Introduction
1. What does it mean to care about another person?
What would you say it means to you to care about someone?
Teacher' Comments: Let students comment. Depending
on their remarks, you can summarize with the following. "Caring usually means
that we are concerned about another. We notice other people and the problems
that they have. We can place ourselves in their shoes and feel what it's like to
be them. We are thoughtful about their feelings, their problems, and their
concerns."
Who do you care about?
Teacher' Comments: Students may answer from three
different perspectives: (1) About their families, (2) friends, (3) teachers ,
(4) others, and (5) self. Depending on their comments, below find remarks that
you might make in each situation.
1. Families
Most of us care about our families. Families, here,
mean the people we live with, who care for us and about us. We care that they
are well and happy. Most times we care about our families because the family
affects us. If Mom, Grandma, or Aunt Meg is happy, we are happy. But, if she is
sad or sick or angry, we worry about her. This is a good concern and shows
caring.
We should also care about our families just because
they are our families. They are people who we know and we want what is best FOR
them. We care not because of what we get from them, but because we love them.
This is the best sort of caring...the type of caring that is about them...not
us.
2. Friends
Many of us care about our friends. We care about them
usually because they do things for us. But, shouldn't we also care about them
because they are people...and they deserve our caring?
3. Teachers, Coaches, Preacher
Usually, most of the people who are our teachers care
about us. Our coaches in youth sports like basketball, softball, baseball, and
so forth care about us. Our pastors and preachers care about us.
4. Ourselves
Most of us care about ourselves...which is okay. We
should be thoughtful about what is good for us and what is not good for us. We
should care about how we take care of our bodies and our minds. We should eat
correctly, exercise often, and challenge ourselves to learn more in school.
But there is another reason that we should care about
ourselves. We should also care about ourselves because our health and happiness
affects other people. Our families love us and want us to be healthy and happy.
If we don't take care of ourselves, our families hurt. They worry about
us...some parents, grandparents, or extended family (aunts, uncles, cousins and
so forth) members worry so much about their children that they don't sleep, eat,
or rest. Some mothers have been known to become ill because of worry for their
children.
Why do you care about them? Do you care about them
because they give you thing? (Teacher Comments: Give students a time to think
about this question and the next few?) Or do you care about them for another
reason...because they care about you?
Who cares about you?
Teacher' Comments: Most of us have family who cares
about us. They care because they love us. What about other people? Who else
cares about us?
Episode
One: The Story
Teacher's Comments: This is a story about a class of
fifth graders who went on a field trip. The field trip was a five-mile bike ride
to a pretty park by a river. The ride would be on a bright, very warm day in the
spring. Everyone had a bike and everyone was to carry his or her own lunch and
drinks. The class of 25 students was divided into groups of five. Two adults
were assigned to one group of five students. Each group was to leave on the trip
ten minutes after the group in front of them. This story is about one of the
groups and its experiences.
Read this story to your students and see if we can
learn what it means to have empathy.
Jessame was excited. Today, her class was going on a
long bike ride. The bike trip would be on a bike path next to a large river. It
was a school field trip. Mr. Schwartz, her teacher, told the class to wear bike
helmets and pack a lunch with something to drink. Because Jessame and her class
live in a hot climate, Mr. Schwartz told them to wear shorts for the trip.
Jessame and her friend Allie had never taken a long
bike ride before. They could hardly wait to show each other how well they could
ride.
The field trip to the bike path was a 25-mile car trip.
Many parents came along on the trip to car pool the class. The parents also
drove trucks to get the bikes to the bike path. When everyone arrived at the
bike path, Mr. Schwartz put five students in a group with two parents. The
parents weren't very good bike riders. Mr. Schwartz thought the students could
help the parents. Jessame's mom, Mrs. Hahm, was one of the parent leaders and
would be in Jessame's group. Mrs. Hahm had invited her friend, Mrs. Schilling,
to come along on the trip. Mrs. Schilling was an EMT (Emergency Medical
Trainer). She lived on a ranch nearby and loved to ride dirt bikes.
After Mr. Schwartz told the students to stay with their
parent leaders when they went on the bike trip. He then called the parents over
to a meeting. He wanted to explain how the trip would play out. "Parents, the
bike path is good for about two miles and then we will have to leave the path.
There was a landslide that took out the bike path at about mile marker 2.5.
Here's a map. Just before the slide you will see a detour. Take the kids up
through the bushes and follow the make shift path. Be careful; it's a steep
incline... uphill and downhill. Just follow the map, and you'll be okay."
Mrs. Hahm looked at the map. It wasn't very clear. "Mr.
Schwartz, this map is hard to read. What other signs should I look for?"
"Well, there is break in the regular road barrier that
you might see. You need to take the kids through that break, cross the road and
go up the detour." Mr. Schwartz said.
