Why Do We Have to Get Along?

By Monica Davis
Young children often have a hard time learning to get along and dealing with other children and sometimes even adults in an effective way. These books have been selected to help students to learn how to get along and deal with problems in a way that they may have with other children in a way that is socially acceptable. These books deal with the themes of selfishness, getting along with those that are difficult to like, good manners, and respect. The story books that were chosen and that inspired the activities include A Weekend with Wendell by Kevin Henkes, Tiger Trouble by Diane Goode, The Farmer in the Soup by Freya Littledale, Hey, Little Ant by Philip and Hannah Hoose, Just a Little Bit by Ann Tampert, and Duncan Rumplemeyers Bad Birthday by Alexander Stadler. These books have been chosen as you develop the getting along theme in your classroom for the second to third grade. Littledale, Freya. (1987). The Farmer in the Soup. New York: Scholastic, Inc. ISBN: 0590425328 Summary: A complaining farmer trades places with his wife in order to see who really has the easier job. Pre-reading: Talk about a time when the children complained too much to another person and how that person dealt with it. Post-reading: On a cut-out of a bowl of soup, add ingredients of gratefulness to make the soup more flavorful rather than bland (ungratefulness). Henkes, Kevin. (1986). A Weekend with Wendell. New York: Greenwillow Books. ISBN: 068806325 Summary: Sophie doesnt enjoy energetic, assertive Wendells weekend visit until the very end when she learns to assert herself and finds out that Wendell can be fun to play with after all. Pre-reading: Create a getting along poster with a catchy slogan. Post reading: Decorate a cut out of a suitcase with themes from the book. On the inside, write about a time when they had to play with someone they didnt like. Did they make good choices? What was the end result? Did they end up friends? Could they have done anything different?

Goode, Diane. ( 2002). Tiger Trouble. New York: Scholastic, Inc. ISBN: 043920867 Summary: Jack and his tiger Lily live a fun and carefree life until a new tenant and his dog move into an empty apartment above them. Mr. Mud, the new tenant, demands that Lily goes until one day Lily saves the day by stopping a robber who is trying to steal from Mr. Mud. Pre-reading: Have students split into groups and talk about a time when they felt an adult was mean or unfair. How did the child handle it? Were they respectful? Should they have made different choices? Post-reading: Decorate the cut-out of a tiger. On the back, write ways to respectfully deal with an adult they feel is being mean or unfair to them. Hoose, Phillip and Hannah. (1998). Hey, Little Ant. New York: Scholastic, Inc. ISBN: 0439098165 Summary: A little boy tells an ant hes going to squish him as the little ant begs and gives reasons for him not to. Pre-reading: Discuss how ants may be small, but they all get along and are very hard workers. Post-reading: Create an ant farm and observe over the next couple of days how well the ants get along and work together.

Tampert, Ann. (1993). Just A Little Bit. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN: 0395515270 Summary: When Mouse and Elephant decide to go on the seesaw, Mouse needs a lot of help from other animals before they can successfully make the seesaw go up and down. Pre-Reading: Work together in groups to make a balance equally balance with given objects and discuss how well or not well the groups worked together. Post Reading: On a cut-out of a seesaw, write about times when you were a friend to someone on one side, and how you werent a friend to someone on the other side. Stalder, Alexander. (2004). Duncan Rumplemeyers Bad Birthday. New York: Schuster and Schuster Books for Young Readers. ISBN: 0689867328 Summary: Duncan doesnt understand why he has to behave nicely until on one particular birthday, he has a hard time paying attention to the rules and learns a valuable lesson. Pre-reading: On small cake cutouts, list good and bad behaviors. Students will work in groups to put the cakes into good behavior piles and bad behavior piles. Post-reading: Divide students into groups and have them create a skit on good manners to share with a younger class.