Hearts+and+Arrows

Hearts and Arrows**Janice Banta, Elementary School Counselor** sharpened pencil with paper arrow taped on or pipe-cleaner twisted together in the shape of an arrow bottle of water, labeled with school name or logo construction paper or heart doilies masking tape (you can draw band-aid design on the pieces with a sharpie) or band aids (first aid tape) bowl or dish to catch the water __Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch__ Briefly review feeling words from previous lessons. Discuss how words people say can affect how we feel (using kind vs. unkind words): “When somebody is kind to me I feel. . .” and “When somebody is unkind to me I feel. . .” 1. Show students the heart-cup and say that it is like your heart. The water bottle is filled with all the things that fill you up while you are at school. Ask students what fills them up at school and with each contribution, add a little more water to the cup until it is full (i.e. reading a good book, being with my friends, when my teacher tells me I did my work well, etc.). 2. Show students the sharp pencil or pipe-cleaner arrow and discuss how unkind words can be sharp and hurtful like an arrow (like cupid’s arrow). Puncture a whole in the cup with the “arrow”: “When someone is unkind it pricks my feelings like this (and prick the cup). Then, when I am at school and the school family is trying to fill me up or teach me math, science, reading it is harder to learn when I feel hurt (hold the cup over a bowl while the cup leaks). Students can contribute ways their heart can be hurt at school (someone called me a name, I had no one to sit with at lunch, she said she won’t be my friend any more, etc.) Make a new hole for each idea. Ask the students what happened to the water? So what happens to what the teacher is trying to teach me? Am I holding all of it inside my heart or is it leaking? 3. Give the students each a tape “bandaid” and have them take turns putting the tape on the heart. As they put the tape on the heart have them say a kind word. Give an example first. 4. Refill the cup and show them how kind words strengthen and encourage our hearts. There should be quite a bit of tape around the cup. As you re-fill the cup with water, show how it doesn’t leak the knowledge out anymore. When everyone is done, show how the cup holds the water and doesn’t leak. If it leaks a little, remind them that we can never completely take back an unkind word or action, but we can make it feel better. Once the holes are all covered up, other students can add more tape. The extra layers of tape can work like armor to help children be strong. 5. Read __Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch__ Students can verbalize the negative affects of unkind words and actions, and the positive affects of kind words and actions.
 * Lesson: Hearts and Arrows (modified from the Counselor wiki)**
 * __Target Population:__** Primary
 * __Standards:__** 3A Student demonstrates awareness of other people's emotions and perspectives. (I care about the feelings and viewpoints of others.)
 * When Taught:** __Third quarter near Valentine's Day.__
 * __Goals:__** Learn how kind and unkind words affect our feelings and our ability to learn in school.
 * __Materials:__** Paper cup with construction heart taped on
 * __Length of Session:__** 30 to 40 minutes (may be split into two lessons)
 * __Introduction:__**
 * __Activities:__**
 * __Activity/Assessments:__**