Kind Words Sensory Lesson Friendship Activity
This sensory lesson includes a kindness activity for kids that is short and sweet, and makes teaching kindness a beautiful thing!
Learning to use kind words with our friends is one friendship lesson that I think we can never cover enough...kids always need reminding (sometimes adults do too)!
You will need these simple supplies for the kindness activity: cotton balls, course sandpaper, cup, Should I Share My Ice-Cream by Mo Willems
Directly teaching good friendship skills, like using kind words, serves two purposes: 1- You can refer to the lesson when someone forgets or needs reminding, and 2- These skills are not intuitive for all preschoolers. This is a perfect age to bring empathy and kindness to their attention and help them cultivate these skills!
You can use this lesson plan exactly as I did it with our kiddos, or adapt it to fit your group!
1- Read Should I Share My Ice-Cream by Mo Willems. {Image below is an Amazon Affiliate Link:}
Discuss these questions with your kids: Is Elephant being a good friend? Is Piggie being a good friend? What do good friends do? How do good friends speak to each other?
2- How can the way we speak help each other? How can it hurt? We're going to use our sense of touch today to look at this closer!
3- Present a small pile of cotton balls. Let your children touch them, squish them, and rub them on their arm. Ask your children how the cotton balls feel. Use descriptive words like soft, fluffy, and light. If words were cotton balls, how would it feel to have them bouncing on your arm? Fill your cup up with cotton balls and pour it out on each child's arm. Have your children tell you words that are like cotton balls {for example: please, thank-you, compliments, May I help you?, good job, etc.}.
4- Present a piece of course sandpaper for each child to touch. As they touch it, ask them how the sandpaper feels. Use descriptive words like rough, poky, or sharp. If words were sandpaper, how would it feel to have them rubbing on your arm? {We won't really do it because it would hurt.} Have your children tell you words that are like sandpaper {for example: mean words, a mean voice, calling names, unnecessary criticism, etc.}. Show your children how sandpaper can scratch something like a scrap of wood or a piece of plastic. Tell them sandpaper words "scratch" our feelings. It hurts when people talk to us in a mean voice or say mean things.
5- Give your children a scenario where they have a problem, and see how they could use cotton words or sandpaper words to try to fix it. Which would be most helpful?
For example, you could display a popular toy and say, "What if Annie and Billy both wanted to play with this toy? What are some cottonball words they could use to find a solution? What are some sandpaper words they could use? Which would work better?"
Use other scenarios that are common with your own kiddos. Remind them that they can get what they want more often if they use cottonball words!
6- Place the cup in a prominent location, and every time your children use cottonball words, let them put a cottonball or two in the cup. When it fills up, have a "Cottonball Words Party" to celebrate using kind words! For your party, simply take turns pouring cottonballs on each other, saying kind words, and playing with the cotton!
Teaching kindness is an important part of creating a safe culture for our kids to grow and learn in. I would love to hear how you help your kiddos be kind to each other!
This week the Virtual Book Club for Kids is talking about friendship! We are sharing friendship themed activities to go with Should I Share My Ice-Cream by Mo Willems!
We would LOVE to have you join the Virtual Book Club for Kids too! Just read the book and do a friendship themed activity with your kids! Be sure to join us at the VBC Facebook page too! If you want more details about the VBC (including a list of upcoming books), click here.
And be sure to check out all these other friendship themed activities that are perfect for preschoolers:
Amazon Affiliate Links:
Happy Educating,
Carla
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Comments
I teach at a weekday preschool and our friends unit is this next week. Your kind words friendship activity is spot on! I am so excited to share this lesson with my kiddos in circle time. Thank you so much for sharing this powerful idea.
Georgeann
Carrollton, TX
First Baptist Weekday Preschool