Class III

Words and Statements highlighted in color are by the author of the Blog:

Words in GREEN= Grammar, syntax or spelling error

Words, phrases and sentences in PURPLE= Questionable and/or inaccurate statement (theology, philosophy, ethics, morality, scientific)

Statements in BLUE= Statements that SRCM (Chennai) does not seem to practice



Chapter I God And Guru 61
Love All Whom He Loves 61

Chapter II - Healthy Living 63
Get Fit In Five Easy Steps 63

Chapter III - Greetings 66
Be Courteous, Respect Others 66

Chapter IV – Love 70
Love Thy Neighbours 70

Chapter V - Happiness 72
There Is More Joy In Giving 72

Chapter VI - Nature 75
Nature Our Teacher 75

Chapter VII - Discipline 77
Think Of Others And Be Disciplined 77

Chapter VIII - Work And Perseverance 79
Practice Makes Perfect 80

Chapter IX - Time Management 82
Time And Tide Wait For No Man 82

Chapter X - Courage 84
Have Moral Courage 84


CHAPTER I GOD AND GURU

LOVE ALL WHOM HE LOVES

Objectives

 God loves all creatures of the world. He loves all equally.
 He is in every act of love and kindness.
 The guru helps us to improve. We benefit when we follow his teachings.

Introduction

God is the personification of love. This concept is easy for children to understand if conveyed in the right way. One way is to equate God with Mother. God loves all His creations just as a mother loves all her children. This feeling will help us to develop a feeling of love for all. Let us not think of God as a separate entity, away from us. Let us think of him as one who resides in our hearts. Then we can see His hand in every act of kindness and love.
Just as our parents guide us, our teachers and gurus guide and help us. They correct us when necessary and may even be strict with us. We improve if we take their advice in the right spirit and follow their teachings.

A way to begin

 Tell the children that God loves them the same way their parents love them all equally. (Some children may complain that their parents love their brothers or sisters more. Solve this problem with understanding.) God loves us in the same way. He loves each and every one of His creations equally.
 Tell them how it is important to develop feelings of love, understanding and kindness in our hearts since they are associated with Godliness. Ask them “How do you feel when you love someone and show them kindness and understanding? Don’t you feel happy inside? How do you feel when you get angry with someone and fight? Do you feel the same kind of happiness inside? Love for all God’s creations makes you feel happy.”
 Tell them how their parents and teachers want them to improve. Sometimes they may scold and correct the children. Why do they do it? Is it because they don’t love the children or is it because they love them? Is it right to get angry with them when they correct the children?
 Ask them to think of a school with no teachers, just computers! Will they like that? Can computers replace teachers?

Story Time

Story 1 – (adapted from the story of the Good Samaritan) There was a famous temple in a city and people from far and near came there to pray. One day an old and sick man fell down on the way and got hurt. He lay on the side of the street with nobody to help him. Just then a priest passed by. He was in a hurry to reach the temple and ignored the old man. A rich devotee who had given a lot of money to the temple passed by next. He also went away withouts helping the poor man. The next to go by was a very learned man who preached the word of God. People from far and near flocked to listen to his discourses. He was in hurry as it was getting late for the discourse. Then came a poor man who was also going to the temple. When he saw the old man lying unattended on the ground, he immediately went there, picked him up on his shoulders and took him to a doctor. He gave the doctor all the money he had as fees. Then he fed the old man with whatever he had at home and made him comfortable.
That night all the three who had thought of themselves as devotees of God had a dream and God showed them who the real Devotee was. It was the man who had not gone to the temple to pray to God but had helped the old man.

Story 2 - The Happy Prince by Oscar Wilde—This is the story of a swallow, which stopped in a city while migrating. His companions had flown away and the bird was alone. That night it took shelter at the feet of a statue known as the statue of the Happy Prince. The statue was covered with gold leaves and it had rubies and emeralds embedded in it. At night teardrops that fell on it awakened the bird. It awoke and saw that the prince was crying. He spoke and begged the bird to pluck away the ruby from his sword and give it to a poor woman who was suffering. The bird did that. The next night as the bird was getting ready to fly away, the prince asked it to pluck one of his emerald eyes and give it to a poor poet. The bird did so. The next night he asked the bird to take away the other eye and give it to a poor girl. Now the prince could not see at all. The bird decided to stay with him and be his eyes. Every night it would take away a piece of gold covering the statue and give it away to some poor person. It was getting very cold and the bird could not live. It died at the feet of its dear prince. The town people found that the statue had lost all its gold and was looking shabby. They took it away and melted it. They found that its heart was broken and it wouldn’t melt. They threw away the heart along with the dead bird. God sent his angels to bring something very precious from the earth. The angels brought Him these two things from the waste bin. God was happy and said that they had brought the right things.
Story 3 - Varun’s class teacher gave the class one piece of work that they had to do everyday. They had to choose a small paragraph from some good book and copy it down in their best handwriting. He rarely praised anyone but whenever they did some good work he would appreciate their work and congratulate them! More often he would say either they could have chosen a better passage or that their handwriting could have been better! It became a challenge for the children. They loved this teacher and wanted to do their best for his sake. In that process, unknowingly, they not only improved their handwriting but also started to read good books.
Points to Discuss
 What is the common factor in the first two stories? How did the people in the stories show their love for God?
 The statue of the prince was hard as stone but how was its heart?
 Why was the Prince crying? Was it because he was affected by the misery of the people? Or was it because he could not help them, as he was just a statue? Or both?
 Was it a coincidence that the bird happened to be there at the right time? Or did the cry from the heart of the Prince bring him there?
 Was it only the prince who was showing his love for the poor? What was the part of the bird in it? Why did it stay back instead of flying away?
The Prince gave away something but did he get back something too?
What was it? Was he able to live up to his name of The Happy Prince?
 What did the samaritan do which others had not done? What does the word ‘good’ signify?
 Talk about a teacher who made you work harder and better. Did you like the teacher? Did you think he/she was doing it for your good?

