Kindness, like other social skills, can be effectively taught with read alouds!
Kindness Read Aloud
First , read my favorite story about kindness -Charlie the Caterpillar. Read the story all the way through and then ask students to turn and talk with this prompt: “How does Charlie show kindness?” You can also use You Tube videos if you don’t have the book.
Next, retell the story of Charlie the Caterpillar and focus on the problem and solution. What was Charlie’s problem and how did he solve it? (He wanted a friend and found someone who he knew would be a true friend.) Also compare and contrast Charlie’s behavior with the other animals in the story.
Then, help students share ideas of how they have shown kindness in the past. Focus on how kindness can be big or small. Encourage students to share their ideas in writing.
Finally, help students make a plan to show kindness in their daily lives. These can be random acts of kindness such as holding the door for someone, helping to clean up or encouraging a friend or classmate.
Charlie the Caterpillar Resource
Writing about kindness helps students process what it is, how it looks and how they can practice kindness more often. Use my resource with kindness writing prompts based on the book Charlie the Caterpillar to have students process examples of kindness. Check out the preview here!
This resource based on the book Charlie the Caterpillar also has comprehension questions and kindness writing activities. This delightful story can be used for social emotional learning and to practice comprehension skills such as retelling, asking and answering questions and sequencing.
Read more here about teaching kindness in the classroom
Until next time friend!
Supporting you always! 💗
