This wordless picture book is beautifully illustrated and tells the story about a mouse who was saved by a kind lion from becoming the lions dinner and how later the tiny mouse was able to save the lion from a hunter’s net.

Materials

• Kindness coupons
• Picture of a lion and a mouse
• 4 small fishnets or skimmer spoons

Vocabulary

• Fable (a story that teaches a lesson)
• Kindness (the act of doing something friendly, generous, or considerate for another)

Before Reading the Story

Tell the children that today’s story is about doing an act of kindness for another person or animal. Ask the children if they know what kindness means or looks like? Help the children if they are having trouble with the conversation by giving the definition of kindness and asking questions such as; have you ever done something nice for another person? Do you think that you can help a person who is bigger than you? Stronger than you? Ask the children how ift makes them feel when they do an act of kindness towards another? Explain that today’s story is about a wild lion and a little mouse. Introduce the story.

Language Development/Speaking & Communicating; develops increasing abilities to understand and use language to communicate information, experiences, ideas, feelings, opinions, needs, questions; and for other varied purposes.

Reading the Story

Stop and point out the loving act of kindness that took place on the page-on the page where the lion lets the mouse go and on the page where the mouse helps free the lion.

Language/Speaking & Communicating; uses an increasingly complex and varied spoken language.

One the first page, ask the children if they can tell at what time the story is taking place (night).  On the page with the Jeep, ask the children if they think they know what the men are doing in the jungle.  After they respond, on the next page show them how the sandbags will fall when someone or some animal steps on the rope.  Can they guess who’s foot has just stepped on the rope?  On the page with the roaring, ask the children if they know what the mouse is up to?  Do you think he is scared when he hears the roaring or do you think that he wants to help the lion?  WHY?

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; demonstrates progress in abilities to retell and dictate stories from books and experiences; to act out stories in dramatic play; and to predict what will happen next in a story.

 After Reading the Story

Tell the children that this story is a fable. Fables teach lessons. Ask the children what they think the lesson of the story was? (Be nice, help others, even little people can help).

Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops increasing abilities to classify, compare, and contrast objects, events, and experiences.

It might be fun to try to act this story out. Since it is a wordless book, the children can tell it in their own words and the actors can roar, scratch, and squeak.

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; demonstrates progress in abilities to retell and dictate stories from books and experiences; to act out stories in dramatic play; and to predict what will happen next in a story.

Discovery

Put out the pictures of the lion and the mouse. Ask the children to tell you some of the similarities and differences that they see between the two animals. (They are both animals, they have 4 feet, they have tails, one is big and one is little, the lion has long fur)

Science/Scientific Skills & Methods; develops increased ability to observe and discuss common properties, differences, and comparisons among objects and materials.

Music and Movement

Teach the children the song Make New Friends minus the round. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9NwEGSQ3r4

Play the Sesame Street Kindness Song and have the children repeat, “that’s kindness” with the characters. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enaRNnEzwi4

Creative Arts/Music;participates with increasing interest and enjoyment in a variety of music activities, including listening, singing, finger plays, agames, and performances.

Blocks

Encourage the children to work in cooperation with the others in the center.

Social & Emotional Development/Cooperation;shows increasing abilities to use compromise and discussion in working, playing, and resolving conflicts with peers.

Art

Cut out large circles, about the size of a dinner plate. Draw a smaller circle inside, about the size of a lunch plate. Show the children how to use scissors and cut from the outside of the large circle to the line of the smaller circle. This could then become a mane and the children can draw a lion face with markers.

Physical Health & Development/Fine Motor Skills; develops strength, dexterity, and control needed to use tools such as scissors, paper punch, stapler, and hammer.

Sand and Water

Add the fishnets or skimmer spoons to the table today with water. Dump a set of sorters such as sorting bears into the water. Encourage the children to use the fish nets to scoop up all the red counters, the small counters, etc.

Mathematics/Geometry & Spatial Sense; shows growth in matching, sorting, putting in a series, and regrouping objects according to one or two attributes such as color, shape, or size.

Library and Writing

Tell the children that you will help them write and act of kindness that they will do for a family member or friend. Copy the name of the person that the child wants to do the act for onto a piece of paper. The child copy the name onto the kindness coupon. On the other side you can write what the child would like to do. (Mommy-I won’t fight with my brother. Grandma-I will read stories with you. Tony-I will let you ride my bike).

Literacy/Early Writing; progresses from using scribbles, shapes, or pictures to represent ideas to using letter-like symbols, to copying and writing familiar words such as their own name.

Dramatic Play

Add some yarn or string to the center and encourage the children to act out the story on their own.

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; demonstrates progress in abilities to retell and dictate stories from books and experiences; to act out stories in dramatic play; and to predict what will happen next in a story.

Math and Manipulatives

Cut out 2 foot lengths of yarn or string. Fold in half and tie to a chair. The children can practice tying knots the rest of the length of yarn or string. Cut and tie similar lengths of ribbon. The children can use scissors to snip the ends up.

Physical Health & Development/Fine Motor Skills; develops growing strength, dexterity, and control needed to use tools such as scissors, paper punch, stapler, and hammer.

Outdoor Play

Practice your roars and squeaks.

Transitions

Tell the children about any acts of kindness that you saw happen in the class today. (I like the way Alison shared her scissors with Sean. I saw Ryan ask Paula if she wanted to build blocks with him. I noticed Roger was feeling sad and Bobby asked him if he was ok).

Social & Emotional Development/Social Relationships; shows progress in developing friendships with peers.

Resources