Kindness With Boundaries
Part of Mosaic Lifespan Curriculum
Open
“The Crayon Box That Talked” by Shane DeRolf
“Wouldn’t it be terrible?
Wouldn’t it be sad?
If just one single color
Was the color that we had?
If everything was purple?
Or red or blue or green?
If yellow pink or orange
Was all that could be seen?
Can you just imagine how dull
The world would be
If just one single color
was all we got to see?”
Light the chalice and invite students to take turns checking in.
Read
“We Can Say No” by Lydia Bowers Read Aloud (YouTube)
Discuss/Ask questions after viewing the story read aloud:
Have you ever felt afraid to say no to someone? Why or Why not?
It can be hard to know what to say or do sometimes.
What happened when Sami felt nervous about saying no?
What were some things the kids said when they didn’t like how they were touched?
Optional additional resource for facilitators -“Tough Questions and Conversations—Handling Disclosure of Abuse, Neglect, or Self-Harm”
Watch
Discuss briefly:
“Have you ever heard that song?
Or heard of boundaries before?
The kid on the video named a boundary of not wanting her hair touched!”
Do
Close
“Martin Luther King’s Dream” by Johanna Tackitt
Dr. King had a dream,
For all people
To be treated equally
So when you see
Something wrong
Stand up
Be strong!
And say
That’s not okay!
Extinguish the chalice and invite each student to check out with one word about how they are feeling about today’s lesson.
Take Home
These read aloud storybook videos can be watched and discussed at home. Parents can watch and then talk with their kids about what it might be like to accidentally cross someone else's boundaries and how asking questions can be one great way to find out how not to overstep boundaries. The other last two story books are about how to respond to someone else overstepping boundaries (including the one watched in class).