myGanBlog: Yom Kippur

Taking turns is kind.

Morah Tzivie explained to us that Yom Kippur is a holiday when we think about making good choices. We think about using our helping hands and kind words.

When we make these kind and helpful choices we can feel proud of ourselves.

Sofia: I like your Mr. Potato Face.
Clara: Your Mr. Potato Face is beautiful.

Evan: Ari can you share the marbles.
Ari: Yes Evan I can share the marbles.

This week in the classroom to help us think about Yom Kippur we will be role playing with our puppets and reading particular stories.

Role play and puppetry gives us an opportunity to safely participate in possible situations that may occur; situations which have 2 choices -the kind and helpful choice or the unkind, hurtful choice.

Morah Katie:Do we stop thinking of sweet things now that we are done celebrating Rosh Hashanah?

Kids: No!

Morah Katie: We keep thinking of sweet kind things to do?

Kids: Yes!

Morah Katie: That is true! Can you help our two puppet friends with their problem.

Billy why are you so sad?

Billy: agh! I'm so sad! She grabbed my car! (Crying uncontrollably)

Sally: I just want the car. It looked so fun.

Morah Katie: Friends, did Sally treat Billy kindly?

Kids: No!

Morah Katie: Can you help them?

Abigail: She can say please

Natan: Sally you can try to say please may I have the car?

Abigail: Billy may take turns with you.

Sroli: You can say sorry!

Sally: So I should say I'm sorry? I do want the car but I don't want Billy to cry.

Billy I am sorry. May I still have the car?

Billy: Well I was playing with it, but yes you can have it.

Sally: Oh! Thank you! Would you like to play with me?

Billy: Yes

Using the puppets to role play unpleasant situations provides the children with a fun and safe way to explore choices and opens discussions among friends.

The children are re-enacting the earlier puppet show.

In this dramatic re-telling, Billy has taken back the car from Sally, who is now upset and wants the car back. Sally grabs the car from Billy.

Natan: I don't think Sally should just take the van back.

Sroli: Sally can get her own car.

Natan: Billy can just share the car too.

Sroli: He can say sorry, She can say sorry.

Abigail (behind puppet show) as Sally: Billy I'm so sad you took my car.

Sofia (as Sally): Ok I'm sorry, do you want to get another car and play with me?

Abigail/Sally: Ok we can get more cars.

Children's literature is a great tool for discussing topics. All the children love story time.

They are engaged and invested.

We can approach topics from a distance; it's about someone else.

Our story book friends can be used as a reference when similar situations "may" develop in the classroom or on the playground.

We are reading a series of books in which the main character makes some poor decisions.

As we read the stories, we are pausing at these moments and asking the questions:

What could have happened differently? Was that the kind choice?

Would you like it if that was said to you? How would you help this character?

We read Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse and were very concerned about Lilly's poor angry choice.

Lilly loves school, she also loves her purple plastic purse. In her joy she disrupts class. As a consequence her teacher holds onto the purse until the end of the day. Lilly gets angry and draws a mean picture of her teacher.

Sroli: She was sad, then she got angry. Then she got happy.

Morah Stephanie: What made her happy again?

Stolid: She drew a nice picture and said she was really really really really really sorry.

Morah Stephanie: What do we need to do when we make a mistake? (Silence) We can apologize. We can say sorry and we can do something kind.

In Julius Baby of the World, we see our friend Lilly making some more poor choices.
Lilly is jealous of her brother and says very unkind, hurtful words to him.
Abigail: She kept saying not nice things.
Natan: She didn't share.
Amelia: She was not being kind.
Morah Katie: How do you think Lilly was feeling?
Sroli: She was not happy.
Morah Katie: When she heard her cousin saying the exact same unkind words, how did Lilly feel?
Abigail: She felt bad and sad.
Sroli: She didn't like it.
Morah Katie: What did Lilly choose to do?
Ameila: She started to say nice things instead and began to share with Julius.

Chrysanthemum is about a girl who is teased for having a different name.
Natan: They are being mean to her.
Ameila: They make fun of her name.
Sroli: Not kind.
Morah Katie: What would you tell the girls to do instead?
Amelia: They don't need to say mean things.
Natan: They can talk more nicely, not tease and HAHAHA at her.
Morah Katie: How does Chrysanthemum feel when Delphinium says that she thinks Chrysanthemum's name is beautiful?
Abigail: She feels happy.

A Weekend with Wendell tells the story of two children, Wendell and Sofie.
Evan: Why is she sad?
Natan: Wendell is bossy.
Evan: Why is she angry?
Sroli: She is getting angry because Wendell writes with toothpaste on the mirror and other stuff.
Amelia: He is doing unkind things to her.
Sroli: Then Sofie is the firefighter and Wendell doesn't say anything, he is sad.
Ari: But they get happy then.
Sroli: Because they make a rainbow together.
Natan: They start sharing the water hose.

We discussed why we may make unkind and hurtful choices.

Morah Katie: When you are feeling happy, what do you feel like doing?

Amelia: Kind things.

Morah Katie: When you are feeling happy what type of words do you want to say?

Ari: Happy words.

Show me happy.

Show me sad.

Show me angry.

Morah Katie: When you are feeling sad or angry what do you want to do?

(Silence) I'll be honest, sometimes I get sad or angry. When I do sometimes I may feel like pushing someone. Should I? Would that be helpful? Would that be kind?

Kids: No.

Morah Katie: You're right. What should I do now?

Natan: Tell someone why you are mad.

Sroli: You can use kind words to tell.

Morah Katie: Very helpful and kind suggestions. Thank you.