These Learning Links provide ten quick-and-easy, five-minute mini-lessons to promote student thought and dialogue about service and civic engagement. You may use as many of them as you wish, and in whatever order best meets your needs and the interest of your students. The purpose of these mini-lessons is to provide a deeper understanding of philanthropy (the giving of time, talent, and treasure for the common good) and to reinforce the lesson focus. These Learning Links also promote the development of character traits, civic engagement, and student leadership. As appropriate to your grade level, it is recommended that students play an active leadership role in presenting these mini-lessons to their classmates.

1. Read:  Bees can sting you if you’re not careful. But bees also can be very helpful. They help make our favorite fruits and vegetables and even flowers grow. They also make honey. But just one bee could not do all this work alone. It takes a lot bees working together to make this happen all over the world.

Discuss: Sometimes we do things and make others feel bad. But we can also do things that help make others feel glad. Can we do everything all by ourselves? What will we be doing during our service project to make the world better? How can we work together like bees to help others?

 

2. Read: Maria got a soccer ball for her fifth birthday. She brought it to school for Show-and-Tell time. When it was her turn to share, Maria showed the class her birthday ball. Everyone looked excited. Everyone except Robert. He began to cry. “Why are you crying?” the teacher asked him. He told the teacher that he got a soccer ball for his fifth birthday too. He told the class that he was playing with his friend near the street. When his friend kicked the soccer ball to him he missed it. It rolled into the street. A car was coming. The driver must not have seen the ball because the car hit the ball. Now his soccer ball had a big hole in it. At recess Maria handed her soccer ball to Robert. “Here,’” she said, “you can play with my soccer ball when we are at school. I can play with it when I am at home.”

Discuss: Do you think that what Maria did helped Robert feel better? Sharing with others shows that we care. How are we showing others that we care during our service project?

 

3. Read: When Cody Clark was five, both of his parents were very, very sick. Cody was afraid and confused. He thought that his parents would die. He didn’t want to be left all alone. Cody saw how his friends, family and even strangers came to help. They took care of him when he needed them. After some time his parents did get better. Cody learned a valuable lesson. He learned that helping others and making people feel loved is very important.  Cody often thought about this.  Two years later his friend Brianna became very sick. She needed a new heart.  Cody decided that he could help “buy her a new heart."  Cody raised $2,500 as part of a Heart and Stroke Foundation fundraiser in his hometown. Brianna finally got her new heart. Today she is feeling so much better.

Discuss: Why do you think Cody wanted to help his friend Brianna by helping raise money for Brianna’s new heart?  Why are we trying to raise money during our service project? What can we do to help others and make them feel loved?
Craig and Marc Kielburger
http://www.thestar.com/
opinion/columnists/94598

 

4. Read: “Do you like your ice cream in a cone or a bowl?” “One scoop or two?” “Do you like strawberry, chocolate, vanilla, bluemoon, or peanut butter ice cream? What other flavors do you like?” These are some of the questions you might be asked by the person serving ice cream at the ice cream store. So many choices.

Discuss: During our service project we will have jobs to do. Sometimes we have to choose what job we want to do. Sometimes we have to choose how we want to do our job. But whatever and however we choose, the important thing is that we get the job done. What are some choices we might have to make during our service project? Why is it important that we have choices?

 

5. Read: Kevin does not like thunder storms. When it is thundering and lightning he gets afraid. One day when a rain storm came he was at his grandmother’s house. He began to get afraid and cry. His grandmother asked him why he was crying. Kevin told her that he did not like thunder and lightning. “But they have very important jobs to do,” she told him. Kevin looked confused. “They bring the rain that is needed by the plants,” she continued. “It’s very important that they do their job or the job wouldn’t get done.”

Discuss: Some things we are asked to do are not always fun. They may even be scary. But it is important that we do them to get the job done. What might be some “not fun” or “scary things” we have to do during our service project? Why is it important that we do them anyway?

 

6. Read: “Before we go out for recess, we need to finish our job assignments for the week,” the teacher told the boys and girls in her class. Everybody went to work. Aaron emptied the pencil sharpener. Lorie and Tabitha erased the board. April, Sean, and Justin watered the plants. Chenille wiped down the sink. Denise, Samantha, and Cotter straightened the counter and put the papers in neat stacks. Dmitri, Ayden, and Ashton were assigned to pick up the scrap paper off the floor. But both Ayden and Ashton were absent today. When the others had finished their job, they noticed that Dmitri was picking ups scraps alone. Everyone decided to help Dmitri. When all the scraps were picked up and all the job assignments were done, the teacher said, “Because everyone cooperated, it looks like we’ll be able to go out for recess early today.” Everybody cheered.

Discuss: Why do you think everybody decided to help Dmitri even though his or her assigned jobs were done? What does it mean to cooperate? Why is cooperating a good thing?  What are some ways we can cooperate during our service project? How do you think you will feel when all the jobs are done?

