Materials: Louie’s Little Legs and the Magic of Kindness – Book, 2 sets of C2C Louie Puppets, 5 copies of “Louie’s Little Legs Discussion Guide”, 5 copies of “Kindness Theater Story Map”, & Pencils
Instructions:
1. Begin today’s lesson by asking the students if they have any pets! After allowing time for student answers, share with the students that today’s story was written by an author who lives in Cincinnati—and she wrote the story about their family dog, Louie!
2.Read the book Louie’s Little Legs and the Magic of Kindness aloud to students.
***NOTE: If teacher allows, you can move the students to a “group” setting (carpet, reading space).***
3. After finishing the book, choose a few questions from the discussion guide to talk about as a whole group (stick to 1-2 questions at this time).
4. After several student responses to the chosen questions, explain today’s activity: students will be working in small groups to create their own kindness story using the characters from the book! They will write the story with their mentors and then have a chance to act it out for the class.
5. Separate students into 4 small groups according to how many students/mentors are present. Pair at least one mentor with each group (more can sit with a group if available). Each group will need 1 copy of the discussion guide and 1 copy of the Kindness Theater Story Map. Puppets can be split among the groups according to the amount of groups/students.
6. In your small group, give the students about 5 minutes to explore and play with the puppets. They may want to look at them, feel them, put them on, and pretend to be Louie, Stitchy, or Coco.
7. Move on to the story map. Instruct students to start by thinking about which characters from the book they want in their story. Mentors should write down ideas in each box after discussing the content with the students. Complete each box to construct the story. Try to have each student in the group have a “role” in the story. If Louie, Stitchy, or Coco are part of it, the puppets can be used during the “theater” portion by the students. (Groups will share puppets).
8. Be mindful of time—you’ll want about 10 minutes for all groups to be able to perform their stories! As you wrap up the story maps, have students take a few minutes to practice the new story.
9. Once all groups are ready/time is up, have groups perform their stories one at a time for the whole group. They can stand in the front of the room, or wherever is a good place to be seen by everyone.
***NOTE: This is a great opportunity to talk about how to respond kindly to others when presenting (quiet and listening, clap when finished, etc.)
10. Finish up today’s activities by talking together about kindness, ways to show kindness to others, and possible kind actions they can do at school or at home!
Tips: A possible addition to the story map creation: Bring additional paper/supplies for students to create “props” or little accessories for their stories—not all students will be able to use a puppet during the presentations.
