Name Calling and Compliments Lesson

I did another lesson with first and second graders about the power of their words. We had discussed during the last class that words have the power to build someone up or tear someone down, depending on how you use them. This lesson helps to tie everything together, and provides a little extra help with how to compliment others and also how to receive a compliment.

Materials Needed:
Ball of yarn
Two sheets of paper (or space to write a T-chart)
Marker
(Scissors)
Class sitting in a circle

Introduction
To begin this lesson, I had each of the students share how they got their name (named after someone else, a place, a thing, for the meaning of their name, etc). I explained that your name is very important because that is the first thing that anyone learns about you when they first meet you. "Hello- my name is ___. What is your name?" If names are so important, how might it make you feel if someone started calling you by the wrong name? What about if someone calls another person ugly? This is what we call "name calling", or a put-down.

Brainstorm!
We then created two charts- one with "name calling/ put-down" and the other with "compliments/ put-ups". We brainstormed words and phrases for both categories, and talked about how it would make someone feel to be called one of the things from the list.  I reminded students that words have the power to build someone up or to tear them down. Everyone agreed that they would like to be called something from the compliment list.

Compliment Web
Using the ball of yarn, we created a web of compliments in the classroom. I started it off by wrapping my finger around the end of the yarn one time, showing the class what is expected. I then complimented one student in the class and rolled the ball to that student. The student responds by saying "thank you" , wrapping their finger around the yarn, then saying a compliment to another student in the class, so on and so forth until every student has received the yarn and a compliment. This helps students not only learn how to give compliments, but what to do when they receive compliments as well.

Tying It All Together
As a class, we talked about how good it made everyone feel to receive a compliment. I pointed out the fact that people who were across the circle from one another were could feel the string move every time another person pulled on the string. In the same way, when we hear one person giving another person a compliment, that also makes us feel good. Compliments are contagious! Before I left the class, I cut off a piece of the yarn for the teacher to keep in the classroom as a reminder to give people compliments instead of calling them names.

The Power of Words Name Calling and Compliments Lesson

During first and second grade classroom guidance this week, we talked about  how powerful words are. Words can either tear a person down or build them up. They can make a person feel really sad or angry, or can make them feel happy or proud.

Introduction:
I introduced this topic by writing the following phrase on the board: "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me." We discussed whether or not this was a true statement. If someone hit me in the arm with a stick, would that leave a mark? If someone threw a rock and hit me in the leg, would that leave a bruise? What if someone said something really mean to me? What would that hurt? Sticks and stones may physically hurt your body- leave bruises or scratches, but words hurt a different part of your body- your heart/feelings.

Video:

We watched a short video about someone who got called names, and then talked about how it makes people feel to be called names, and we discussed what they did in the video to make things better between them. We then reviewed how powerful words can be when used to either build someone up or tear them down.  

Class Activity:

For the activity, I wanted the students to practice using their words to build others up- by using compliments. I taped a sheet of paper to every kid’s back with their name on it, and instructed the class to write something positive about each person in the class. Afterwards, I collected each of their sheets of paper- (before they looked at it so that I could read over them to make sure everyone wrote kind things).

Closure:
As the students left, I gave the papers back for them to take home and to remember how powerful their words can be.  How did the compliments make you feel? Was this easy or hard to come up with compliments for everyone? Knowing what we learned about the power of your words, what will you try to do differently this week? Many of the students were very excited to have all of the nice things said about them during today's lesson!