T

Teach the Mind, Touch the Heart

Jim Walser If character counts …

If respect, responsibility, and reason count as much as reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmetic…

If pride (Polite, Responsible, Individuals Doing Extra) is important…

If your children like storytelling, skits, live animals, magic, music, and audience participation …

If good character is a matter of choice, not chance … Choose Teach the Mind, Touch the Heart!

 

 

 

Study Guide
(Please copy and give to teachers before assembly)

For Printer Friendly Version, click here: Teach the Mind, Touch the Heart program guide in pdf format. You must have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed to view the program guide. Visit http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html to download the FREE reader.

Teach the Mind, Touch the Heart promotes the three R's (respect, responsibility, and reason) while developing self-control and self-esteem. It inspires ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things. Please use this study guide to help your students benefit more fully from today's assembly.

My Story, Your Story, Our Story-History
Ask young students to take turns telling their favorite story from today's assembly one sentence at a time. Write each sentence on the board or computer. Ask older students to pick their favorite story and write it down as they remember it. Next, ask them to work in small groups with others who selected the same story and combine their individual versions into one story. Give each group a chance to read or tell their story to the rest of the class. Discuss how the stories teach your mind and touch your heart. Since everyone is unique, we all relate to stories in different ways. Listed below are a few ways these stories have taught my mind and touched my heart.

Coyote Steals The Blanket
by Janet Stevens
" I go where I want, I do what I want, I take what I want." Coyote doesn't respect anything … himself, others, or the earth. If we steal, cheat, or lie we are just like coyote.

The rock covered by the beautiful blanket in the story is like the earth and the many beautiful plants and animals covering it. I am reminded that we did not inherit the earth from our parents, but rather we are borrowing it from our children.

The rock and blanket in the story are like cigarettes, alcohol, and other drugs. They tempt us even though we know they are dangerous. If we become addicted, we may feel like the rock will never let us alone.

The Tale of the Snake
by Iron Eyes Cody
Jim Walser - Tale of the Snake" You knew what I was when you picked me up." If we give in to pressure from others, and use cigarettes, alcohol, and other drugs, we don't respect ourselves and we lack self-control. It isn't easy to say no, especially when our friends ask us to do something we shouldn't, but maybe our friends are really being snakes. We can respect ourselves, keep self-control, and act responsibly by saying "no" in a variety of ways.

People sometimes try to build up their own self-esteem by saying, "great minds think alike", but Ben Franklin said it better when he said, "great minds think for themselves".

The Wish Giver
by Bill Brittain
The Magic Finger
by Roald Dahl
The goose that laid the golden egg won't make you as rich as the golden rule, "always treat others as you would like to be treated". The game "find the F's" showed us the importance of not overlooking the little things like minding our manners and respecting the feelings of others. Also, don't forget to act responsibly by remembering the motto" feel, think, act". And, remember …"attitudes are contagious, so make sure yours are worth catching".

The Tree That Would Not Die
by Ellen Levine
"Thousands have written from around the world. Dear tree, the letters all begin. One child wrote; please get well, you're too old to die." I'm sure none of us can even imagine how someone could poison a 400 year old tree, but even small acts of vandalism show a lack of respect for others property. Just as with drugs, there are many ways to say "no" to peer pressure when asked to be involved with vandalism.

The Mysterious Multiplying Gift
" One small gift was shared by more than 3 million people." Today, Heifer Project International, (800) 698-2511, helps people all around the world feed themselves and take care of the earth. Helen Keller once said, "I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble". "If" is very small word, but it is one of the most powerful words in our language. For a very interesting lesson in multiplying, logic, and reasoning read Anno's Mysterious Multiplying Jar, and Anno's Hat Tricks by Mitsumasa Anno to your class.

The Legend of Charley Parkhurst
by Hector Lee
(found in Best Loved Stories Told at the National Storytelling Festival)
Jim Walser"She'll be comin' round the mountain..." Charley Parkhurst lived in the 1800's when it was impossible for a woman to be a stagecoach driver, but she was one of the best! Ordinary people can accomplish extraordinary things by: setting a series of attainable goals, refusing to be intimidated by the word "impossible", believing that we can make a difference, exercising judgment and reason when deciding when to go and when to stand pat, and remembering, like the eentsy weentsy spider, "if first you don't succeed; try, try, again". Thomas Edison said, "genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration".

The Gift of Acabar
by Og Mandino and Buddy Kaye
" Tulo is riding his kite through the Kingdom of Forever, making the world a little bit brighter". We have all been given a special gift. Our job is to discover it and share it with others. Then we too will one day be stars in the Kingdom of Forever.

 

 

Printer Friendly PDF Files Available

Program Flyers

Program Study Guides

*Schools: Check with your District Office...It’s a Jungle Out There (substance abuse program) qualify for Safe & Drug-Free Entitlement Money authorized by the State Board of Education.