Activities
 Extend your love and caring to people who are disabled and less fortunate than you. Start a toy bank by collecting toys from other children. Then these can be given away to children who cannot afford to buy them. You can even start a story books bank or clothes bank. Think of all those children who do not have these things and how your gifts will make them happy! You will be even happier than they will!


CHAPTER II - HEALTHY LIVING

GET FIT IN FIVE EASY STEPS

Objectives
 Remain healthy by having good food, regular exercise and adequate rest.
 Pay attention to personal hygiene.

Introduction
Staying fit is easy if we follow certain rules. Since children love to emulate sportsmen, they have been taken as role models for health conscious adults. Just a word of caution, it is the rules they follow that are highlighted here, not the products they sponsor for Advertisements!

A way to begin
 Show them the pictures of some famous players. Continue the topic by asking questions as given under ‘Story time’. Emphasize the five principles of good health—Good food, enough exercise, adequate rest, clean body and a clean mind with good thoughts.
 Talk to them about simple but important rules of hygiene—wearing footwear while going out, washing feet after coming from outside, washing hands before eating anything, covering the mouth and nose before sneezing, not licking things like pages of their notebooks etc. These are rules that one may often forget to follow and the consequences can be bad.

Tips for Healthy Life
Don’t you wish you could be a famous cricketeer or a tennis player? Don’t you want to see your photographs in every newspaper and be mobbed by autograph hunters? Before you answer yes, think about these.
The players are successful because they work hard and are very regular in their habits and routine. And most important of all, they are careful about their food, exercise and rest.
They eat good nutritious food with plenty of fruits and vegetables. This makes them strong and healthy. They do not skip meals and take care to eat at regular intervals. They avoid eating junk food because it is not good for them. Are you prepared to do all these?
They are very regular with their exercise. They are not lazy! Exercise helps them to build strong muscles. It helps them to be alert and quick. Are you prepared to do regular exercises?
They take enough rest. It helps them to get back their energy. Without proper rest they will feel very tired. Are you prepared to go to bed early and rise early? Do you think these rules apply only to players?
No, it applies to every one of us too. We have to take good care of ourselves if we want to remain healthy and not fall sick. Good food, regular exercise and adequate rest will help us. Add to these, the daily routine of cleanliness. We must pay attention to the way we clean ourselves.
A healthy body and a healthy mind go together. It doesn’t help if you just end up with a beautiful body, without beautiful thoughts in your mind. Scientists have found out that the body reacts to your mind. Anger, for example can cause ulcers in your stomach. When you are happy and cheerful, you feel healthy too.
God has gifted this body and mind to us. Let us feel responsible and concerned about this wonderful gift and take good care of it.


Story Time
When Nitin’s parents took him to their village for the holidays he did not like it at all! He wanted to be in the city, watch all the cricket matches and then join the school cricket team.
Nitin sulked the first few days. Nobody paid any attention. Out of boredom, he went out to explore the village. When he saw a few boys playing he was shy at first but soon joined the game. Nitin had never had so much fun! His appetite improved and he ate all the food put before him! At night, he did not even miss TV! He was so tired that he fell asleep quickly. Soon it was time to go back. Nitin made up his mind to come back to the village in the next holidays too!.
When he went back to school, he found that he had grown much taller and healthier than his friends! He was now the best runner of the class. No wonder he made it to the school team!

Points to Discuss
 Do you know that the junk foods you want to eat may taste good but they are not good for your body? They contain too much salt and chemicals in them that can be harmful? So the next time you feel like having some junk food, THINK!
 Scientists have found out what happens when we don’t get enough sleep. After two nights we become tired and find it difficult to stay awake. We make mistakes, forget things and get cross with everybody. Finally we can’t stay awake any longer. We need sleep in order to work well. Next time you stay awake late, to study or watch TV, THINK!
 Why is playtime important? Would you like it if you had to sit down all the time?

