Habit 5: Seek First to

Understand Then To Be
Understood
In this package, we will focus on Habit 5: Seek First to
Understand Then To Be Understood. Below you will
find a list of 5 activities for you to do with your family. You
can choose to do as many as you have time for.

At the bottom of the page, you will find links for story-read
alouds related to this week’s topic. You can view these on any of your devices.

1. Have a conversation at home about why we must stay home and away from
school right now. While we might be healthy, we have to understand that our
actions keep others healthy too.
2. This habit is all about LISTENING. Do more listening this week. Listen to a
family member share a story and wait until the end to ask your questions or
talk about your own story. Even better – ask them more questions about their
story to show you WANT to listen.
3. Play emotion charades with the people in your house. Using all of the
emotions you know (happy, sad, frustrated, angry, nervous..), use your face
and your body to show what that looks like to you and have someone else try
to guess. How good are you at reading body language?
4. Write a letter or draw a picture to an essential service worker explaining how
you are feeling right now. Ask them how they are feeling.
5. Listen to your favourite song. Each time you listen to it, do something
different. Listen while closing your eyes, while dancing, while reading the
lyrics, while painting or drawing along to the music, while outside.. how does
the song make you feel each time?

Story links:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nj_BWip6nZU Franklin is Bossy by Pauline Bourgeois
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WH_SK0Jvq8M Are You My Mother? By P.D. Eastman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQpbm7jsgQA I Love You, Stinky Face by Lisa McCourt