The Golden Rule Via Wonderopolis

After winter break we spent time Building Classroom Community by learning, discussing and reading about Paying It Forward and Random Acts of Kindness.  On Monday when I checked out the Wonder of the Day #841 What Is the Golden Rule?, I knew exactly what we would be doing on morning Tuesday in order to continue our community building theme.

After reading over the Wonder, watching the video and discussing what 'reciprocity' means, we talked about what the Golden Rule is.  We also talked about how it applies to 'random acts of kindness' and 'paying it forward'.  I also asked the students why they thought Wonderopolis would choose Martin Luther King Jr. Day to share this Wonder with us, which connected to learning last week.

Later in the day, we read The Golden Rule by Ilene Cooper.  This book connected perfectly with the Wonder, especially with the video in the Wonder.  A grandfather explains to his grandson what the Golden Rule means and how the principle is found in different cultures.  We spent time thinking about something the grandfather said in the book, "I wonder how things would change if everyone lived by the Golden Rule."  Children shared how they thought their lives, our school and world would be different if we all followed the Golden Rule.

This would also be a great Wonder and book to share at the beginning of the year to help build community and set the tone of your classroom.