Activities
 Abu and Babu are two friends. Abu has healthy habits and takes care of himself while Babu is just the opposite.
Below are listed a few things that they do. Can you find out which sentences point out to Abu and which to Babu?
1. Eats a good breakfast
2. Goes to bed late
3. Watches TV all the time
4. Goes out to play
5. Gets up early in the morning
6. Likes to eat fresh vegetables and fruits
7. Eats uncovered things from the roadside vendor
8. Gets angry very quickly
9. Likes to help others
10. Always ready for a fight
 Do this activity with the help of your friend.
Imagine you have to interview a famous sports personality to find out the secret of his success. What questions will you ask? What answers will he/she give?
 Salads are good for you. They are very easy to make too. Learn to make a salad and share it with your friends.
 Mime some games. Can your friends guess what they are?
 Paste pictures of junk food. Put a huge cross across it and write ‘No more junk food for me!’
 Read this poem. You can sing it too! Change the food items to suit the local conditions.
Eat good food, don’t eat junk,
Eat good food, don’t eat junk,
Crunchy granola, yoghurt and cheese,
Cracked wheat, eat cereal, more milk please!
Eat good food, don’t eat junk,
Eat good food, don’t eat junk,
Lettuce is good, celery too,
Meat and potatoes, but don’t eat goo!
Eat good food, don’t eat junk,
Eat good food, don’t eat junk,
No more doughnuts, pies or cakes,
No more chocolate bars, for your health’s sake
Eat good food, don’t eat junk,
Eat good food, don’t eat junk,
NO MORE JUNK!


CHAPTER III - GREETINGS

BE COURTEOUS, RESPECT OTHERS

Objectives
 Be courteous and show respect to everybody, especially to elders.
 When we greet others we show how we would like to be treated in return.

Introduction
Respect and consideration for the feelings of others helps one to develop the quality of courtesy. It is often said that respect should be commanded, not demanded. When respect is given, irrespective of age, it is easy to get it back. Children respect people who do not belittle them. Giving respect begins at home. It is not something you put on only when you go out or when there are strangers / guests. In the Indian tradition, respect for elders has always been given importance. Nowadays there is a lot of talk about generation gaps. This can be overcome if children are taught to respect elders and to listen to what they say.

A way to begin
Tell them the story of a king who asked his minister to name the best part in the human body. The minister said ‘The tongue’. When asked why, he said it is the part that can bring so much happiness to other people by its sweet talk. When the king asked him to name the worst part, again he named the tongue, because it can hurt and make others unhappy when it is used for saying angry and hurtful words. Ask the children if they use their tongue to be polite and courteous.
Discuss with them about politeness. What is politeness and courtesy? Is it just saying Please and Thank you and Sorry?
 Politeness and courtesy also mean not being rude, not using abusive language but talking in a pleasant way. Not interrupting while others talk. Not shouting and disturbing others.
 It means being respectful towards elders. Greeting them. Giving them a place to sit, even if it means vacating your seat. Listening to them and not dismissing them as not being in your age group!
 It means taking care of small things and treating others' property with care. Like wiping your feet before you enter and shutting the door as you leave a place. Not littering any place.
 It means being considerate and courteous to others, even if you don’t like them or agree with them. Not hurting them by saying harsh things. Not being unnecessarily critical. Understanding the point of view of others and looking at things in a different angle.
 It means treating others, as you want to be treated. If you want to be treated nicely and fairly, you must treat them the same way too.

Story Time
Story 1 - Aruna took Lata to her house to meet her grandparents. Aruna’s grandmother opened the door and gave a hug to Aruna and welcomed Lata with a smile. She gave them delicious samosas and they thanked her happily. Grandfather wanted to go to the library. Aruna made sure that he did not have any trouble on the way. She held his hand when the ground was uneven and walked slowly at his speed. When he was ready to leave, Aruna took the books from him and gave him his walking stick. After making sure that her grandparents were both settled, Aruna went with Lata to the park. “Don’t you get bored taking care of your old grandparents?” asked Lata. “No, not at all,” said Aruna “ I have such a good time with them. They love me so much! My grandmother makes such delicious food! She is always there when I come home. She knows so many things. She helped me to knit a dress for my doll. My grandfather helps me with my schoolwork and reads stories for me. They give me good advice when I have problems. After all they have so much more experience! Sometimes they keep repeating things and I get irritated but my father tells me that many old people do this and that I should not mind that. They say things and repeat them for our good. I am so happy they are there.”

