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Compassion is defined as the affliction for other people's troubles. It is a feeling of commiseration and pity towards those who suffer hardships or misfortunes.

It is necessary to teach the child to be sensible about the disease of their close friends, of a classmate, of his pet, about any misfortune that happens to a person or animal.

Compassion is a value that makes us more sensible and human about other people's troubles. It is an indispensable condition to support the shortages of other countries, and to cultivate a culture of peace between peoples.

Any opportunity is good to teach the child to be compassionate, either in the daily activities of the child’s life in the early childhood center or at home.

Parents and educators will be the ones in charge to give with their examples the first step towards the learning of compassion.

ACTIVITY No 1
"LAURA, THE BORED PRINCESS"

Summary of the activity: In the first part there will be a conversation with the children to hear what they know about compassion, later, in the second part the story "Laura, the bored princess" is narrated. In the third part of the activity, the children will be asked questions on the story, finally (4th Part) the children will draw, model and construct on a suggested subject: "The castle of Princess Laura."

Objectives:
• That the children know what compassion is and how compassionate people act.
• To reaffirm practical abilities for modelling, drawing and construction.

Procedures:
• Conversation
• Questions and answers
• Modelling
• Construction
• Drawing

Material Resources: Clay or mud, coloured pencils, watercolours, materials for plastic or wood construction (blocks, tables, prisms, etc.). Pictures for the narration of the story.

Development of the activity:
1st Part
The educator will explore the topic, through a dialogue, to learn what the children know about compassion, if they know any compassionate person and asking them to explain why they consider him as such.

2nd Part
With the help of the pictures the educator will narrate the following story, an adaptation of the story “Boredom" by the author Harmonie Botella:

"Laura, the bored princess"

Rain falls incessantly on the desolated park of the immense castle. The scared birds hide underneath the sheds and the white swans of the pool take refuge in a cabin that the king ordered to construct to protect them.

Laura, the bored princess, watches the grey landscape that extends from her castle towards the infinite. Nothing distracts her of her fatigue and her boredom. Alone, abandoned by all, she invents games and friends who do not come to distract her. How long and heavy is the day. Nothing happens, nobody comes to make the hours that follow one after another more enjoyable.

Laura, tired of these empty moments, calls her servants one by one so that they can suggest some distraction to her. But the good young women, yawning all the time, do not have any better ideas than her young landlady. Infuriated, Laura dismisses them, she punishes them and she prohibits them to speak until the night arrives.

The little princess takes her mirror and watches her sweet face darkened by the weariness. Suddenly, at the bottom of the mirror, an amber light ignites and it flashes like a diamond. The princess feels with her fingers the light that suddenly burns her.

Will it be a fiction created by the wizard of the palace that today is also bored? Laura thinks. But the light begins to have forms, contours... and it leaves the frame of the mirror, wandering by the room with a great roar.

To the chaotic noise a strong perfume of strawberry and raspberries of the forest is united.

Laura, scared, asks for help, but nor the king, nor the servants hear her shouts. The flame, with an untenable laughter, asks her what is happening to her, making a greater impression on her.

Laura cries and asks for mercy to this "thing" that causes her much terror. Finally, the flame stops its laughter and voices, and it tells the princess that it does not want to cause her any harm. It explains to her that it is the reflection of boredom. Weary at bottom of the mirror it wanted to do something amusing to change the ideas and to cheer the princess as well.

All the tensions disappear and Laura decides to become the flame’s friend. Calm and serene, the little princess tells it her discomfort due to this rainy day without any surprise and that seems endless to her. The flame advises her, "Take a walk in the surroundings of your castle, go to the villages, talk with your people and you will see how much poverty, troubles and misfortunes affect the people who acclaim you when they see you pass by in your luxurious carriage."

And Laura went to the villages and spoke with the humble people and the rich ones and verified what the light had told her, and she felt very afflicted, she felt a great compassion for those people.

It was then that she realised that she could alleviate at least some of those pains and from that day on Laura became a compassionate and kind princess, who helped everybody, and she was never bored again, she needed time to take care of all the people who went to her castle always looking for the princess’ compassion.

Laura opened a hospital in her castle, where she could heal the wounded, and she gave medicines to the patients, she cheered up the life of an old poor man, and she gave shelter to an abandoned child.

Not only did she do these things but she also had all her domestic staff and ladies of company doing kind actions. Laura did not have enough time and in this way the boredom disappeared from her life forever.

Laura has just understood the power of feeling compassion for others. In a few days she had changed from an idle and boring person to the most hardworking and compassionate princess of all the country.

3rd Part
The educator will ask the children:
Is the change that Princess Laura went through good? Why?
How was Laura at the beginning?
How was Laura later?
Is Laura compassionate? Why?
How are compassionate people?
Would you like to be like Laura? Why?

4th Part
The children will be invited to make drawings, modelling and constructions of their own choice on the subject: "The castle of Princess Laura."

CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT
Observed conduct	YES	NO	Comments
At the beginning they did not know how to explain how a compassionate person acts.
They extended their knowledge on compassionate people.
They carried out the activities of construction, modelling and drawing with enthusiasm.
They shared opinions on how to be compassionate.

ACTIVITY No 2
"COMPLETE THE STORY"

Summary of the activity: The children will complete a story and later, together with the educator, they will evaluate the activity.

Objectives:
• To develop in the children feelings of compassion.
• To give notions on compassion.

Procedures:
• Story
• Conversation

Material Resources: Texts of diverse stories.

Development of the activity:
1st Part
The educator will explain the activity to the children. The educator will give the beginning of a story and the children must complete the story that he is going to read to them.

Example of stories:

Story no 1: A child was walking along a street and saw a blind man fall because he tripped over the curb of the pavement and then the child...

Story no 2: There was an old man seated in a bench of a park; some children who were playing football threw the ball that went straight to the old man’s leg, this man was in pain and he could not walk, it was then that the children who were playing...

Story no 3: A child was crying desperately because he had got lost. Who knows if perhaps left to chance? It was then that a lady passed by that distant place and...

These are only examples, the educator will create the stories that he considers advisable, as long as they adjust to the subject matter of compassion.

2nd Part
The children will complete the story and the educator writes the answers given by them. This must be done in a group session, so that everyone hears what the others created.

3rd Part
The educator will read the stories again so that the children analyze each one of the given answers to complete them. Guided by the educator they will make an analysis of the stories based on the following aspects:
• The coherence of the story.
• If the end given to the story is truly compassionate or not, and why.

The educator will summarize this part of the activity and will emphasize all the compassionate attitudes that reflect the stories.

CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT
Observed conduct	YES	NO	Comments
They completed the story giving a compassionate answer.
They needed help to complete the story giving a compassionate answer.
They expressed feelings of compassion outside the activity to complete the stories.
They gave their opinions on observed experiences of compassion.

ACTIVITY No 3
"MARCOS, THE COMPASSIONATE CHILD"

Summary of the activity: The goblin puppet of the school brings to the children stories on compassionate people he knows, later the children will tell their own anecdotes and stories.

Objectives: To stimulate the children to feel for the destitute and to help them.

Procedures:
• Stories
• Conversation
• Questions and answers

Material Resources: Puppet "Goblin of the school"

Development of the activity:
1st Part
The goblin of the school comes to class and greets the children: "How are you? I have come to tell you a very interesting story and later you will tell me yours about something that has happened to you, or to a relative or neighbour of yours, or a character of stories or films that you have read or seen, and that expresses compassion for something or somebody, in brief compassionate people.

This is my story, says the puppet:

One day Marcos came from school with his grandma, they always crossed a small wood of pines, and Marcos was running, jumping and singing, but what a great surprise he had that afternoon when he saw a small kitten, a kitten that almost did not know how to mew, that was left in the way between some branches.

"Run grandmother ", said Marcos, "Look what is here, poor kitten, we cannot leave it here".

"But Marcos", answered his grandmother, "you know that your mother does not want animals in your house because it is small and she does not have a patio to have them."

"Ah grandma ", said Marcos afflicted when he saw the abandoned kitten; "we cannot leave it here, poor kitten. Grandmother, I will pick it up and later I will convince my mother to let me have it in the house."

When Marcos’ mother arrived from work she saw the kitten and she got upset, but Marcos, with tears in the eyes, asked his mother to let him have it. His mother, seeing that her son was looking after the kitten with a lot of care giving milk to it in a baby's bottle, accepted it, and he fixed a small box for it so that he had a place to sleep.

And as it turned out to be a female kitten they called it Raquel, since then she lived as a queen in that house, and as soon as Marcos arrived from school he gave food and much affection to it.”

The puppet will ask:
Did you like my story?
Do you think that Marcos acted correctly?
What would you have done if you found Raquel so little and defenceless and abandoned?
Do you think that the person who abandoned Raquel was a compassionate person?
Is Marcos a compassionate child? Why?

2nd Part
The children will tell their own stories, based on real facts or created by them. The little goblin will talk with them in a meeting with the entire group about the stories that they have told.

CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT
Observed conduct	YES	NO	Comments
They knew how to tell a story in a coherent way and fit to the subject matter planned.
They needed help to count the story that was requested.
The stories reflected affliction and intention to help the person or little animal in trouble.
They expressed the wish of taking in defenceless little animals.

ACTIVITY No 4
"THE GOBLIN OBSERVES THE CHILDREN"

Summary of the activity: The puppet "Goblin of the school", who is already known by the children from other activities, tells the children that he will be one week with them observing their conduct and he promises them that those children that are compassionate with a little animal, with a person, etc., will receive a small reward.

Objectives: To stimulate the children so that they feel compassion towards people or little animals in trouble.

Procedures:
• Observation
• Conversation

Material Resources: The same puppet from other activities.

Development of the activity:
1st Part
The puppet comes to class and tells the children: “I am here again, now I bring a good proposal to you ".

