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Amiability and courtesy are very typical qualities of the human sort, because to be amiable means to be worthy, to be loved, which is a cultural product of man exclusively.
To be amiable is to be tender, affectionate, kind, courteous, pleasant, helpful, good natured, graceful and even smiling, all qualities that are essential to form in the children from the earliest age.
It is also to be kind, to offer attention and respect, mainly to the less apt or destitute.
Amiability is not innate in the child, he is impulsive by nature, and to be good-natured and well-mannered one has to learn it in the diverse activities of daily life and the pedagogical activities in the early childhood classroom. But in any case, it always implies an educational work to be developed with the children, in which they assimilate the norms of social behaviour as the adults train and teach them on how to behave according to those norms.
Amiability implies fairness as well, similar treatment to boys and girls, and delicate courtesy towards each other, a reason why they will have to learn to be courteous with all their classmates, to help them at any moment.
One of the most important ways for children to learn to be amiable and courteous is through role plays, in which it is possible to model the diverse situations in which to be amiable and courteous is implicit. Nevertheless, nothing replaces the example of the adult to teach the norms of amiability and courtesy, for that reason they have to be models of these qualities to be imitated.
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Summary of the activity: In the first part the educator in a group meeting proposes the subject of amiability and makes questions to value the development of this quality in the children, in a second part the story is told, in a third a group dynamics activity is done to assess the assimilation of the notions, and finally the children will draw scenes of the plot of the related story.
Objectives:
• To initiate in the children the learning of notions on the amiability.
• To evaluate the level of understanding of the children of amiability and courtesy.
Procedures:
• Conversation
• Story
• Practical Actions
Material Resources: Pictures with scenes of the story, brushes, sheets, fine cardboard, coloured pencils, temperas, and other materials of plastic arts.
Development of the activity:
1st Part
The educator presents the subject with the children through a conversation.
"Today we are going to talk about an interesting subject: amiability and courtesy. Do you know what it means to be amiable?"
The educator will leave the children to express what they consider to be amiability, and within it, courtesy. He can use questions such as:
Who knows an amiable person?
Who can give an example of a courteous conduct?
Do you think that to be amiable is good?
What happens to the people who are not amiable?
The educator can ask these questions and others to motivate the group and to generate the discussion. Then, he will tell the story of "The amiable lion".
2nd Part
"The amiable lion"
It turns out that in a hidden part of black Africa there was a young lion that was distinguished by its great jet colour mane. How imposing was this great and strong lion! When he roared his voice was heard at an enormous distance in the forest.
Who knows then why the aforesaid lion was object of derision of the other members of the herd that, whenever they could, sang a song to him that said:
Poor mane lion
so great and so strong
does not catch anybody
and he starves
because he is a kind lion.
This was said because whenever the lion took hold of a little animal, immediately with an exquisite amiability he said to him:
"Do not worry little friend, sorry that I have caught you. But you are free and you can follow your way ".
That was unbearable for the other lions, who thought that with that conduct the prestige of the ferocity of the lion was affected as the king of the forest. But there was no way, the amiable lion always acted like that, and they did not attack him because as he was so strong, they were all scared of him.
And he was even a vegetarian! Do you know what it is to be a vegetarian? It is the person who only eats plants and vegetables, never meat. A lion that does not eat other animals? Unbelievable! But the amiable lion was like this.
So one day in which a tired little bird perched in a shrub, Shoo! There was the lion!
Oh, lion, do not kill me, do not kill me please!
No my friend, I will not kill you, follow your way and fly happy.
The bird remained flabbergasted, because he had already seen himself in the stomach of the lion, and he said "Wow, I mean wings, how I want you! And it went flying still astonished at the amiability of the lion.
Another day, a monkey fell in a pit that the hunters had prepared to catch animals, and when he saw a shadow that he thought was one of his friends who came to save him, what appeared was the enormous head of the lion that watched him from above.
Oh, lion, do not kill me, do not kill me, please!
No, my friend monkey, I have come to take you out of your ordeal. And with one swipe he took the monkey out of the deep hole.
The monkey also remained flabbergasted, and giving a hug to the lion he left in a sudden flight, just in case he would change his idea.
One afternoon, the lion saw that a little mouse had got his leg stuck in a root, and when the mouse saw the lion approaching, he began to cry:
Oh, lion, do not kill me, do not kill me, please!
No, little mouse, the lion answered, I came to remove your leg from there. With your permission, because it can hurt a little. And with a swipe he set the mouse free from the root.
Thanks, thanks, the mouse said, I had never seen such an amiable animal as you, I will never forget it. Andhe also went away fast, just in case the lion remembered who he was.