Story 2 - “ Today my teacher told us to find out more about courtesy. If I say Thank you, please, excuse me and sorry, am I not being courteous? What else is there to know?” asked Vivek.
His father said he would give him a practical lesson in courtesy. He asked Vivek to watch what he did. First he told Vivek’s mother where they were going and asked her if she wanted anything. (Why is it courteous to tell someone where you are going? Do you do it?) They went to the bus stop and took their place in the queue. “Vivek, when we stand in a queue, we are not only being disciplined but show our courtesy to the others,” said his father. They got seats to sit down. In the next stop, a lady got in and as there was no place for her to sit, Vivek’s father got up and gave her his place. They went to the ticket booking counter and Vivek’s father took time to neatly fill up the form. “ I am being considerate, Vivek, because if I scribble illegibly, I will be causing trouble to the person who issues the tickets. Courtesy makes you think of the other person,” he explained. Courtesy and consideration for others go together.
They went to the market to buy vegetables. While waiting for their turn, an old man came there and Vivek’s father let the man buy before him. He was being courteous again. “ Now it is my turn to show courtesy,” Vivek told his father. “Please, let me carry the bag for you!”

Points to Discuss
 Look at the following situations. Who was being polite and who was not?
 Babu’s mother told him to go to the market to get something. He yelled, “I won’t!”.
 When her aunt came visiting, Nalini wished her and held the front door open for her.
 Ram borrowed a toy but left it in the open in the rain. He didn’t apologise.
 Leela asked permission from her neighbour before plucking flowers from her garden.
 Nita listened to her grandmother when she was talking and didn’t run away to play.
 Are you being courteous when you do the following?
 Push others when you are standing in a line. Talk when the teacher is explaining something. Take somebody else’s pencil without asking permission. Call some elderly person by his/her name.
 Do your grandparents stay with you? Tell the other children in the class about them.


Activities
 This game gives small children some grasp of why respect should be given. You play the role of the child and let the child play the other role. Act out the roles and ask the child how it felt.
 Child (played by you) thanks the father (played by the child) when it gets some biscuits.
 Child is making a lot of noise when the teacher is writing something on the board.
 Child pushes an old lady and goes to the front of the queue.
 Child keeps interrupting when his mother is talking to someone.
 Child throws the bag and runs away even as his father is calling him back.
 What is wrong here? What should you have done?
 Your friend says he can’t understand cricket at all! You call him a stupid fool and make fun of him in front of others.
 Your grandfather is telling you to do something. You are in a hurry to go out and rush off.
 When your friend is narrating something, you ask so many questions in between that he loses track of what he is saying.
 You are playing with your friends when your teacher passes by. You pretend you haven’t seen her and turn your face away.
 Choose about 10- 12 children to act out the story of Vivek going out with his father. Divide the rest of the class into groups with 4-5 children in each group. Tell them that the play is about courtesy. Whenever they find courtesy being shown to others in the play, they should raise their hand. The first one to do so will be called to explain and if he/ she is right, marks will be given to that team. At the end of the play, the groups could give suggestions for extending the play further to reinforce the concept of courtesy.
CHAPTER IV – LOVE

LOVE THY NEIGHBOURS

Objectives
 We have to develop tolerance and love to adjust and live with our neighbours.
 When our neighbours need help, we should be ready to help them.
 Love for our country helps us to grow into good citizens.

Introduction
These days, sharing the available small space with neighbours in flats has become a harsh reality. One needs to be friendly and helpful, sharing in the joys and sorrows of those who live in such proximity. Sometimes we find it hard to do so and petty squabbles become part of life. Little children are able to overcome social barriers and make friends easily. We only need to strengthen and maintain these admirable qualities of friendliness in them and maybe learn from them! Children should be helped to develop love and concern for others through some community work.
Love for the country surfaces only during the time of war. If we can retain it all the time, we can make this a better place to live.

A way to begin
Talk to the children about their neighbours and ask questions to find out what kind of relationship they have with them. Do they have friends among the neighbours? Are any of their neighbours old or sick? Do the children know if they need any help? Can they think of ways to help their neighbours? Do the neighbours keep the common passages clean? Have they organised any common celebration? Do they know to which states the neighbours belong? Give ideas to the children as to how they could bring harmony into their neighbourhood. Often it is through the children that the adults develop interaction.