"I am going to stay here this week with you in the classroom and in your houses, I will observe you and consider if you have been compassionate with some person or some little animal, if you have helped the destitute and at the end of the week I will award the children who have been compassionate."

For the execution of this part of the activity the educator will ask information from the parents on how their children have acted before situations of trouble of any little animal, or person, etc.

The Goblin explains to the children that this week he is going to remain in the early childhood school, and even if they do not see him, he will be observing them in their houses, therefore he will see if they have felt compassion for someone and if they have helped the destitute, at the end of the week on Friday, he will tell what he saw in the early childhood center or at home and will award the children who have been compassionate.

2nd Part
The puppet will tell the actions done by the children, who will be awarded by the puppet as compassionate children and they will be called: "The most compassionate children of the school" and they will be given flowers and a certificate.

ACTIVITY No 5
"ORDER THE PICTURES"

Summary of the activity: This is a didactic game, in which a set of pictures is presented to the children so that they order them according to the succession of facts that appear in them.

These pictures have to be made in such way that the facts that are represented can have two different endings: one represents a compassionate way of acting (Pictures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6) and the other shows a non compassionate behavior (Pictures 1, 2, 3,), the children will select the one that they wish and they will create a story based on their pictures.

Objectives:
• To teach the children to act compassionately towards a destitute animal or person.
• To reaffirm the skill of serialization.

Procedures:
• Observation
• Questions and answers
• Stories

Material Resources: A set of pictures with the following items:
1.- a child taking a walk in the street.
2.- a little rabbit run over by a car.
3.- the child carries on not paying attention to the little rabbit.
4.- the child with an afflicted face in front of the little rabbit.
5.- the child picks the little rabbit up.
6.- the child helping the little rabbit.

Development of the activity:
1st Part
The educator will explain to the children that in the game they have to order the pictures to tell a story later. He tells them that some pictures can be left out according to the ending they choose.

To win the game the children have to:
1. Order well the pictures
2. Make up a coherent story according to the content of the pictures and their order.

2nd Part
The children will order the pictures and they will tell their story. The educator will help those who need it so that they can construct it.

If some children make a coherent and logical story, but it does no have anything to do with the subject of compassion, it will be accepted; but the educator will have to help them to enrich it with this content.

CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT
Observed conduct	YES	NO	Comments
They ordered the pictures properly.
They needed help to order the pictures correctly.
They made a story adjusted to the subject and in a coherent way.
They needed help to make the story in a coherent way and adjusted to the subject.
In their stories they reflected compassionate feelings.

ACTIVITY No 6
CRITICAL EXPERIENCE FOR THE EVALUATION OF THE BLOCK
"LET´S PLAY"

Summary of the activity: This is a movement game, in which the children will follow a drawn circuit in a map to find a lost kitten.

Objectives:
• To develop in the children feelings of compassion towards the animals.
• To teach the children to orient themselves following a map.
• To reaffirm motor abilities such as: running and squatting.

Procedures:
• Practical actions
• Modelling
• Explanation (Use of a graphical model)

Material Resources: Cards with the map of the circuit, a picture of a kitten or a stuffed kitten that represents Raquel, a small bench, a little plant, a small shrub made with some branches.

Development of the activity:
1st Part
The children are told that Marcos, (the child of the story that was narrated by the "Goblin of the school"), is very sad and cries because Raquel, his kitten, got lost.

Goblin addresses the children; "Do you think that we can help him to find his kitten, and calm his suffering "?

"For this I am going to give you this drawing (the map), if you follow the steps marked are here you will find Raquel, the kitten for sure."

"First you must walk past a bench, later past this little plant, and finally you will arrive at this shrub, Raquel will be in there. These objects are drawn in the map."

A circuit in the outdoor area is prepared, which will include the same objects drawn in the map (bench, little plant, and shrub). These will be distributed in the circuit according to the distance and direction marked in the map.

Once the game is explained, the rules have to be explained:

1.- the children will guide themselves by the map to cross the circuit, since only in this way they will be able to find Raquel.
2.- the route will be done running, they will stop when they find the first object indicated in the map (the bench), they do one squatting and soon they continue running until they find the second object, they stop to do another squatting, and so on until they arrive at the shrub where they will stop and look for the kitten.
3.- the children who follow the route well and find Raquel will be the winners.

2nd Part
In this part of the activity the educator can divide the group in half, one half does it in a given time and the other at another moment.

The children will follow the route of the circuit and will find Raquel, when the first child finds it, he will put the stuffed kitten back in the shrub; later the second child will make the route, and so on until all have done the activity.

If the educator decides to divide the group in half, and to do the activity in two different moments, it is advisable that the next time he varies the circuit and the map.

3rd Part
The winning children will be stimulated with cards and markers that have Raquel, the kitten drawn in them.

CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT
Observed conduct	YES	NO	Comments
They followed the route well, orienting themselves by the map.
They needed help to make the route and to orient themselves by the map.
They were very glad when they found the kitten.
They did all the movements well.
They needed help to do the movements.
They liked more to offer help than to do the movements themselves.
They came up with ideas to help Raquel, the kitten.