And so the days passed by, until one morning when the forest shook by strange noises that came from the lagoon. They were the lion hunters that came with their cages, and their dogs, and their spears, catching all the lions that they could, because the skin and the mane of the lion are sold for a good price in the city.
And it happened that they took hold of almost all the herd of lions, and they put each one of them in a cage, including the amiable lion that tried to explain to the soldiers that they should not act like that, but as they did not understand its language, they paid no attention to him.
But as it was already too late the hunters decided to spend the night in the lagoon, and to wait for the next day to go away with their haul. And they went to sleep knowing that no lion could escape from their cage.
Oh, poor of us! The lions whimpered nobody can save us from this one! What has your amiability and courtesy done for you? Soon you will be adorning the room of a house like us.
At that moment a bird came flying and settled upon the cage of the kind lion, and he started to peck at the cords, suddenly a monkey appeared that with tremendous ability loosened them, and immediately a small mouse that nibbling them managed to finish breaking them. And the door of the cage was opened wide.
Come on, lion friend, it is necessary to escape! The bird, the monkey and the mouse shouted.
But, my friends, if they remain they are going to be turned in room adornments!
If they had been amiable like you, they would have other friends who would help them in a moment like this. But, look, the hunters are waking up!
And to the lion’s grief, together with his friends they had to take to their heels (and wings), in order to avoid the warriors catching them.
The amiable lion never knew anything more about the other lions. But they say that every afternoon he plays with his friends, the bird, the monkey and the mouse to whom he teaches how to be kind to others.
And they say that in the new herd that has been formed now when they sing one hears:
Brave mane lion
so great and so strong
he was saved
from being turned into cold cuts
because he was a kid lion.
3rd Part
The educator along with the children analyzes the moral of the story, with questions such as:
Why was the lion saved from a sure death?
Why did the monkey, the mouse and the little bird helped him?
What happened to the other lions that were not amiable?
Is it worth being courteous and amiable?
Do you want to be like the amiable lion?
The educator will reinforce in the children that, thanks to its amiability and courtesy with his friends, the lion was saved. And that whenever one is amiable one can wait for a courteous answer from the others.
4th Part
Consists of an art activity, to draw scenes of the story "The amiable lion" and others in which an action or gestures of amiability in the characters are emphasized.
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CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT |
Observed conduct |
YES |
NO |
Comments |
Their answers to the questions demonstrated that the children understood how the amiability saved the lion. |
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They needed help to understand clearly why the friends saved the lion. |
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They showed interest to know more about how to be amiable. |
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They made verbal manifestations that they are going to be amiable. |
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At moments in the daily routine they had amiable conducts with their classmates. |
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ACTIVITY No 2
"WE ARE GOING TO BE AMIABLE"
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Summary of the activity: It consists of a didactic game with cards so that the children select and determine the amiable and kind conducts that can be developed.
Objectives:
• That the children make an evaluation on how to be amiable
• To continue reinforcing the courtesy in the actions of daily life
Procedures:
• Game
• Conversation
Material Resources: Card games with selected scenes.
Development of the activity: For the development of the activity the educator will have to elaborate an appropriate number of cards with scenes like the following ones:
1. A lion and a lioness next to a tree that gives a little shade in which only an animal could fit.
2. A monkey that is carrying an enormous bunch of bananas, and another monkey with its hands empty.
3. A little mother bird building a nest with small branches, and close by, the father bird doing nothing.
4. A mother who comes from the market carrying many bags, and a child that is close by playing with a ball.
5. A father working in a carpentry factory making a chair, a child who is near the tools.
6. A bus crammed with people, one old lady standing up and a child who is seated looking out of the window.
7. A teacher who distributes materials in the classroom, a table full with those materials, and two children who are close by, watching it.
The educator can create as many situations as he considers suitable.
1st Part
The educator presents the game and the rules of the game.
"We already saw how the amiable lion was saved by his kind conduct. Now we are going to play a game to know what the children could do to be amiable. For that we are going to form teams"
The educator distributes the teams and he explains the conditions and the rules of the game:
In a great box there is going to be a card deck in which there is a situation. Each member of a team will have to take a card and by order he will suggest an amiable conduct that could be done in that situation. The other children will say if the answer is appropriate or not.
1. The winner will be the team that offers the best answers. By each good answer a point will be given.
2. In the case of a complicated answer, the educator will decide in that case.
3. It is necessary to give a thoughtful answer, because it is not necessary to hurry.
2nd Part
After the explanation, the group plays the game. The educator will try that all the members of the team have the opportunity to express themselves.
