Kelso's Choices

1st Graders at Murray and 3-4 kids at Red Hill are working on a unit on Kelso’s Choices.  Kelso is a pretty smart frog that teaches students the difference between big problems and small problems.  Big problems are those that are scary or recurring and should be shared with a grown-up they trust. Small problems are those that are more everyday problems that may cause you to feel irritated or annoyed.  Kelso encourages students to recognize they are smart enough and capable of handling many of these small problems on their own.  And then he shares 9 choices they have to do this.  I suggest that can try 2 of these before deciding they need to take it to a teacher (reminding them anything dangerous or uncomfortable should always go right to a grown up).

We'll discuss all nine choices and will be practicing them.  They are:

· Walk Away · Tell Them To Stop · Talk It Out · Make A Deal · Share and Take Turns

· Apologize · Wait and Cool Off · Go To Another Game · Ignore

CARES: Empathy

January's theme  is Empathy. In the lower grades we've discussed how empathy is when you can imaging how someone else might feel or what it's like to be in their shoes.  Kindergartners loved watching the Sesame Street clip with Murray trying to figure out what it is (and his subsequent "Happy Dance").  We've watched clips from popular animated movies and looked for examples of empathy - like when Lightning McQueen gives up a win in the race to help his friend when he realizes he is hurt. We also played the game "How Would You Feel?"  In the upper grades, we've explored it through the lens of decision-making and how thinking about the consequences for both yourself and others can lead to better decisions for everyone.

CARES: Respect

The theme for November is Respect.  In Kindergarten we're talking about respectful words.  We read Chrysanthemum and every time someone used words that hurt her heart we would wrinkle our paper heart.  Then we discussed how we couldn't completely make it better, even with a lot of sorries! We decided the based way to avoid a wrinkled heart was to choose kind words from the start!

Ks and 1s had some fun comparing the Silly School and the Super School.  In the Silly School words and behaviors were not very respectful, while in the Super School - they were.  We decided it would be hard to learn in a silly school and made our own super school book.

Third graders are beginning to work on respectful problem solving.  We started with understanding our emotional reactions to conflict and thinking about how we approach a problem if we're feeling angry (not an easy task for anyone!)

Ticket to Ride

3rd Graders will be riding the Energy Bus this year!  What's the Energy Bus?  The original Energy Bus is a book by Jon Gordon where the bus is a metaphor for your life and with some simple rules he teaches you how to be in control of your own destiny.    The Energy Bus for Kids is an adaptation we'll be using that shows children how to overcome negativity, bullies and everyday challenges to be their best and share their positive energy with others. Every 2 weeks we will work on one of the 5 rules for achieving your personal best:

               

We'll be working on activities with Goal Setting, Growth Mindset, Bullying Prevention and Assertiveness, Bucket Filling & Caring, Respect for Self and Others, and Optimism. The overall message is: YOU are the driver of your bus.  YOU get to decide where it goes.  YOU get to decide who you have along for the ride.  AND YOU make the choices for how to handle the detours along the way.

From a Butter Battle to a Sandwich Swap!

 So 3rd graders at Murray have been working on Conflict Resolution and Problem Solving through the 2nd and 3rd quarters. We started by looking at conflict and how it is human nature to disagree and conflict isn't always a bad thing.  We discussed the concept of "Agree to Disagree." We practiced I-statements as a way to start a disagreement conversation and then spent considerable time on listening to understand. "I hear you" doesn't always mean the same thing as "I understand you."

But the next phase of our unit took a detour I just had to share! I brought in the Butter Battle Book, by Dr. Seuss.  In the book the Yooks eat their bread butter side up and the Zooks eat their bread butter side down.  It leads to a war between the sides - a wall built  - and escalating tactics that get completely out of control. I shared with the kids that often a desire to WIN a conflict rather than SOLVE it causes it to escalate to a point where no one wins.We divided up into 2 teams - Yooks and Zooks.  I asked the kids to come together and see if they could create a treaty between the 2 nations so we could bring down the wall and live where everyone feels safe. I challenged them to think of something they need to understand about the other side and something you really need them to understand about your point of view.

Not only did they come up with an agreement where all buttered bread would be OK, but expanded it to putting them together and making sandwiches.  They decided that there should be an annual holiday to honor the treaty and it would be celebrated with Sandwich Day and all Yooks and Zooks would come together and share their favorite sandwiches with each other on that day.

This great idea made me think of one of my other favorite books: The Sandwich Swap, by  Queen Rania of Jordan Al Abdullah.  In this story 2 friends stare at each other's sandwiches thinking the other is gross until one finally has to share those feelings, leading to a conflict where the classmates choose sides.  They resolve it by trying each other's sandwiches and discovering something new they like.  The school celebrates with a sandwich day.  I brought the book in the next visit and we had a sandwich sharing conversation.  I asked them to each tell about their favorite sandwich and why it's their favorite.  I heard so many wonderful stories - not just about foods and flavors they like - but stories about learning to cook with mom or grandma, about grilled cheese sandwiches shared just with dad, about a sandwich discovered on an awesome family trip, and even family recipes that have been around for a long time!  The kids discovered new things about each other, new foods or combinations they want to try and tons of things they have in common or not.

If I wan't nervous about allergies and other food concerns,  I would love to have been able to create sandwich stations for the kids to share and try each other's favorites.  But even so, this was one of the richest conversations I have had all year.  These 8-year-olds helped remind me that sometimes the simplest things in life can be those that bring us together if we take one second to listen and be open, rather than jump to a quick judgement.  Although, I have to admit, I was pretty hungry when I left that room!