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Kindness Counts!

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Lesson Plan

Kindness Quest Lesson Plan

Students will identify and demonstrate respectful and kind behaviors by exploring stories, discussing friendship qualities, and role-playing scenarios to build empathy and positive classroom relationships.

Building respect, kindness, and friendship skills in first graders promotes a safe, inclusive environment where students feel valued and learn to support one another.

Audience

1st Grade

Time

30 minutes

Approach

Stories, discussions, and hands-on activities

Materials

Prep

Teacher Preparation

15 minutes

Step 1

Welcome and Warm-up

5 minutes

  • Greet students and introduce today’s lesson on respect and kindness.
  • Ask: “What does being a good friend mean?” to spark ideas.
  • Record responses on chart paper under headings Respect, Kindness, Friendship.

Step 2

Interactive Story Time

7 minutes

  • Display Kindness Story Slides.
  • Read a short story featuring a character who shows kindness and respect.
  • Pause at key moments to ask comprehension questions (“How did Jamie show kindness here?”).

Step 3

Guided Discussion

5 minutes

  • Review chart paper headings.
  • Invite students to share examples from the story or their own lives of respectful/kind actions.
  • Add their examples to the chart under the correct category.

Step 4

Scenario Role-Play

8 minutes

  • Divide students into small groups and hand each group a Kindness Scenario Card.
  • Instruct groups to read or act out their scenario, demonstrating respectful and kind solutions.
  • After each role-play, ask peers to identify what respectful/kind behaviors they observed.

Step 5

Reflection Activity

3 minutes

  • Distribute Kindness Reflection Worksheets.
  • Ask students to draw or write one kind/respectful thing they will do today.
  • Encourage them to share aloud if time permits.

Step 6

Closing and Recognition

2 minutes

  • Praise students for their ideas and participation.
  • Hand out Kindness Certificates and stickers/tokens to recognize efforts.
  • Remind them to practice kindness and respect throughout the day.
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Reading

Kindness Quest: A Story of Friendship

This story will help us learn about respect, kindness, and friendship!

Page 1

Jamie walked into her classroom with a big smile. She said “Good morning!” to her teacher and friends. Then she quietly put her backpack away and got ready to start the day.

Page 2

Jamie noticed her friend Alex sitting alone at the coloring table. Alex looked sad because he forgot his pencil. Jamie walked over and said, “Would you like to use my extra pencil so you can finish your drawing?” Alex smiled and said “Thank you!”

Page 3

Later, Jamie and her classmates built a tall block tower. Suddenly, the blocks tumbled to the floor. Jamie and her friends worked together to pick up the blocks and rebuild the tower. Everyone cheered when it stood tall again.

Page 4

At recess, Jamie saw a new student standing by the fence, looking nervous. Jamie said, “Hi, I’m Jamie! Want to play tag with us?” The new student’s face brightened, and they ran off to join the game.

Let’s Talk About It

  1. How did Jamie show kindness in today’s story?


  2. What respectful actions did you notice?


  3. How can you be a good friend like Jamie today?
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Activity

Kindness Scenario Cards

Divide into small groups. Pick a card and role-play the situation, showing respectful and kind choices. After each skit, classmates will share which kind actions they saw.


Cards:

  1. Playing Alone
    Scenario: You see a student standing alone at recess looking sad. What can you do to include them?


  2. Sharing Supplies
    Scenario: A friend forgot their pencil at home and can’t do their work. How can you help?


  3. Dropped Crayons
    Scenario: A classmate dropped all their crayons on the floor. How can you show kindness?


  4. New Student
    Scenario: A new student is shy and doesn’t know anyone. What can you say or do to make them feel welcome?


  5. Feeling Left Out
    Scenario: Your friend is sitting at the table but no one asked them to play. How can you make them feel included?


  6. Sad Friend
    Scenario: Your friend is sad because they lost their toy. How can you comfort them?


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lenny

Lesson Plan

Kindness Counts!

Students will identify and demonstrate respectful and kind behaviors by exploring a story, discussing friendship qualities, and role-playing scenarios to build empathy and strengthen classroom relationships.

Building respect, kindness, and friendship skills in first graders promotes a safe, inclusive environment where students feel valued and learn to support one another.