When the game is concluded, the winners will be awarded, giving them a picture or any simple thing, and the rest of the group will be congratulated for the effort they made, so that they all feel stimulated, and they will be asked to be amiable in their actions.
3rd Part
Now, a summary of the answers given by the children will be made, for which the educator can make the following questions:
Can more than one amiable answer be given to each card?
Why is an answer amiable?
How is it possible to be courteous in the classroom?
What does an amiable or kind conduct mean?
Is it good or bad to be courteous?
After the discussion, the educator speaks of the necessity to be amiable in the relations with the other children, in the family, and with all the adults.
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CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT |
Observed conduct |
YES |
NO |
Comments |
The answers towards the cards reflected understanding of the necessity to be amiable. |
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They understood with help the necessity to be amiable with the others. |
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They were able to evaluate in a simple way the answers. |
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They suggested having amiable conducts in the classroom. |
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They gave positive opinions about being courteous and kind. |
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ACTIVITY No 3
"A STORY WITH A MORAL"
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Summary of the activity: In this activity the educator follows a double intention, on one hand he continues reinforcing in the children the notions on amiability, and on the other, he teaches them that there is a moral in the story.
In the first part the subject will be explained; in the second the story is told, and in the third one the children evaluate the moral of the narration.
Objectives:
• To consolidate the notions of an amiable conduct.
• To teach the children what is a moral.
Procedures:
• Conversation
• Story
• Analysis
Material Resources: Pictures with scenes from the story.
Development of the activity:
1st Part
The educator explains the content of the activity to the children to hear what they know with respect to what is a moral. He can use questions such as:
Do we know what a moral is?
Has somebody in your house told you what a moral is?
In what things can we look for a moral?
How would we make a moral on being amiable?
Do you know a story with a moral?
Who says the moral of a story?
With the answers from the children the educator has to suggest to the children what a moral is:
"A moral is a lesson or moral teaching that contains a story, a fable or any other narration".
Later he tells a story to them so that they understand what a moral is.
2nd Part
Reading of the story "The woodpecker" by the educator.
"The Woodpecker"
One morning very early, when the sun still had not rised, the toc-toc of a woodpecker who worked in a tree it could be heard in all the forest.
At that moment a dove passed that way, and asked him very amiably: _
"What are you doing friend woodpecker?"
_"I am making a small house, because mine was torn down by the wind and I do not have where to live."
_"and why don’t you ask for help from your neighbours? They like you and are very kind with you, I am sure that they will help you to make it more quickly”.
_"I do not want help from anybody" answered the bad-tempered woodpecker, "I am capable of doing it on my own".
The dove went away crest fallen, thinking that the woodpecker was very mistaken in his behaviour.
In a short time a little bird red as a beetroot passed that way, and it asked the woodpecker in a very courteous way:
_ "Do you want me to help you? In this way you will finish sooner."
_"No, cardinal" answered little amiably the woodpecker, "I do not need anyone".
The cardinal left thinking how unintelligent was the woodpecker to reject its help.
The other day the woodpecker was in the middle of its work when a rabbit passed that way and, seeing the effort of the woodpecker, stopped in the middle of the way and very amiably asked it:
_ "Good morning, woodpecker. Do you want a little help to finish your small house?"
_"No, sir" was the dry answer of the woodpecker, "I do not need anynone".
And the rabbit went away grumbling about how little amiable had been the woodpecker.
And suddenly in the forest one could not listen to the toc-toc of the woodpecker. And it went on like that for several days. And the rabbit by chance passed again by the tree of the woodpecker, who suddenly heard that somebody was complaining. And curious and very kindly it asked:
_ "Who is complaining so sad in this way?"
_"I am" answered the woodpecker. Gosh! All my body hurts. While being on my own making my small house I have fallen and I cannot move.
"The rabbit seeing the woodpecker so ill, and as it was very amiable, called the other little animals of the forest, the cardinal, the dove, and others that among all carried the woodpecker and took it to be cured at the house of the Doctor Duck.
When the woodpecker opened its eyes and looked around it saw all its friends next to him. At this moment he realised how amiable they had always been with it, and how it had treated them so badly and unkind. And it felt so badly, that it burst out crying.
_ "Do not cry, woodpecker, but let this be a lesson to you so that you learn that we all are your friends, and we are always going to help you ".
_ "Thanks friends, the woodpecker answered, you are always so amiable with me and I am so unhelpful, but from now on I will ask you in a more courteous way so that you help me to make my small house, and when we finish we will make a great party to celebrate."
