Fun with Character: Time Talent Treasure
YBE GENEROUS WITH YOUR TIME
Discuss what it means to ‘give time’ with your students. These activities should only require that you spend time with someone. This could be reading to a younger sibling or playing cards with an aging relative. The focus should be on spending time WITH someone. This is not the time for doing chores for someone.
Time is also required if you are trying to conserve your resources. It takes a few extra minutes to rinse out a can and put it in the recycle bin rather than just tossing it in the trash. Conserving our natural resources and taking care of the environment is being generous to future generations.
For one of the weeks of this month, challenge your students to find ways to give of themselves by giving time.
BE GENEROUS WITH YOUR TALENT
Discuss what it means to ‘give talent’ with your students. These activities should focus on doing a task or chore for someone or for a group. It could be volunteering for a church or community activity, or it could be doing something for a family member or neighbor.
Another way to be generous with your talent is to find something that you do well and share it with someone else. For example, if you have skills in soccer, perhaps you could do drills with a younger soccer player. If you can sing, you can organize a neighborhood caroling adventure or perform for a nursing home. If you are good at reading or math, there are always younger students who could benefit from a tutor.
For one of the weeks of this month, challenge your students to find ways to give of themselves by performing a job that benefits someone else.
BE GENEROUS WITH YOUR TREASURE
Discuss what it means to ‘give treasure’ with your students. It doesn’t always have to mean money. These activities should focus on giving something. You can organize a drive to collect a specific item, such as loaves of bread or new or used but usable mittens or socks, and donate them to a local shelter. (It is much easier to coordinate a drive for a specific item than it is to run a food or clothing drive.)
If your school already has a clothing, food, or toy drive in place, beef up that activity by having students write short notes to the people who will receive the items and attach the notes to the items. Once the items are collected, pick out a few to use as an example. Have the students imagine the people that their things will go to, and how happy these people will be to receive them. Create a fictitious character and a story about the items.
To process this activity, ask these or similar questions:
Did you realize how many different ways there were to be generous?
Have you done some of these things before without realizing it was generosity?
How did it feel to be generous?
How does it feel to give to those who are not as lucky as you?
What will you do the next time you notice someone in need?
Will you look for all the ways you can be generous in the future?