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Kindness Detectives

Lesson Plan

Kindness Detectives

Students will learn to recognize and talk about feelings in themselves and others by exploring empathy stories, role-playing caring scenarios, and independently creating and sharing a decorated heart illustrating an act of kindness.

Building empathy and compassion fosters social-emotional growth, strengthens peer relationships, and creates a supportive classroom community by teaching children to notice and respond to others’ feelings.

Audience

Pre-K

Time

15 minutes

Approach

Story discussion, modeling, role-play, and creative sharing.

Materials

Prep

Preparation

5 minutes

  • Print or display Empathy Story Cards.
  • Print one Heart-Sharing Template per student.
  • Gather crayons, stickers, whiteboard markers, and chart paper or whiteboard.
  • Arrange seating in a circle for group discussion.

Step 1

Introduction and Direct Instruction

3 minutes

  • I will greet the students as Kindness Detectives and introduce empathy and compassion in simple terms.
  • We will discuss times we’ve felt happy, sad, or needed help.
  • We will look at an Empathy Story Card and talk about how the characters feel and why.

Step 2

Guided Role-Play Practice

4 minutes

  • We will act out two scenarios from the Empathy Story Cards.
  • I will model asking, “How are you feeling?” and showing kindness.
  • Students will take turns being the helper and the friend, practicing kind words and actions.

Step 3

Independent Heart-Sharing Activity

5 minutes

  • I will distribute Heart-Sharing Templates along with crayons and stickers.
  • You will draw or write a time when you helped someone or someone helped you.
  • You will decorate your heart and share it with a partner, saying, “I care about you because….”

Step 4

Closing and Reflection

3 minutes

  • We will reconvene in our circle and invite volunteers to share their decorated hearts.
  • We will reflect: “How did it feel to share kindness today?”
  • We will end by saying our motto together: “We are Kindness Detectives – we notice feelings and share kindness!”
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Slide Deck

Kindness Detectives

Exploring Empathy and Compassion
Pre-K • 15 minutes • Tier 1 Classroom Lesson

Welcome the students warmly. Introduce yourself as their guide and explain that today they are Kindness Detectives who will learn to notice feelings and share kindness.

Introduction to Empathy

• I will introduce empathy and compassion in simple words.
• We will talk about times we’ve felt happy, sad, or needed help.

Explain empathy in simple terms: noticing how someone feels and choosing to care. Use examples from children’s daily life.

Empathy Story Card

• I will read this story card.
• We will discuss how the character feels and why.

Display one Empathy Story Card. Read it aloud. Ask: “How do you think the character feels? Why?”

Guided Role-Play Practice

• We will act out scenarios from the story cards.
• We will practice asking, “How are you feeling?” and showing kindness.

Model two brief scenarios: e.g., a friend falls on the playground, a friend looks lonely. Demonstrate kind words and ask students to join in.

Heart-Sharing Activity

• I will give you a heart template and supplies.
• You will draw or write about a time you helped or were helped.
• You will share with a partner: “I care about you because…”

Distribute one Heart-Sharing Template per student along with crayons and stickers. Circulate to support drawing and writing.

Closing and Reflection

• We will share our decorated hearts in a circle.
• We will reflect: “How did it feel to share kindness today?”

Bring students back to a circle. Prompt volunteers: “Who would like to share their heart?” Ask: “How did it feel to share kindness today?”

Our Kindness Detective Motto

“We are Kindness Detectives – we notice feelings and share kindness!”

Lead the class in saying the motto with enthusiasm. Consider adding a hand-on-heart gesture for memory.

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Reading

Empathy Story Cards

Card 1: The Broken Block Tower

Mia built a tall tower with colorful blocks. Suddenly, the tower wobbled and tumbled down into a pile of pieces.

• How do you think Mia feels?
• What could you say or do to help Mia feel better?

Card 2: The Lost Teddy

Liam clutched his teddy bear close every night. Today, he looked under his bed and behind the chair, but his teddy was nowhere to be found.

• How do you think Liam feels?
• What could you say or do to help Liam find his teddy?

Card 3: A Friend Alone

Emma just moved to a new class and watched from the side as other children played a game on the carpet.

• How do you think Emma feels?
• What could you say or do to include Emma in the game?

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Activity

Heart-Sharing Template

Instructions: In the heart below, draw or write a time when you helped someone or someone helped you. Decorate your heart with crayons and stickers. When you share, use the sentence starter: “I care about you because ….”

I care about you because ____________________________________________





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Kindness Detectives • Lenny Learning