3rd Part
Consists of the analysis of the story to find the present moral and to reinforce the notions of being amiable. The educator will allow the children to express their criterion freely, but he will make some questions to orient the discussion:
Which is the moral of the story?
Was the behaviour of the woodpecker correct ?
Why one should not be sullen and little amiable when they are kind to us?
Was the woodpecker amiable in the beginning?
What happened to it that made it change its opinion?
Do you think that the woodpecker will be amiable from now on?
Can you explain why this story has a moral?
After the children have expressed their opinions the educator will summarize the moral of the story, and how it says that not being amiable always brings problems, which is what the woodpecker learned.
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CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT |
Observed conduct |
YES |
NO |
Comments |
The children were able to extract the moral of the story. |
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They needed much help to be able to find the moral in the story. |
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They were able to evaluate the little amiable conduct of the woodpecker and its consequences. |
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They got to understood what a moral is. |
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They referred verbally criteria about being courteous and kind. |
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ACTIVITY No 4
"LET´S PAINT AMIABILITY"
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Summary of the activity: It is an activity of plastic education, to draw scenes in which amiable and kind conducts are reflected. Initially the educator suggests the content, later the children draw, and the drawings made in this activity will be placed around the classroom to remind everyone that they have to be amiable and courteous.
Objectives:
• To visually reinforce the notions on amiability.
• To relate amiability to the facts of daily life.
Procedures:
• Conversation
• Practical Actions
Material Resources: Highlighters, pencils, brushes, sheets, fine cardboard, temperas, and other materials of art education, glue or drawing pins.
Development of the activity:
1st Part
When initiating the activity the educator explains its objective and motivates the children to do a free creation, using some questions and opinions:
"We are going to draw scenes in which an amiable, kind or courteous behaviour of some characters are observed, it can be of any thing you like, later we will analyze the drawings, and later we will place them in diverse places of the room so that we always remember to be amiable."
2nd Part
The children make the drawings in an individual way preferably, although small groups can also be made for a collective drawing. Once finished all the drawings we have to evaluate them, on the content, the amiability, and the aesthetic quality of such. The educator can stimulate the evaluation by means of questions:
Why have you chosen the scene that you painted?
Why do you think that it reflects an amiable behaviour?
Is the amiability that appears in the drawing good?
Which is the difference between a drawing of an amiable and courteous conduct, and another that is not?
Would you like to be like the characters who you have painted?
3rd Part
In this final part the educator together with the children put up in different places of the classroom those drawings that in the opinion of the group of children best reflected amiability. With the rest of the drawings we will make a folder in which it will be written on the cover "Amiability" and that will be placed in a shelf within reach of the children so that whenever they want to see it, they can.
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CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT |
Observed conduct |
YES |
NO |
Comments |
In the beginning, to draw the scene, they did not know well how an amiable person acts. |
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They managed to draw scenes in which an amiable conduct is observed. |
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They drew with enthusiasm and they related their pictures to the subject. |
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They showed opinions on being amiable and kind. |
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ACTIVITY No 5
"WHERE ARE THE AMIABLE ONES?"
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Summary of the activity: This is a movement game, in which the children will cross a circuit drawn in a map an explain a situation of amiability portrayed in a card. The same cards of previous activities can be used.
Objectives:
• To develop in the children feelings of amiability towards the others.
• To reinforce the ability to orient themselves with a map.
Procedures:
• Practical actions
• Explanation
• Modelling
Material Resources: Map of the circuit, cards with pictures of various situations that tend to develop an amiable conduct, a small bench, a low table, a ladder, three boxes.
Development of the activity:
1st Part
The children are told that they are going to play a game in which they are going to find situations where one can be amiable.
For it, the teacher hands out a map of the area where they are going to play, with a drawn circuit, so that, following the indications of the map, they can find the cards that reflect situations where one has to be amiable. These cards are within a box in each selected point.
The circuit consists of a bench, and the children will have to go under it, later it will be necessary to border a low table, and finally they will arrive at a ladder that they will have to climb, these objects will be drawn in the map. This circuit can be prepared in the outdoor area and the objects will be distributed in the circuit according to the distance and direction marked on the map.
After explaining the game, the rules will be explained:
1.- The children will guide themselves by the map to cross the circuit, as this is the only way to find the boxes with the cards that indicate the situations.
