"Doing What is Right"
Truth is Messy
We teach children at an early age to tell the truth... then we teach them about other people's feelings and that we should not hurt them... we teach them the "white lie."
Learning about truthfulness is messy. Telling the truth does not account for how hard it can be, especially for children. Telling fibs is a way for children to process right from wrong. A fib is their way of showing that they are starting to understand the differences. As an adult, we should not ignore these small infractions. We should use it as a teaching opportunity. Finding ways to help young people understand the reasons for truthfulness is critical for any success in your learning environment.
When a child is not coming across as being truthful, I always have an arsenals of handy ways to guide them toward reality.
Here are a few of my strategies:
"Was what you told me, what you wished you had done?"
"I am disappointed with your actions but I still believe in you as a person."
"Is this a pretend story or a real story?"
" I understand that you might feel scared about my reaction. Everyone makes mistakes, even your teacher. We are still valued as a person, even when we made the wrong choice."
"That doesn't sound like the truth to me. Do you want to think about it for a minute and then start this conversation over?" Note: I use this one when I witnessed what happened.
Always take into consideration the child as an individual. Some children with learning challenges see the world as black and white and need constant modeling. Using picture books is a great, nonthreatening way to teach the benefits of being truthful. Visit you local library. The librarian will have several great suggestions.
Mentor Text: The Empty Pot using retelling strategies to understand the theme
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Social and Emotional lessons are great to teach at the beginning of the school year or when you encounter problems with your students being truthful❣️ The Empty Pot is a story that has the moral of doing what is right and being truthful. These story sequencing cards are a great tool to have on hand when teaching young readers to read. They provide children with an opportunity to retell the story in order, and allow you to check reading comprehension. This allows repeated opportunities to teach the a key social and emotional skill that leads to student success.
Mentor Text: The Empty Pot using key vocabulary to extend learning
The Empty Pot tells a story about Ping, a young boy who grew the most beautiful flowers in China. When the Emperor decided that whoever could grow the biggest, most beautiful flower, would succeed him to the throne, Ping was sure he that he would become Emperor. However, when Ping was unable to grow a flower with the seed that he received, he was unexpectedly rewarded. This book offers an opportunity to talk about the character challenges in life that we face everyday.
This packet focuses on using mentor text to teach:
✨Reading Strategies
☐ Answering questions
☐ making predictions
☐ analyzing character
☐ cause and effect
☐ identifying theme | message | moral
✨Social and Emotional Learning
☐ Actions matter
☐ Be willing to ask for clarification
☐ Growth Mindset
Saving you time and helping improve your student learning:
It is standards-based and covers several strands of English Language Arts
The activities allow for differentiation in your classroom