318924_team-games-activities-elementary-students.html
 * 1) Distribute a piece of art paper or construction paper along with various art supplies (crayons, markers, paint, glue, glitter and yarn) to each student. Explain that they will have one class period to decorate their paper in a way that represents who they are. The students could draw a picture of themselves, or they could create representations of their interests, abilities, goals, family andfriends. During the next class period, allow each child to show her picture to the class and explain it. Discuss how we are all unique but that we can all work together and support each other. Glue the squares together to form a "quilt," and display it on the wall inside or outside the classroom.
 * 2) One idea to make the "no-put-downs" connection is to go around and give compliments or two stars and a wish (2 compliments and 1 suggestion)


 * [|Compliment Tickets]**
 * Students learn what it means to give and receive compliments and why it’s important. This activity helps them learn to initiate friendships and make others feel good about themselves. It's most effective when done regularly as a 10- to 15-minute exercise. **

This link has a whole bunch of less ideas for different age levels about [|Caring]

Alternative idea for Community: Talk about the different roles that people have in a community such as a school community or a town community. Discuss importance of everyone doing their job to help all of us. Made cards shaped like the mail truck to thank the mail carrier who brings the mail to PFE.