2.- The route will be done by running, they will stop when they find the first object indicated in the map (the bench), they will look for a card within the box in question, and later they will continue running until they find the second object, they stop and look for the other card, and so on until they arrive at the ladder where they will stop and look for a third card. When the first child of the team arrives at the first object he takes a card, and he will continue to run, but he will no longer take any other card in his route; later the second child will go and repeat the same operation, and so on until all the members of a team have done the activity, and each child has taken a card. In the end there will be as many cards in each team as the number of children. It is necessary to warn the children that if there are no more cards in the first box when it is their turn, they should take it from the second box, or from the third, but never from the three boxes, because each one can only have a single card.
Once the cards are found by the team, the children will explain, guiding themselves by the drawing, what would be the amiable conduct to follow in that particular case. The winner will be the team that completes the route well and gives the best answers to the cards.
The cards could be, among others:
1. A scene in which one sees a pregnant lady gets on a bus and there is a child seated next to the window.
2. A scene in which one sees an old lady carrying bags and a child who comes with a single bag from the market.
3. A scene of a blind person that is stopped next to a traffic light and a child that is also going to cross the street.
In the boxes there can be as many cards as the educator wants, but always making sure that there is one for each child of the team.
The educator can create as many situations as he considers suitable, always adjusting to the central subject.
2nd Part
In this part the game is played, the educator can divide the group in two teams, or as many teams as he thinks suitable.
3rd Part
In this part each team, using their cards, explains what would be the amiable conduct to follow in each case. Each solution will be put to the consensus of the group and if they are agree, it will be given one point, and if no, no points are given, the educator will be the main judge. The winner is the team that accumulates more points.
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CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT |
Observed conduct |
YES |
NO |
Comments |
They did the route well, orienting themselves with the map. |
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They needed help to make the route and to orient themselves by the map. |
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They were able to give a solution of amiability to each card. |
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They had difficulties to find a solution to the cards. |
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They needed help to make the analysis of the cards. |
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ACTIVITY No 6
CRITICAL EXPERIENCE FOR THE EVALUATION OF THE BLOCK
"PLAYING, WE ARE AMIABLE"
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Summary of the activity: The activity consists of a role play about the work in a hospital or a trip on the bus, in which all the children who wish will take part in it and will conduct the actions corresponding to each role, like for example, to drive the bus, to receive the fare, to act as a passenger or a travelling salesman, to sing with a guitar, to inspect the driver, in the case of the trip on the bus; to listen to one’s chest, to give injections, to give prescriptions, to take x-rays, to provide medicines, to take the patient’s blood pressure, if it is in the hospital.
Objectives:
• To develop in the children experiences and emotions about being amiable.
• To consolidate the amiable behaviours in actions of daily life.
• To make them understand that amiability is a present quality in any human activity.
Procedures:
• Game
• Conversation
Material Resources: Game corners with the necessary things to carry out this game such as chairs, one of them with a rudder, and other materials that are considered suitable for the bus; chairs, stretcher, curtain, table, etc, for the hospital.
Development of the activity:
1st Part
Since it is a critical experience to evaluate the results of the block of activities, the educator in his initial conversation will only propose that part of the group plays a trip on the bus, whereas the other plays the hospital, stimulating both arguments to be developed, and he will show the area or game corner where they can do it, next he will ask them to agree on those who will play one or the other, the role that each one is going to carry out (driver, inspector, passenger, travelling salesman, etc); and doctor, nurse, patient, receptionist, in the other. The intention is that each group plays a different game.
The children by themselves have to select the materials that they are going to use, according to the selected role, and they will prepare their own corner game.
2nd Part
The games will begin and the educator will not participate assuming a role, but he will be walk among both groups, registering his observations, he will leave the children to express themselves freely, and he will only take part if the dynamics of the game drops, if the children have strayed from the argument, or to help solve a conflict that they cannot solve by themselves.
3rd Part
After ending the game there will be a final conversation so that the children, without help from the educator, evaluate how they have played, if they have kept their role until the end, if they have conducted the actions that correspond to each role.
The participants of a game will speak first and later those of the other.
The most general objective of the educator is that the children analyze as they behaved in each game, if they conducted or not amiable actions, if in any of the games they were courteous and kind to others, so that they see that no matter which type of activity they do, amiable actions can be similar. Only in the case that it does not arise spontaneously from the analysis of the group, the educator will suggest analyzing the existing relation in each amiable activity and to be kind and courteous in the course of the game.
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CRITERIAL ASSESSMENT |
Observed conduct |
YES |
NO |
Comments |
They were not able to carry out corresponding actions with the assumed roles. |
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They declared to have notions of the relation between amiable actions and the game that they carried out. |
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They showed interest in conducting actions related to being amiable in both games. |
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They established in an appropriate way what amiability, courtesy and kindness are. |
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They could make an elementary evaluation of their amiable or non amiable behaviours. |
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