Story Time
Story 1 - Daya’s family had to move to a small flat from a big house. In the beginning they had many problems. The flat was small and Daya had to share her room with her sister. There was no privacy and it seemed as if the neighbours knew all that was going on in the flat. Soon, however, Daya’s mother found, it was good to have people around. Once when she was sick, it was her neighbours who helped her family. Daya too discovered that it was wonderful having so many friends with whom she could play. Yes, Daya still feels as if she is living in a glass house and feels sad when she thinks of her big, old room with all her toys and the wonderful garden. She misses her dog most of all. But ask her if she wants to go back? She gives an emphatic No!
Points to Discuss
Do you love your family? Do you love your parents, brothers and sisters, and your grandparents? Do you want to make them happy and not hurt them in any way? Do you love your home? Do you want everyone to say what a beautiful house you live in? What a lovely garden you have? Do you want to keep your house in a very good condition without dirty things lying around everywhere?
Maybe you think what ridiculous questions to ask! Doesn’t everyone love their family, their home and their garden? But before you discuss these questions, wait a while and think.
 Does home mean only your small home? Isn’t this planet Earth your home?
 Does garden mean only your tiny garden? Don’t these mountains and plains, rivers and lakes belong to your homeland?
 Does family mean just your own family? Aren’t all the people of this Earth one family?
If we do not want to destroy this home, this garden and this family, then we have to take some positive steps. You might ask, what can you, small children do, which has not been done by the elders. Remember that every action of yours, however small, has a positive effect and can make a big difference. When we love something, we take proper care of it, don’t we? If we love this world, we must take proper care of it too. When you take pains to keep your environment clean, it has a collective effect. Soon you will find that your colony and then your city and then this huge land of ours getting a facelift. Only then can you say with pride that this land is yours and you are happy to belong to it. Remember this world is our home, the forests our garden and the people our family. We should not dirty this home, nor make our garden bare, nor fight with the members of our family.
 Discuss with them how this whole world is like their flat complex. If we can think of the countries as flats, it is easy to see how all of us belong to one big complex! We are all children of the same God and it is foolish to fight amongst ourselves.
 Talk to the children about how this world has become smaller. What happens in one place affects everybody elsewhere too. We have to develop a feeling of love for all the inhabitants of this planet. Ask them what they can do to make this Earth a better place to live in.

Activities
 What are some things that we can do to help our neighbours?
 Keep the common property clean so that no one is put to any hardship.
 You can ask your neighbours if they want anything when you go shopping.
 Visit the sick and the elderly and cheer them up.
 You can offer to do some errands like posting the letters for them, watering their plants or taking their dog (if you like looking after dogs) for a walk.

 What more can we do?
 You can begin by keeping your immediate environment clean and tidy. Take care that you don’t litter things around. Do not add to the junk. Avoid using plastic and paper unnecessarily. This will not only reduce the amount of garbage but will also help in saving our precious trees.
 Take care of public property like parks, roads, buses and other such things. Do not dirty them or destroy them.


CHAPTER V - HAPPINESS

THERE IS MORE JOY IN GIVING

Objectives
 Making others happy is the best way to be happy.
 There is more joy in giving than in receiving.

Introduction
We find that we are happier when we do things for others, when we care for them and help them. It is difficult to be happy when we are thinking only of ourselves, when we are selfish and greedy. We must co-operate with others and not fight with them if we want to be happy.

A way to begin
 Make up a small story about a person who always complained about his ill health. (act as if he is complaining to the doctor that he has so much pain that he can’t even move his arms or legs). The doctor said that nothing was wrong with him, he needed to go out and think of something else.(act the part of the Dr) So unhappily (keep a long face) he went out. Soon he reached a circus ground and he went in out of curiosity. He saw the dress of a clown with a mask and just tried it on (if you can, make a clown mask and take it to the class). As he put this on, a few children came there and started to laugh when they saw the clown. The man was trying to move his arms and legs (act as if he was in pain) and the children laughed more. Soon there was a small crowd of children laughing at his antics and the man found that whatever he did, they laughed and had fun. Soon he forgot his pain and had a good time himself. Now the man had even forgotten that he was a sick man!
 How did he get well? Elicit the answer that he was cured when he became happy. What made him happy? Making others happy made him happy too! Elaborate this point more.
 Ask the children whether they felt happy when they received gifts. How did they feel when they gave gifts themselves? Didn’t it make them feel happier? Discuss how there is more joy in giving. When they see another person happy with what they have given him / her, their own joy doubles. Let children narrate instances when they have given something to another person to make them happy.
 Just like the parents feel happy when the children in a family play happily together and not fight with each other, so also, we make God happy when we are united and make others happy.

Story Time
Story 1 - ‘A Christmas carol’ by Charles Dickens. This is the story of a miser who refuses to be happy even when it is Christmas time. He does not want to help others or spend his money. That night he is taken on a tour by an angel and his eyes are opened when he gets to see how people with very little money are happy because they spread their love around.

Story 2 - The story of the ‘Selfish Giant’ by Oscar Wilde.
This is the story of a giant who has a big garden. In his neighbourhood there are a lot of children who come to the garden and play happily. One day he gets angry with them and decides to close the entry. Now the children can no longer play in his garden. They look longingly at the garden but the giant chases them away. It is winter and he keeps waiting for spring so that he can enjoy his garden in peace. But he finds that in his garden things do not change and it still remains covered with snow while everywhere else ice has melted. He is puzzled.
One day he finds that in one part of his garden there is now snow, the trees have flowers blossoming and the birds are singing. He runs there to investigate and finds a child playing there. The giant realises that it is God himself who has come there to teach him a lesson. He breaks the fence surrounding his garden. The children rush in and so does the spring!

