Friendship – Accepting Differences

Objectives & Outcomes

After a lesson on friendship, accepting differences, and positive qualities, the learner will compare and contrast dance movements between peers. The learner will also draw a picture of what they do or have that is different than anyone else to put into our own class' "It's Okay to Be Different" book.

Materials Needed

• "It's Okay to Be Different" by Todd Parr
• markers
• crayons
• paper
• dynamic music

Vocabulary

• color
• shape
• sound
• friendship
• alike
• different
• movement
• high
• low
• fast
• slow

Procedure

Opening to Lesson

• Each student will create a short movement and sound.
• One student will begin, then the next will do the same movement and sound, just a little louder.
• This will continue until the movement has reached the creator, who will do the loudest and largest sound and movement.
• Discussion about the game: What was hard or easy about the game? Was there any sound or movement that was exactly the same? Were there any similarities?  Why do you think we all did a different movement and sound?
• Use music and dance vocabulary

Body of Lesson

• Teacher will explain begin to read "It's Okay to Be Different".
• Ask: What did you like about the book? Was there anything you did not like? Why did it say in the book that it was "okay" to have all those different things? Why is it okay to be different? What if we weren't all different?

Dance

• Children will listen to a 20 second clip of a dynamic song (any song can work as long as it has elements of fast, slow, high, low)
• In pairs, children will respond spontaneously to the music
• Students will then share perform their spontaneous movements for their peers
• Teacher and student will compare and contrast movements.
• We all listened to the same song, why were everyone's movements different? How is this similar to the story "It's Okay to Be Different" by Todd Parr.
• Write responses on to chart paper.

Independent Practice

• Close your eyes and imagine that we all had the same hairstyle, the same shirt on, and the same parents. How would this make you feel?
• Think of one thing that makes you different from everybody else.
• Keep it to yourself.
• Teacher will explain to students that the class is going to make their own "It's Okay to Be Different" book.
• Students will draw a picture of what they have or do that makes them different from everyone else.
• Teacher will collect all pages and staple them with a front cover.

Closing

• At this time, students and teacher will gather back on the rug to view their finished book.
• Students will discuss their own works of art, using appropriate art vocabulary (e.g., color, shape/form, texture).
• Students will discuss how and why they made a specific work of art.

Assessment & Evaluation

Informal/Anecdotal Assessment

• Informal teacher observation of student participation as compare and contrast dance movements.

Illustration

• Teacher will assess students' ability to find a characteristic that makes him/her different.

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