Session 14: Doing Your Good Side

Beautiful orange sunset over a deep blue ocean. — Tapestry is Sunsetting

The UUA is no longer updating Tapestry of Faith programs.

Part of Amazing Grace, 6th Grade: Exploring Right and Wrong

In This Section

Introduction
From Amazing Grace

Everyone is a moon and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody. — Mark Twain Session 13 discussed ethical and character conflict in terms of two inner wolves. This session examines how each of us has a “good” and a “bad” side to our character and personality and explores external barriers…
Session-at-a-Glance
From Amazing Grace

ACTIVITY MINUTES Opening 5 Activity 1: Good Sides, Bad Sides 5 Activity 2: Story – The Honorable Joha, Mula Nasruddin Hodja, and the Famous Donkey Story 7 Activity 3: Ethics Play 15 Activity 4: Ethics Obstacle Course 20 Activity 5: Five Phrases 5 Faith in Action: Your Own Good Side 10 Closing 3…
Spiritual Preparation
From Amazing Grace

In the days before you present this session, explore your own two sides. Can you identify them? How do you keep yourself on the virtuous, rightful paths you set for yourself?…
Opening
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 5 minutes Materials for Activity Conundrum Corner poster/banner A small mirror Chalice and matches Optional: Newsprint, markers and tape Optional: Recording of “Amazing Grace” and music player Optional: Nametags and markers Optional: Decorative cloth for Conundrum Corner Preparatio…
Activity 1: Good Sides, Bad Sides
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 5 minutes Description of Activity Introduce the session by giving its title, “Doing Your Good Side.” Say that when you talked about showing your good side a moment ago, you meant “your best physical side.” Add that most people really do not need to worry about their best physical…
Activity 2: Story - The Honorable Joha, Mula Nasruddin Hodja, and the Famous Donkey Story
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 7 minutes Materials for Activity Story 1, “The Honorable Joha, Mula Nasruddin Hodja, and the Donkey Story” Preparation for Activity Read the story. Photocopy Story 1, “The Honorable Joha, Mula Nasruddin Hodja, and the Famous Donkey Story,” one for each participant. Description of…
Activity 3: Ethics Play
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 15 minutes Materials for Activity Two dice (extra large, if possible) of different colors Ethics Play role nametags Ethics Play Scenarios (Session 1, Leader Resources 2-7) Optional: Masks, costumes, and wigs for roles Preparation for Activity If you are or your group is new to Ethi…
Activity 4: Ethics Obstacle Course
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 20 minutes Materials for Activity Modeling or polymer clay Pipe cleaners Sheet of poster board or cardboard for each small group Assorted other craft materials for building obstacle courses Protective tarps or newspapers Preparation for Activity Decide how to set up small groups so…
Activity 5: Five Phrases
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 5 minutes Description of Activity Lead a brief discussion based on the meaning of five phrases commonly used to describe a person’s character. Introduce and ask about the phrases with questions like these: Critics who write about books, movies, and plays sometimes complain that a…
Closing
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 3 minutes Materials for Activity Copies of Taking It Home, one for each participant Preparation for Activity Create a handout from Taking It Home that is specific to the activities used in this session. Description of Activity Briefly summarize what you have done in this session….
Leader Reflection and Planning
From Amazing Grace

Meet with your co-leaders after the session to reflect on how it went. How was your mix of discussion and action? Have you successfully found ways to involve all youth fully in your sessions despite any limitations they might have? Do youth understand that showing and doing their good side is a…
Faith In Action: Your Own Good Side
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 10 minutes Materials for Activity 11” x 14” sheet of paper for each youth Washable markers Preparation for Activity Prepare tabletops or counters so they are suitable for making silhouette drawings. Description of Activity In this activity, youth make silhouette drawings of their…
Alternate Activity 1: Evolutionary Morality
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 10 minutes Preparation for Activity Acquaint yourself with the basic idea that morality has developed through evolution. Description of Activity This activity offers theory and discussion that will appeal to thoughtful youth who are attracted to ideas….
Alternate Activity 2: Temper Tantrums
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 10 minutes Description of Activity This activity invites youth to burn off some physical steam by silently demonstrating a temper tantrum thrown by a small child. Its purpose is to introduce the topic of emotional outbursts without asking youth to talk about their own most…
Alternate Activity 3: Ethics GPS
From Amazing Grace

Activity time: 10 minutes Preparation for Activity Decide whether to do this activity in a full group or in smaller groups. Description of Activity Ask participants to imagine what an ethics GPS would be like and then to demonstrate how it would work. Begin by asking whether participants are…
Taking It Home: Doing Your Good Side
From Amazing Grace

Everyone is a moon and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody. — Mark Twain IN TODAY’S SESSION… We talked about our good sides and our bad sides. A story about a man and his son and their donkey made us think about peer pressure. We did Ethics Play and made an Ethics Obstacle Course,…
The Honorable Joha, Mula Nasruddin Hodja, and the Famous Donkey Story

Sarah Conover, Freda Crane

From Amazing Grace

Retold by Sarah Conover and Freda Crane. From Ayat Jamilah: Beautiful Signs: A Treasury of Islamic Wisdom for Children and Parents (Boston: Skinner House, 2010). Kan ya ma kan: there was and there was not a time when Joha and his son set out for the market with their donkey walking along behind…
Find Out More
From Amazing Grace

Haidt, Jonathan. The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom (New York: Basic Books, 2006). A book that explores the evolutionary bases of morality. Wade, Nicholas, “Is ‘Do Unto Others’ Written Into Our Genes?” New York Times, September 18, 2007. This article reviews of the…