Points to Discuss
Answer the following questions from the story of the Selfish giant :
 Which of the following statements are true—think and answer!
 The giant had always been selfish.
 He was happier when he was unselfish rather than when he was selfish.
 He chased away the children because he wanted the garden all to himself.
 The giant knew why his garden was always covered with snow.
 The snow covering his garden was just like the unselfishness covering his heart.
 Sometimes we behave like the giant and close our hearts to others. What are some reasons for doing so? What happens as a result?
 Tell the children how they must be alert to others needs. Find out who needs help and how to help them. What kind of help can they do at home? How can they help their friends in school? How can they help in the society? Discuss how they should do it - with a happy smile or with a glum and grumpy face?
 When you help someone how do they feel? (Happy). How do you feel? (Happier!)
 Sometimes you don’t even have to do something. If you smile and let the smile spread to the other person, you have made him happier!
 Give some examples of simple gestures that can make another person happy – giving a flower as a gift, sitting and listening patiently to someone, sharing one’s lunch, helping a blind man cross a street, playing with a child etc. Get more such examples from the children.
 Look at the following situations. Who was doing the right thing and who wasn’t?
 Sarah kept a long face because she did not get the gift she wanted for Christmas.
 Arun saw that his cousin had not bought a new shirt for the festival and gave him one of his.
 Sheela found her grandmother could not read because her glasses were broken. She offered to read for her.
 Govind snatched away the toy car from his brother and made him cry.
 Nina saw Lata looking at her cake with longing and gave her the cake with a smile.
 Hari hid the toffees he had got as a gift because his cousins were coming home.


Activities
 Use coloured pictures from old magazines to make collages. Draw two pictures, one showing how the garden is pretty and green with all kinds of flowers with children playing there and the giant watching them. Draw another picture of the garden covered with white snow and the giant watching in a puzzled way. Draw a basic picture with simple outlines. Tear small bits of paper in the appropriate colours and fill up the picture.
 Talk about your picture when it is completed. What will you compare the garden to? When does it bloom? When does it remain cold and colourless?
 Make a gift for some one you care for. It can be a drawing or a painting, a bookmark or a penholder. Surprise your friend by giving him / her with some gift you have made!
 Volunteer to help someone who needs help in the class.
 Learn this poem
The time to be happy is now,
The place to be happy is here,
The way to be happy is to make some one happy
And you have the heaven right here.
CHAPTER VI - NATURE

NATURE OUR TEACHER

Objectives
 Nature was worshipped earlier.
 We can learn many things from Nature.

Introduction
The vedic concept of Nature says that it is made of five elements, namely, earth (Prithvi), water (Jal), air (Vayu) , fire (Agni) and sky or ether or space (Akasha). All living and non-living things are made from one or more of these elements. Explain this concept and tell the children how the ancient people worshipped nature.
We learn many things from Nature. Even a single blade of grass has a message to impart. In Nature, everything has some use and nothing gets wasted. Children can be trained to look at things in nature and say what we can learn from them. The results can be quite amazing!

A way to begin
 Tell them about how people in our country worshipped the aspects of Nature because they knew how important Nature was. Thus the sun was worshipped as Surya, the wind as Vayu, the rain as Varun and the earth as Bhoomi. There was great reverence for Nature. For example, before any hole was dug on the earth, prayers were said and permission sought from the Earth Goddess for harming her. Contrast this with what is happening nowadays.
 Let the children know about the vedic concept of Nature and how people at that time thought of Nature as having been made of the five elements.
 Talk to them about one aspect of Nature, namely the sun. It shines on every one with impartiality, as its nature is to shine and give warmth. Whoever opens the window gets its light and whoever keeps the window shut lives in darkness. It is the same with divinity too. The divine is there to give us love and become a part of us. It is up to us to let that divinity into our hearts and illumine it.
 Tell them the story from Bhagavatam given under Story time. Ask them what they can add to what has been said.

Story Time
Story 1 - Story from Srimad Bhagavatam. King Yadu met an ascetic who lived in a forest and found him to be very wise and learned. The king wondered how this man who lived alone had learnt so much. When asked, the ascetic said that he had 24 teachers who taught him everything. So many teachers in the forest! The king wondered and asked who they were. The ascetic named the things in Nature and explained how each one of them had taught him something. For eg.
Air just like it remains unaffected by good and bad odours, a wise man should be unaffected by good and bad objects.
Mountain like mountain one should rise above all evils and stand straight and tall.
Water like water, we should be pure, clean, sweet and soothing.
Tree it teaches one to be always generous and to give without expecting anything in return.
The moon teaches one to keep watch on the needs of friends even in the darkest of times.
Fire teaches one to be fearless and self controlled and to take away all evil.
The ocean one should be calm and poised in knowledge and not overflow, nor dry up.
The mud teaches us to absorb good things and to keep our mind open.
The star be able to aspire for higher things and be able to shine even when it is dark.
The bee like it gathers honey from flowers, we should accept the essence from everyone.
The ascetic said that God had created all these things in Nature but was not satisfied. So He created Man who could use his intelligence to learn from them.