"Will it be dangerous?" Mrs. Hahm asked.
"Well, maybe just a little," Mr. Schwartz replied. "But
the kids are pretty good at following directions. Any other questions? If not
get your groups together and get ready to go. I'll let you know when I'm ready
with group 1."
Three groups had already started and Jessame's group
was the next to last. There were three boys and two girls in her group. The
three boys were Richie, Juan, and Michael. Richie had a fancy bike. It was brand
new. He was very proud of the bike. He boasted to the group that his bike was
the fastest and the best. Richie always had everything new. His father was a
doctor and always bought Richie the best of everything. Juan was quiet. He
didn't say a whole lot. His bike was not new, but it got the job done. Michael's
bike was old and not in very good shape. Michael's mom was divorced from his dad
and was trying to raise Michael and his brother alone. There wasn't much extra
money in Michael's house for anything special. Michael's bike was a second hand
bike that his mom had got for him when he was in the second grade. The bike
didn't fit him. He was a lot older and bigger than a bike for a second grader.
The bike was in pretty poor condition. Richie made fun of Michael's bike, "You
won't get very far with that old thing!"
" It may be old, but it's fast," Michael said looking
at his bike.
"Okay kids," Mrs. Hahm said, "let's get out lunches and
water bottles in our back packs and get ready to roll."
Mrs. Hahm had a large bag attached to her bike. Jessame
often teased her mom that the bag was the black hole. Mrs. Hahm was always
looking for something lost in the black hole. Anything and everything could be
found in Mrs. Hahm's bike pack. Unlike the other parents, Mrs. Hahm biked a lot.
Her pack had a first aid kit, bike tools, bike pump, crackers, extra clothes,
and sometimes some strange things. Jessame once found a very ripe banana in it.
Mrs. Hahm said, "You never know when you might need a banana!"
Unlike the other kids, Michael didn't have a backpack
or a water carrier. His old bike was pretty simple. It had two wheels, a handle
bar, chain, seat, and pedals. He had no place to put his lunch or water bottle.
He wasn't quite sure what to do. He was going to ask Mrs. Hahm to help him, but
decided that the black hole looked pretty full already. Instead, he turned to
Richie and said, "Richie, you have a big back pack and it looks almost empty
would you carry my bottle and lunch for me?"
"I'm not carrying your stuff! What do you think I am?
Your slave? Why don't you have a decent bike to ride? Besides, I want to go
fast, and your stuff will slow me down."
Mrs. Hahm overheard Michael and Richie. She said to
Michael, "Michael, give me your lunch and water bottle. I'll put it in my black
bike bag."
Jessame laughed, "Good luck, Michael...once it goes in
the black hole, you will never see it again."
Mrs. Hahm opened the black hole. Inside the bag, was an
extra water bottle and lunch bag that she never saw before.
"Did someone put a lunch bag and water bottle in my
bag?" she said to the group.
"I did," said Richie, "I want to go fast and I don't
want to be slowed down with more weight!"
Mrs. Hahm gave Richie a long look before she said....
What do you think? Time for student discussion.
What did Mrs. Hahm say?
What would you have said?
Who does Richie care about?
How do you think Michael feels after Richie's comments?
Teacher's Comments: Let the students think about the
questions and permit them time to discuss among themselves what they feel and
what they would do. If the students need help, consider these thoughts:
Richie doesn't seem to care about anyone but himself.
Can you find three ways that he doesn't seem to care about anyone else?
1. Richie makes fun of Michael, because he doesn't have a fancy bike.
2. He won't help Michael.
3. And, he uses Mrs. Hahm to help him, but won't do the same thing for Michael.
Richie needs to consider other people and how they
feel. It isn't Michael's fault that he doesn't have a fancy bike with all the
trimmings. Richie has no feeling for Michael; instead he makes fun of him.
Michael doesn't have enough gadgets on his bike to
carry his lunch and water bottle. When he asks Richie, Richie refuses and makes
an excuse that he wants to go fast. Richie again shows that he has little
empathy for anyone but himself.
And finally, Richie cares only about himself when he
tries to use Mrs. Hahm to carry his lunch and water bottle. Mrs. Hahm was good
enough to work for him, but he wouldn't extend the same courtesy to anyone else.
Richie has a real character problem. He is selfish and uncaring.
We also want to remember that Richie needs help. Why
wouldn't he care about others?
Perhaps he doesn't care because no one has taught him
how important it is to care. Caring is learned. Richie needs help to learn that
caring about others is important.
How would you help Richie to care about others?
Perhaps telling Richie that he is selfish may help, and
it may not. Perhaps telling Richie that being selfish might make him more
selfish. Maybe it would help if he could see that being selfish hurts him first
and then caring helps himself might work.
If you were Mrs. Hahm, what would you have said to
Richie? And why would you say that?
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