Don’t Laugh at Me

Don’t laugh at me is a series of classroom guidance lessons. It was developed by Don’t laugh at Me to discourage teasing in the schools. The series is designed for grades 2-5.
A typical lesson follows.

Opening

Begin by putting the following number ranges on the board; -5 to –2, -1 to1, and 2-5. Explain to the class that the numbers represent how they are feeling today. –5 is the worst day you could imagine, and 5 indicates the best day ever. Have the children put their heads down and ask for a show of hands on what category they would fit into today. Have the students raise their heads and talk about feelings and elicit words from the students that might fit into the categories. Explain that today the activity will be about put downs, and how they can make somebody feel like those words described in the –5 to-2 category.
Activity

Have the students get out something to draw and color with. Pass out a sheet of white paper to each student, and have him or her draw a large heart on the paper. Tell them to decorate the heart. Give them 5- 10 minutes to do this. When the time is up have them put their art supplies away, and tell the students you are going to read a short story to them. Tell them the story is about a boy named Pedro, and what happened to him one day. Explain to the students that each time Pedro gets put down they should tear their heart. Read the story The Torn Heart to the students. You may want to pause after each put down so the children have time to tear their hearts.