Story 2 - Do you know that there is a Queen who has hundreds of children? Who will take care of them and feed them? So she employs hundreds of workers but doesn’t pay them anything. They have to feed the babies, groom them and take care of them. She also has an army to protect her territory. Sometimes, these soldiers go to another queendom and carry away the slaves to work for their Queen. There is fierce fighting and many die. Well, all these things happen in the Bee Queendom! The bees are highly organized and can put our planning to shame. Their life can teach us many things. Find out more about them and their cousins, the ants.

Points to Discuss
 Think of the examples given for learning from nature and add your own thoughts to them.
 Discuss what we can learn from bees and ants.
 Discuss why the earth is called as Mother Earth. Do we take care of this mother?
 We can learn many things from flowers. Look at what the flowers are saying .
 The Sun flower - Be bright and cheerful like me.
 The Jasmine - Just like I spread my fragrance around, spread your love and concern.
 A bunch of flowers - We are all different but look beautiful together! No fights amongst us.
 Can you think what we can learn from these - the sun, a stone, a blade of grass etc.
 All things in Nature follow the laws of nature and are disciplined. What would be the result if they were not so?
Activities
 There are many books in the library, which tell you about the incredible behaviour of animals. Find out some information from them and tell your friends.
 Assume the role of some thing in nature and say what you can teach others.
 Make riddles or play the game of 10 questions. Think yourself as somebody and let others find out who you are by asking questions.
 Make cards naming animals and distribute them among the children. Explain to them about food chain and ask the ‘animals’ to run around and catch their prey. The one who makes a mistake is out. The one who doesn’t get caught is the winner.
 We can learn many things from animals. This poem by Walt Whitman says it well:
I think I could turn and live with animals. They are so placid and self contained
I stand and look at them long and long.
They do not sweat and whine about their condition
They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins
They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God.
Not one is dissatisfied; not one is demented with the mania of owning things
Not one kneels to another, nor to his kind that lived thousands of years ago.



CHAPTER VII - DISCIPLINE

THINK OF OTHERS AND BE DISCIPLINED

Objectives
 Discipline means not doing as we like.
 Our not being disciplined will affect others.
 Total discipline means total obedience.

Introduction
Being disciplined is not only for our sake but it is for the benefit of others too. If one person is not disciplined and does whatever he feels like doing, it is going to affect others too. For example, if discipline is not there on roads, it can lead to many accidents. Likewise in other areas too. A person who is disciplined takes care of his well being as well as of others.

A way to begin
 The story of the nine planets given under Story time could be done as a starter activity. However this may involve some running around by children and that by itself should not become a discipline problem!
 Examples from their lives can be given to illustrate the need for discipline. They have to sit on chairs in their places in the class. What will be the result if they decided to sit on the floor or on the table? What will happen if they all rushed out of the class at the same time when the bell rang or did not throw the waste paper in the bins? Won’t the whole class be affected?
 Discuss--All of us have to obey some rules in our lives. We cannot say we will do as we please and not obey these rules, which are made for our benefit. Think of the following examples.
 The rule of the road says to keep to the left. What will happen if we decide to go on the right?
 The safety rule says to be careful when lighting a fire. What will be the result if we disobey and light the fire in a careless manner?
 The health rule says to drink clean water. What will happen if we disobey and drink water which is not very clean?
 The school rule says to go quietly when you go from one class to another. What will happen if you disobey and run and shout as you move along the corridors?
 The family rule says that all the members of the family should eat at the same time. What will be the result if everyone decides to eat whenever they want to?

Story Time
Story 1 - Mrs. Rao made the children in her class play the game of the planets. She drew nine orbits around a circle in the middle, which denoted the sun. Nine children ran around the sun as the nine planets. Their orbits were well defined and they were told to obey the laws of Nature and run only in their orbits. There was no problem as long as they did this. Then she told them that they could now run as they pleased. As soon as they started doing this, there was utter chaos. The planets bumped into each other and fell down. Imagine what would be the result if this happened in real life!

Story 2 - Two teams were playing cricket. One team was well disciplined and the team members did as they were told. But the players in the other team did not believe in being disciplined. They wanted to break records for their own individual benefit. As a result their team did badly as a whole and lost the match even though some of them played very well. It is not only in cricket that discipline is needed. In any field, unless there is discipline, not only the individual but the whole team will suffer.

Story 3 - Raju was tired of driving the rail engine day after day. So one day he just decided to take off from his duties. He did not even inform any one and went off somewhere. The authorities waited for him to come. But when he did not turn up, they had to make other arrangements and this took time. The train was late and as a result many other trains had to get late too. People who had to get into connecting trains could not do so. Some important materials that were urgently needed by a company could not reach on time and this resulted in a huge loss for the whole country. All because of one person who did not think discipline was important.

