Unit One

Care and be kind

Objectives
In this unit Superbunny will face a challenge of force. How does he deal with violence
while supporting compassion? How do you handle your anger when you are
challenged? Anger destroys compassion. So does violence. Superbunny follows some
basic habits:

 I am fair.
 I listen to others.
 I don’t hurt others.
 I am gentle.
 I protect others.

We will also introduce problem solving methods such the ABCD of conflict
resolution.

Pictures to talk about

Care for those who are hurt - sick - old.

Who else can you care for?

Superbunny song

Each Superbunny story starts with this song. We hope you will make singing this song
a routine before you start every Superbunny story.
 Superbunny, woodpecker and the rest,
Always do their best,
To stop what is wrong,
And help everybody get along.
Superbunny woodpecker and the rest.
Never stop,
And always do their best.
 The Woodcutter and the Six Piglets

1. Superbunny was in the forest. It was very peaceful and pretty. (forest song)
2. Suddenly he heard a loud bang. Superbunny ran to see what had happened. He
saw that a woodcutter had caught Mother Pig. She cried to Superbunny, ‘Please go
and take care of my little piglets.’
3. Superbunny went to Mother Pig’s home and said, ‘Piglets follow me’ and kept
the piglets safely.
4. The next day they saw the woodcutter again. He wanted to cut the trees.
Superbunny said. ‘Don’t hurt the trees. They are the homes of many animals.’ The
woodcutter said, ‘But now they are mine and I am going to cut them.’
5. The animals sat together and discussed what to do. ‘We can attack him. We can
bite him, or kick him.’ said the piglets. Superbunny said, ‘He was wrong in taking
your mother, but that does not mean we should be wrong too. We must stop him but
we have to do it in the right way.’ (Arms are for hugging song)
6. The next day the animals stood in front of the trees. They said, ‘If you want to
cut the trees, you will have to cut us too.’ Just as the woodcutter got his bulldozer
ready, Street kid made a picture and gave it to the newspaper.
7. The newspaper wrote about the animals and the woodcutter. The King read the
newspaper. He called the woodcutter.
8. The King said, ‘Woodcutter, you can cut trees, but you must first plant them.
Here, I give you a land. You can plant your trees there!’ The woodcutter started to
plant the trees. He was not so happy, but the animals could live in peace again.

Questions to discuss
In this story there are many characters who wanted to use force. Can you name some
of them? What did they want to do?

 Why did Superbunny refuse to attack the woodcutter?

 What is the right way to fight for peace?
 Have you ever heard of ‘win-win’ solutions?
 If somebody attacks you, can you control yourself?
Ideas for movements and dance

Act out the following different scenes with movement

1. Superbunny is doing meditation. Other children are trees and make a tableaux of
animals.
2. Clap hands (hit a drum/ tambourine) as the children act out the pig getting shot,
while the others run and cry for help.
3. Superbunny protects the children (piglets).
4. The woodcutter acts bossy and proud while the animals are humble but strong.
5. The children sit down and one by one act out how they can hurt the woodcutter.
Superbunny shows we must find a good solution.
6. Some animals are trees, others stand in front of them and protect them.
7. Streetkid makes pictures which are going to the king.
8. The king tells the woodcutter to plant trees first (sit on knees). (Finally he lies
down – in relaxation pose)

Make kindness stars!

Roleplay: Solving problems Lovingly

It is not possible to live a life without problems. But we can learn how to deal with
our problems. When children have differences, we also have to solve our problems
lovingly, without anger or hatred. In the Montessori tradition children work out their
problems by sitting at a Peace Table. Help them use the following steps to work out
their differences:

ABCD of Conflict Resolution

Ask – What is the problem?

Brainstorm – What can be solutions?
Choose – Choose the best solution.
Do it – Implement your choice.

Arrange a role play to help the kids practice talking and listening and negotiating
solutions.
Arms are for hugging
Helping and Loving
They may go left
They may go right
My arms they never fight
They never fight.
Why do people do bad things?
In the story the woodcutter wanted to cut down the trees. Do you know why? Do you
know why people do bad things to others? Our anger and greed hurt our own peace.

The Whale Boy

This story is from the Eskimo people of northern Russia.

