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Activity
International Boys' Schools Coalition

Empathy

For Teachers K - 6th
Putting yourself in someone else's shoes is a common phrase we hear from time to time, but do children really understand? Explore empathy with elementary schoolers using these activities. Focusing on feelings and emotions, students role...
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Lesson Plan
Learning for Justice

What is Empathy?

For Teachers K - 2nd
Young scholars examine facial expressions to identify emotions, listen carefully to stories, and choose the appropriate reaction. Partners choose one story to rewrite, showing empathy for others.
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Unit Plan
2
2
Ashoka

A Toolkit for Promoting Empathy in Schools

For Teachers K - 12th Standards
Instill kindness with a unit all about empathy. Lessons and activities follow a prepare, engage, reflect, and action sequence. Learning experiences include making the classroom a safe environment, peer-invented handshakes, discussions...
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Lesson Plan
Learning for Life

Empathy

For Teachers K - 1st Standards
How would it make you feel if...youngsters learn a valuable life skill in considering how their actions affect other people. They evaluate different scenarios and draw pictures of things they could do to make someone feel better.
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Worksheet
Talking with Trees

Empathy

For Students K - 5th
Strengthen the skill to empathize with others with a worksheet that challenges scholars to match emotions—including happy, confused, sad—to one's body language.
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Unit Plan
Humane Education Advocates Reaching Teachers

Justice for All - Educating Youth for Social Responsibility: Grades K-5

For Teachers K - 5th Standards
In grades kindergarten through fifth grade, scholars take part in a social-emotional learning unit designed to boost social responsibility. Three hundred pages provide lessons and activities related to everyday classroom practices, the...
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Writing
Elementary School Counseling

My Animal's Name Is:

For Students K - 4th
How can others help when we're feeling strong emotions? Help your learners express how they feel by naming and drawing an animal who feels a certain emotion. They write in the emotion and then describe why the animal feels that way, as...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Chrysanthemum

For Teachers K - 2nd
Our uniqueness should be celebrated, not teased. The story Chrysanthemum addresses having a distinct name and dealing with different perceptions. Pre- and post-reading questions are listed to help your learners understand and make...
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Activity
2
2
Curated OER

Emotion Card Games

For Teachers K - 8th
Emotions come in all shapes and sizes, and can be difficult for young learners or students with special needs to identify. Support them in gaining the valuable social skill of recognizing emotions and understanding empathy with this...
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Lesson Plan
1
1
Nemours KidsHealth

Empathy: Grades K-2

For Teachers K - 2nd
Second graders read articles about being afraid, dealing with anger and apologizing. In this feelings lesson, 2nd graders read articles and discuss the feelings they have. Students describe their feelings and how to be supportive of each...
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Lesson Plan
1
1
Museum of Disability

Don't Laugh at Me

For Teachers Pre-K - 3rd Standards
You can prevent bullying in your classroom by addressing kindness, empathy, and acceptance with your littlest learners early on. After reading Don't Laugh at Me by Steve Seskin and Allen Shamblin, kids discuss the ways that words can...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Teach Peace Now

For Teachers Pre-K - 6th
Help your learners discover empathy and understanding by investigating two sides of a situation. In this humanities instructional activity, pupils examine different pairs of shoes and hypothesize about who may have worn them. Discuss...
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Lesson Plan
1
1
Overcoming Obstacles

Resolving Conflicts

For Teachers K - 2nd
A lesson about resolving conflicts guides young scholars through the process of identifying emotions and reflecting on the situation, all before taking action. The lesson encourages class members to stay open-minded and listen to the...
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Activity
Thoughtful Learning

Seeing Emotions in Body Language

For Students K - 5th
Scholars test their skills of reading body language with a collaborative learning experience that focuses on showing and identifying emotions. Pairs take turns acting out an emotion, one uses body language while the other guesses what...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Empathy and Art

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students watch an episode of the PBS show "Maya and Miguel" and examine how to express empathy with someone who has a disability. They discuss the episode, and create an art project using one hand only, or paint an object blindfolded...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

I Feel Angry or Sad When...

For Teachers K - 2nd
Learners identify inclusive procedures for activities. In this social skills lesson plan, students perform skits that illustrate inappropriate as well as appropriate classroom behavior.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Happy Faces

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
Students demonstrate empathy. In this character education lesson, students read the book Alexander and the Horrible No Good Very Bad Day and discuss examples of bad days they have experienced. Students are given happy face cut-outs to...
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Lesson Plan
2
2
Museum of Disability

Stand in My Shoes

For Teachers Pre-K - 3rd Standards
Stand in My Shoes, a story by Bob Sornson, is an effective way to teach young learners about empathy and making friends. Once pupils read through the story, they answer a series of discussion questions and complete reading activities...
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Activity
2
2
Do2Learn

Social Play Action Figures

For Teachers Pre-K - 2nd Standards
Three activities stem from one hands-on project designed to explore character traits. Scholars create an action figure that reflects their personality to teach others about themselves and role play conversational skills.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Using Words to Work Things Out

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
Students explore appropriate ways to communicate feelings.  In this character development lesson, students listen to Hands are not for Hitting and several other books about expressing emotions appropriately.  Students observe puppet...
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Workbook
2
2
Guidance Group

101 Ways to Teach Children Social Skills

For Students K - 6th Standards
Increasing pressure to improve student achievement has made it easy to overlook the social skills they also need to develop. With this collection of worksheets and activities, you'll be able to improve children's communication, teamwork,...
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Activity
Thoughtful Learning

Seeing Emotion in Facial Expressions

For Students K - 8th
Learning to read body language, especially facial expressions, is the focus of a mini-lesson. Young learners examine a series of photographs, identify the emotion being illustrated, and then discuss the cues that revealed the emotion.
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Activity
National Autistic Society

Autism Awareness

For Teachers Pre-K - 12th
Planning activities for Autism Awareness Month? Check out the ideas in a packet designed to raise awareness of autism. Suggestions include plans for an assembly to launch a school-wide focus, lesson plans for classroom activities, and...
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Lesson Plan
2
2
Museum of Disability

Ian’s Walk and Apples for Cheyenne

For Teachers Pre-K - 3rd Standards
Help young learners understand friendship and empathy with two reading comprehension lessons. Each lesson focuses on a story about a child with autism, and encourages readers to compare and contrast the characters to each other and to...