 

7. Read: There are many people who are community helpers. There are police officers, firefighters, mail carriers, ambulance workers, doctors, nurses, and teachers to name a few. The men and women who work in these jobs help make our community a better and safer place to work and play.

Discuss: During our service project how will we be like community helpers? What will we be doing to help make our community a better and safer place to work and play?

 

8. Read: Seven year old Karina loved to help her grandma bake cookies. Grandma would read the receipt. She would then carefully measure out the ingredients. Karina would then put the ingredients in the bowl. She would stir it just like the receipt said she should. Then she would carefully place the cookie dough on a cookie sheet. Grandma would set the oven temperature and time according to the receipt. When the time for baking was up grandma would remove the cookie sheets from the oven. She would set them on the counter to cool. The really fun part was after they were cool enough Karina and grandma both celebrated their success with a freshly baked, warm cookie!

Discuss: Why is it important to carefully follow our service project plans? Why was it important that grandma be there to help Karina? Who will be there to help us during our service project? What do you think will be the really fun part of our service project? What ideas do you have to celebrate our success?

 

9. Read: Does your stomach growl when you’re hungry? Imagine what that sound must be like if you were a camel. A camel has three stomachs. But a cow has even more. A cow has four stomachs. A cow has to eat a lot of food. Its food needs to be digested just right in order to produce milk. If all four stomachs are not working properly or together there will be no milk. No cheese! No milk for chocolate milk! No ice cream! No a lot of things. Aren’t you glad that a cow’s stomach works like it should?

Discuss:  Why is important that we all do our part during our service project? Why is it important that we work together? What would happen during our service project if no one did what they were supposed to do? What would happen during our service project if everyone refused to work together?

 

10.Read: Here’s a catchy little saying. We can use it to help remind us of our service project.

One, Two…. Won’t you let me join you
Three, Four …together we can do so much more.
Five, Six… There lots of things we can fix!
Seven, Eight…  So let’s keep our promise and not be late
Nine, Ten… that way everyone will win.

Discuss: Why might we do so much more by working together during our service project? There is so much that needs to be done. Why is it important that we keep our promise to help? What do you think the phrase that way everyone will win means?
 

Reflection plays a very important role in promoting student learning. The following suggested activities are ways to help students reflect on their learning after they have participated in a service event.  Choose one or more of the activities most appropriate to the service event and your students.


ACTIVITY ONE:
Have the students share what they know about quilts (e.g. they are warm, soft, cuddly, usually made out of pieces of materials sewn together, etc)  as you provide the students with 4 ¼” by 5 ½” sheet of paper-- an 8 ½” x 11” sheet of paper cut in half.  Tell the students that they will be helping to make a “quilt” and that each person will contribute one piece to be added to the quilt. Have each student draw a picture of what they did during the service project using crayons or markers.  When they have completed their drawings have them take turns bringing their “quilt piece” to you and telling the class about their drawing which will then be added to the “quilt.”  Display the “quilt” as it is being sewn together to form a “Caring Blanket.” When everyone has contributed their piece to the blanket, ask the students how their “Caring Blanket” may have made someone feel warm inside.

ACTIVITY TWO:
Provide each student with a yellow cutout of a happy face and a sad face. Have the students decide which face represents how they felt as they were helping during the service project.  Have each student bring their chosen “face” to the display area entitled “Our Faces”/”Our Helping Mirror.”  As the students hand you their “faces” display them in as much of a circle as you can.  When everyone’s face is displayed, ask the students if most of the faces were happy or sad. Using black heavy string or yarn and common pins/tacks, make the mouth of the face, over the ‘sea of faces’ that represents how the majority of the students felt.

ACTIVITY THREE:
Playing the game “Duck, Duck, Goose,” model for the students how the person who is “IT” will walk around the circle of students tapping them lightly on the head saying, “caring” “sharing” “helping” “giving,” or any combination of these words.  However when the person who is IT taps someone on the head and says “philanthropy” or “philanthropist” that person is now IT and must stand and tell the class how he or she cared, shared, helped, or gave to someone during the service project.  The new IT person now walks around the circle following the model.  If some is dubbed “Philanthropist” and they have nothing they can think of to share, have the IT person continue to follow the model until he or she finds someone to be IT who is willing and able to share.  (NOTE: Make every effort to be sure that everyone has an opportunity to be IT and to share.)

ACTIVITY FOUR:
Cut out an outline of a star on yellow construction paper for each student.  Have each student come to the front of the class in turn and whisper to you what they did during the service project.  Write what they did on their star.  Have the student hold up his/her star while you tell the class the word(s) that is written on it.  Celebrate each recipient as they hold their star with hand clapping/a cheer, etc.  Have each student then place his or her star on the display board entitled “Super Stars.”  After everyone has had a turn, ask the class if they think that the stars in the sky help to make things a little brighter at night. Draw a comparison as to how all of their deeds certainly helped to make the world a brighter place.  Thank and applaud the students as a class.