A long time ago, a man married his second wife. Though her husband was good to
her, she didn’t fit in with the others and often felt lonely and went for long walks
along the seashore. On one such day, she saw something very large coming closer and
closer to her. She stopped and noticed it was a whale. And as the whale reached the
beach, a man emerged. The man talked with her and they became very friendly. He
asked her to meet him again the next day. Thus they spend much time together and
were very glad together.

Her husband had started to worry. He followed his wife on one of her long walks and
when he saw the whale man holding her close, he ran out
from his hiding place and wanted to attack the whale
man. He however knew what was going to happen, and
ran off. The husband hit the whale with his spear, and
saw the whale off, bleeding from his side.

Shortly after this, the young wife gave birth to a whale baby. She nursed the child till
it was big enough to go out into the sea. There it learned to swim, get its own food and
protect itself. Later a group of whales, one with a large wound at his side, came and
took the little whale with them.
Each spring, the young whale boy would come back, with many other whales. The
villagers hunted many whales and their village became rich. The neighboring village
became jealous. They couldn’t accept that the other village was doing better than their
own. They knew that the wealth of the other village was the special favor of the whale
boy. That following spring they took out a hunting group and killed the whale boy.
Without him, the whales never came back.

This made the whale boy’s village so upset, that they started to attack the other
village, a fight that hasn’t ended yet until today.

 Discuss how the people could have prevented this war.

 How can they bring about peace?
 It is easy to spread hatred. Can you spread kindness too?
Make many kindness cards. Give each child two at
the beginning of the day. Each time a child does
something for others, they can give one away. Who can
end the day without cards?

Animals suffer from our greed too

Jealousy and Greed are everywhere but it is easiest to see it in how we, the people
treat nature. Many animals have died out because of the greed of the people. One
example is the buffalo in North America. Another is the innocent dodo on Mauritius.
Which other animals have died out or are endangered?
Superbunny wanted to protect the animals and trees. What can we do to protect them?

We have to save the rhino,

The rhino and its horns.
We have to save the rhino.
There aren’t many anymore.
So we shouldn’t wait
To save the rhino,
Or soon it will be too late.

Substitute with the names of other animals, such as: Elephant – tusks, Shark – fin,
Tiger – skin, Monkey – paw, ….

Loving the animals means loving the trees

Though there are some people who are selfish and don’t mind to hurt the planet, many
people protect the Earth, like Green Peace, Jane Goodall, and others. (Talk about
them) They all say that to protect the animals we need to protect the trees. Do you
know why? Do you feel it is right for people just to go and cut the trees that have been
home to animals for many generations? Learn this song:
 Stop, stop don’t cut me
I am an apple tree
I’ll care for you
If you care for me.

Substitute with: a pine, maple, oak, banana, pear, mango, …..

The Girl who could talk with the birds

Once there was a girl who wanted to learn to talk with the birds. Her aunt was a little
bit of a witch and told her in a whisper, ‘It’s easy! Every day feed them some grain
and love them and you will know what they say.’
And yes, indeed after a few weeks, she could understand their songs. It wasn’t much
of a conversation though, as whole day they chirped ‘Hello! I’m here. Hello! I’m
here!’
But one day the birds said, ‘Be careful, a storm is coming. Be careful! A storm is
coming.’ The Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-Birds told her father and he at once told
all the farmers that they should secure their fruit trees because a storm was coming.
The other farmers laughed at him and said. ‘It is impossible. Look! The skies are all
blue. And the storm season is still far away.’
But the next day there was a very big storm, and many fruit trees were lost. Only the
father of the Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-Birds, had secured their trees and saved the
fruits.
The farmers were angry. ‘How was it possible?’ they thought. ‘That girl must be a
witch!’

Then the Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-Birds went to see her aunt again and asked
how she could learn to talk with the moles. ‘It’s easy!’ she said, ‘but you won’t like it
very much. They are very boring animals.’
But the Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-Birds didn’t mind. And just as with the birds,
she fed them every day and loved them and yes, in no time, she understood their
sounds. ‘Of course, all they said, was ‘Dig! Dig! Dig! Let’s dig! Dig, dig, dig! …’
But one day the moles started to say something different, ‘It’s going to freeze
tomorrow. It’s going to freeze tomorrow.’ Again the Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-
Birds, quickly went to her father, and told him to pull out his carrots. He too told his
fellow farmers to pull out their carrots. But those farmers laughed at him and said,
‘How is it possible, it isn’t winter yet!’
The next night it froze terribly, and all the other farmers lost their carrots and potatoes.
Only the father of the girl who could talk with the birds had saved his. Again the
farmers said, ‘That girl, she must be a witch!’

The Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-Birds now wanted to learn to talk with the bees.

And as her aunt was not at home, she found her own way to talk to them by loving
them and feeding them everyday.
Again they were not very entertaining, as all they said was, ‘Honey, there is honey in
those flowers. Honey, there is honey in those flowers.’
But one day they stated to say, ‘Don’t go out. Don’t go out. It is going to rain!’ She
told her father who took in his harvest of grains and told the other farmers to do the
same. But again they could not believe him and rested in their homes. But that night
there was a terrible storm and all the other farmers lost their crops.
This time the farmers got so upset that they called the soldiers of the king’s palace and
told that the Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-Birds was a witch and should be beheaded.
The soldiers brought the girl and decided then and there that she should be beheaded.
But just as one of them wanted to take out his sword, the little girl called the bees and
cried, ‘Save me! Save me.’ In no time there came thousands of bees who swarmed all
From the story: The Girl who could talk with the birds
around the soldiers and chased them away, allowing the Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-
Birds to go back home.

But the farmers were not satisfied and again told the soldiers where to find her and tie
her to a pole to be burned as was common those days. They had prepared a lot of dry
wood and the fire started to really rise quickly and surround the Girl-who-could-talk-
with-the-Birds who was tied to the pole. But then she called her bird friends to save
her. And they all carried away the tiny branches of wood, so that the fire died out very
quickly. They also untied her hands and helped her escape again.
The Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-Birds went home again to live her life peacefully.
But the farmers were really burning with anger and this time asked the soldiers to put
the girl into a jail, deep under the palace. The soldiers did so, and the Girl-who-could-
talk-with-the-Birds was really very sad. There was nobody who could help her, she
thought. And as she sat on the mud floor she suddenly hear a familiar sound! It were
the moles! ‘Dig! Dig! Dig! Let’s dig! Dig, dig, dig! …’ They made a small tunnel, just
big enough for her, from the jail into the garden of the palace.
There the Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-Birds got up and saw the prince, who fell in
love with the beautiful girl and then and there asked her to marry him.

The Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-Birds looked at him for a second and then shook

her head. ‘You people are not very good. I don’t want to be near you anymore.’ She
left them, and walked into the forest, where she lived the rest of her life with the
animals and her other friends.

==========================

Discussion:
 How did the Girl-who-could-talk-with-the-Birds deal with violence?
 Do you know about people who leave the world and live in the mountains or
caves to find peace?
 Do you think it is possible to find peace with your friends?
 What do we need to do to find peace?
Review the habits:

 I am fair.
 I listen to others.
 I don’t hurt others.
 I am gentle.
 I protect others.
Learn this song:
 Do you want peace?
Oh, yes we do.
Do you want love?
Oh, yes we do.
Then these are the things you should do:
Care and be kind
Never steal
And speak good words all the time.

Make a banner

Put your hand prints around the words!

Success is what you

do for others.
Game: Problems and Solutions.

Draw a board game on the white board and make problem spots and good habits.
Mark the problem spots as a little fire. If they can’t solve the problem, they have to go
back. When they hit a good habit, they can move ahead two spots.
The good habits:
 I am fair.
 I listen to others.
 I don’t hurt others.
 I am gentle.
 I protect others.

Problem Spots:
Any classroom situations that often occur. Make them up according to the needs
of the students.

Peace Circle

Give out the stones with the key words written on them. Place candles for each child
in the middle. Put on the soft music. Ask one child to say something about the good
word in his hand and place that stone/ card/ piece of wood with the word in the
middle. In return they may take a candle. Then ask a second child to do the same.
Continue to do so until all the children got their candle and are quiet. Then blow out
the candles.

To all the people,

And other living beings too
I wish all things wonderful
I wish all the good.

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"When you bow deeply to the universe, it bows back;

when you call out the name of God, it echoes inside you."

-Morihei Ueshiba