Audience

1st Grade

Time

30 minutes

Approach

Stories, discussions, and role-play activities

Materials

Prep

Teacher Preparation

15 minutes

Step 1

Welcome and Warm-up

5 minutes

  • Greet students and introduce today’s lesson on respect, kindness, and friendship.
  • Ask: “What does being a good friend mean?” and record responses.
  • Write responses under headings Respect, Kindness, and Friendship on chart paper.

Step 2

Interactive Story Time

7 minutes

  • Display Kindness Story Slides on the projector.
  • Read the story aloud, pausing at key moments to check understanding.
  • Ask: “How did Jamie show kindness here?” to engage students.

Step 3

Guided Discussion

5 minutes

  • Review the headings on the chart paper.
  • Invite students to share examples from the story or their own lives of respectful or kind actions.
  • Add their examples under the correct category on the chart.

Step 4

Scenario Role-Play

8 minutes

  • Divide students into small groups and distribute Kindness Scenario Cards.
  • Instruct each group to read and act out their scenario, demonstrating respectful and kind solutions.
  • After each skit, ask peers to identify kind behaviors they observed.

Step 5

Reflection Activity

3 minutes

  • Hand out Kindness Reflection Worksheets.
  • Ask students to draw or write one kind action they will do today.
  • Invite volunteers to share their ideas aloud if time allows.

Step 6

Closing and Recognition

2 minutes

  • Praise students for their participation and thoughtful ideas.
  • Distribute Kindness Certificates and stickers or kindness tokens.
  • Remind students to practice kindness and respect throughout the day.
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Slide Deck

Kindness Counts!

Tier 1 Social Skills Lesson – 1st Grade – 30 Minutes

Welcome students to the lesson. Introduce the title and tell them today we will learn about respect, kindness, and friendship.

Today's Objectives

• Identify respectful and kind behaviors
• Discuss what makes a good friend
• Demonstrate kindness in role-play scenarios
• Reflect and commit to one kind action today

Read each objective aloud. Ask students to raise hands when they hear a goal.

Welcome and Warm-up

  1. Greet the class and introduce our topic: Being a good friend.
  2. Ask: “What does being a good friend mean?”
  3. Record responses under Respect, Kindness, and Friendship.

Have chart paper ready with three headings: Respect, Kindness, Friendship. Record student responses under each heading.

Interactive Story Time

• Display Kindness Story Slides.
• Read aloud, pausing to ask: “How did Jamie show kindness here?”

Tell students we’ll read a story about Jamie. Switch to the separate story slide deck now.

Guided Discussion

• Review the chart headings.
• Invite students to share examples from the story or their own lives.
• Add each example under Respect, Kindness, or Friendship.

Guide discussion, adding student examples to the chart under the correct headings.

Scenario Role-Play

• Divide into small groups and pick a Kindness Scenario Card.
• Read or act out the scenario, showing kind solutions.
• After each skit, peers name the kind behaviors they observed.

Hand out scenario cards. Circulate and encourage expressive role-plays.

Reflection Activity

• Pass out Kindness Reflection Worksheets.
• Ask students to draw or write one kind action they will do today.
• Invite volunteers to share their ideas aloud.

Distribute reflection worksheets. Encourage neat drawings/writing.

Closing and Recognition

• Praise students for their ideas and participation.
• Distribute Kindness Certificates and stickers.
• Remind everyone to practice kindness and respect every day.

Celebrate students’ participation. Hand out certificates and tokens. Encourage daily practice.

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Worksheet

Kindness Reflection Worksheet

Today we practiced respect, kindness, and friendship. Now it’s your turn to plan a kind action!

1. Draw Your Kind Action

Draw a picture of one kind thing you will do today.











2. Write About Your Kind Action

Complete the sentence and add more details if you want:

My kind action today will be: __________________________________________________________






Great work! Share your drawing and idea with a friend or your teacher when you’re finished.

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Game

Kindness Champion Certificate

This certificate is proudly presented to

______________________________

for showing outstanding kindness, respect, and friendship in our classroom.

Your caring actions help everyone feel welcome and happy!

Date: ____________________ Teacher: ____________________

Keep spreading kindness wherever you go!




Congratulations!

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