Kindness Counts

Katherine Flores

Tier 1

Lesson Plan

Kindness Counts Lesson Plan

Students will recognize and practice simple acts of kindness by identifying kind behaviors in scenarios and planning one kind act to share with a classmate.

Early practice of kindness builds empathy and cooperation in the classroom, fostering a positive learning environment and strong social skills.

Audience

Kindergarten

Time

15 minutes

Approach

Guided discussion with scenario cards and hands-on planning.

Materials

Kindness Scenario Cards, Feeling Faces Chart, and Heart-Shaped Stickers

Prep

Prepare Materials

5 minutes

Download and print Kindness Scenario Cards and Feeling Faces Chart.
Cut out each scenario card and laminate or place in a small stack.
Gather a sheet of heart-shaped stickers for student rewards.
Arrange a comfortable carpet area for circle time.

Step 1

Introduction to Kindness

3 minutes

Gather students on the carpet and greet them warmly.
Ask: “What does it mean to be kind?” and invite 2–3 responses.
Show Feeling Faces Chart and discuss how kind actions help others feel happy.

Step 2

Scenario Discussion

5 minutes

Shuffle Kindness Scenario Cards and draw one card at a time.
Read the scenario aloud (e.g., “A friend falls down on the playground”).
Ask: “What could we do to be kind here?” and collect student ideas.
Confirm kind responses (e.g., helping friend up, offering a hug).

Step 3

Plan Your Kindness Act

4 minutes

Give each student one minute to think of a kind action they can do today.
Prompt with examples: share a toy, help clean up, say something nice.
Walk around and encourage each child quietly.

Step 4

Share & Reflect

3 minutes

Invite a few volunteers to share their planned act with the class.
Give each sharing student a heart-shaped sticker as a kindness reminder.
Conclude: “Tomorrow, let’s notice when we see someone being kind!”

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Slide Deck

Kindness Counts

Learning to be kind helps us feel good and help others.

Welcome the students and introduce the lesson: "Today we’re going to learn about kindness and how to show it to our friends!"

What Is Kindness?

• Being friendly
• Helping others
• Using nice words

Prompt students to share ideas. Ask: “What does it mean to be kind?” Write or call out responses.

Feeling Faces Chart

Display the chart prominently. Ask: “Which face shows how someone feels when we are kind to them?”

Scenario: Playground Fall

A friend falls down and looks sad.

Read aloud the scenario: “A friend falls down and looks sad.” Ask: “What could we do to be kind here?”

Scenario: Lonely Classmate

Someone is standing alone at recess.

Describe the scene. Encourage ideas like inviting them to play or asking if they’re okay.

Plan Your Kind Act

Think of one kind thing you can do today. Draw or say it!

Give each child 1 minute to think or draw one kind thing they will do today. Circulate and encourage quietly.

Share & Reflect

Who would like to share their kind act?

Invite volunteers to share their planned acts. Reward each with a heart sticker and praise them.

Thank You!

Let’s notice and celebrate kindness every day.

Wrap up the lesson. Remind students to look for kindness tomorrow.

Activity

Kindness Scenario Cards

Use these printable cards during the Scenario Discussion portion of the lesson. Shuffle them and draw one at a time. Read the scenario aloud and ask: “What could we do to be kind here?”

Cards

A friend falls down on the playground and looks hurt.
Someone is standing alone at recess and looks sad.
A classmate forgets their pencil at home and needs one.
You have extra crayons. What could you do?
Someone drops their lunch on the floor.
A new student looks nervous on their first day.

Print, cut out, and laminate each card for durable classroom use.

Reading

Feeling Faces Chart

Use this chart to explore how kindness makes us and our friends feel. Read each row together and talk about the emotion.

Face	Feeling	How Kindness Helps
🙂	Happy	Kind words or sharing toys make me smile.
😢	Sad	A hug or offer to help makes me feel better.
😲	Surprised	A surprise compliment makes me feel special.

Let’s Talk

Which face shows how you feel when someone says something nice to you?
What kind thing can you do to make a friend feel happy?

Draw a Kindness Face

Draw a face that shows how you feel when someone is kind to you.