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Teacher's Guide
Unit Three: Compassion
Arrow Activity Tasks

Students will:

  • define compassion.
  • learn about compassionate young people who have inspired Dr. Jane.
  • list examples of compassion in the community.
  • invite a person from this list to talk to the class about how he or she is helping the community.
  • journal about a problem that stirs compassion in them.
Arrow Dr. Jane’s Lesson
Dr. Jane has drawn much inspiration from people who demonstrate compassion, including youth. Students can read about the people who have inspired Dr. Jane and learn that young people can have a significant, positive impact on their communities.

Arrow Duration
  • 1 hour
Arrow Materials
  • All required information resource materials are online, links provided.
Arrow Connecting to the Content
Compassion turns the knowledge people have gained into the actions they need to take. Students learn about the actions of other compassionate people, giving them the inspiration they need to decide they can also make a difference. Students search for examples of compassionate leaders in their communities and invite them to tell their stories to the class. This serves to develop communication skills and inspire students to action.

Arrow Procedure
  1. Have students access Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary and find the definition of compassion. Is the definition what students expected? For example, did they know that part of compassion is the desire to stop another’s distress?
  2. Have the class learn about some of the compassionate young people who have inspired Dr. Jane.
  3. Have students find examples of compassionate works in their community. Depending on the issue or problem students researched, ask them the following questions:
    • Land, Water, Air – Are there any groups or individuals working in your community to help improve the quality of the water, land, and air? What are some projects that have been successful?
    • Plants – Are there farms or community gardens in your area? Is there a school or university in your community that is working to learn about, preserve, and/or protect native plant species? Are there public gardens that promote community awareness of issues affecting plants?
    • Animals – Is there a humane society, shelter, wildlife rehabilitation site, or other animal welfare organization in your area? How does it operate?
    • People – What examples of people helping people can you find in your community? These can be very small-scale (one person helping a neighbor, for example) or involve larger organizations.
  4. Have students choose one or two compassionate leaders from the community and invite them to the school so students can learn more about the people and their projects.
  5. Direct students to complete the journal entry in which students write about a problem that stirs compassion and calls them to action. They can choose either their own problem or one presented by a classmate.
Arrow Assessment

Have students:

  • explain the meaning of the word compassion.
  • share their lists of compassionate leaders in the community and which ones they plan to invite.
  • share their knowledge of how community members have had a positive impact on water, land, air, plants, animals, and humans.
  • demonstrate their knowledge of the community problem they researched.
  • share why a particular problem called them to action more than another.
Arrow Extensions
  1. Students may have compassionate people in their lives who have inspired them, much like Dr. Jane has been inspired by others’ compassion. Have students write about how these compassionate people affected them.
  2. In the Knowledge section, students had the extension option to conduct evaluations of their own school by conducting School Environmental Surveys. Students could seek compassionate people who are currently making a difference in their school’s environment.
Arrow Terms
  • Community Gardens – A piece of land utilized by the society to produce food and flowers for the personal use of society members.
  • Compassion – Sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it.
Teacher's Guide
Unit One
  ArrowTree Exercise
  ArrowRoots
  ArrowShoots
  ArrowMentors
Unit Two
  ArrowObserver
  ArrowPioneer  
  ArrowExpert  
Unit Three
  ArrowKnowledge
  ArrowCompassion
  ArrowAction
Unit Four
  ArrowResilience
  ArrowPerseverance
  ArrowCelebration
 
 Related Topics:
  ArrowABC's of Chimp Behavior
  ArrowDr. Jane's Scrapbook
  ArrowE-Card
  ArrowMultiple Intelligences
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  ArrowOnline Dictionary
  ArrowTree Sketching Guide
 
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