Points to Discuss
 We have to follow rules and be disciplined in many public places. Look at the given examples. (Pictures of some sign boards given). What will happen if we do not pay heed?
 Red light on zebra crossing
 No entry sign on the operation theatre in a hospital
 No entry signs on a one way street.
 No smoking sign on a petrol bunk.
 Silence please sign in the library.
 Every family has some rules that are made for the benefit of all. For example, in some families children have to go to bed early and wake up early. Mention three rules followed in your family.
 Schools insist on your obeying some rules. Why do they do so? What will happen if there are no rules and regulations? Name three rules, which you have to obey in school.

Activities
 Think of some rules you should have in the class. Choose one of them and make a poster (picture with a sentence) to put up on the bulletin board.
 As a group, think of a small skit to show how it is important to obey rules and be disciplined.
 Have you come across a person who is very disciplined and insists on your being disciplined too! Tell the class about such a person and say what was your reaction to him/her.


CHAPTER VIII - WORK AND PERSEVERANCE

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

Objectives
 We have to work hard everyday and not put off things.
 Practice is necessary to improve any skill.
 It is necessary to have patience and perseverance.

Introduction
Often we tend to give up a job if we do not succeed in it the first time. But if we practise with persistence and patience, it is possible to sharpen our skills and do better. To get the best results, we should be prepared to work hard everyday without putting off the daily tasks.

A way to begin
 Talk to the children about the need for practice. Ask one child to act as a baby who is learning to walk. The child will have to show how the baby doesn’t start walking immediately. It takes time before it can perfect that act. Ask them “Have you seen babies when they try to crawl or walk? Are they able to do it the first time? They cry with frustration and fall down many times. But they don’t give up at all. Why? What can we learn from them?”
 Ask them whether they are able to hit a sixer the first time they hold the bat? What helps them to develop into a good player? Talk about how they can do any given job, however difficult it may seem to be, in a better way by making use of the same technique.
 Give them a set of five difficult words that are new to them. Ask them their spellings immediately. Most of them will not be able to do it. Make a game of it and show how this difficult task becomes easier with practice.

Story Time
Story 1 - Robert Bruce was a king of Scotland whose kingdom was taken away by his enemies. Bruce fought hard and tried to win back his kingdom but didn’t succeed. In despair he was hiding away in a cave when he saw a spider spinning a web. The spider tried thirteen times to spin a line from one end of the cave to the other but failed every time. As the king watched with growing interest, the spider succeeded the fourteenth time. This was a lesson for the king who was about to give up his struggle. He decided to try again and this time he succeeded, thanks to the tiny spider!
Story 2 - Thomas Alva Edison was a poor boy who could not even complete his school education. When he took up the job of selling paper in a train, his overwhelming interest in science made him do experiments in the train with disastrous results. But he did not give up. Doggedly he pursued his ambition to discover new things. He toiled very hard and tried again and again till he found the ideal solution. One of the classic examples to prove this is the discovery of the ordinary bulb. He tried the filament with hundreds of things before he hit upon the right one.

Story 3 - Sudha Chandran is a renowned dancer. Fate intervened in her career when she lost her leg in a bus accident. She was fitted with an artificial leg. The doctors did not think it would be possible for her to dance again. But she wouldn’t give up. With perseverance she practised everyday till she regained her ability to dance.

Points to Discuss
 Discuss whether it is possible to develop good habits like getting up early, being neat and clean, being organised and good attitudes like being polite and helpful by consciously practicing them. What difficulties may be there? How can we overcome them?
 Discuss whether you did the right thing in the following:
 Your music teacher tells you to practise everyday but either you 'forget’ or don’t have the time.
 You want to win the race but the first time you try, you don’t win. So you give up.
 You know that you haven’t done the Home work with attention. So you try to slip in the work when the teacher is not looking.
 You want to help your mother in folding the clothes. The first time you try, you are not able to do it as neatly as she does. So you tell her, you cannot do it.
 Every time you try to learn the multiplication table, you get distracted and make mistakes. So you decide not to learn them at all!

Activities
 Let the children practice one page of handwriting everyday and see their improvement.
 Even memory gets better with practice. Play a game where the first child says 'practice helps us to improve' and mentions some activity. The second child repeats the sentence, mentioning what the first one had said and adds one more thing of his own. The third one has to repeat whatever the other two had said and add his own and so it continues. If a child mentions something which is not related or cannot remember what has been said before he is out of the game.

CHAPTER IX - TIME MANAGEMENT

TIME AND TIDE WAIT FOR NO MAN

Objectives
 Time lost cannot be recovered. It is the most valuable resource of any person.
 Make good use of time. Do not waste it.

Introduction
As the title indicates, time just goes on. We cannot hold it back. What is gone is gone forever. Therefore it becomes vital to make good use of the time available, without wasting it on unproductive work. Proper planning of the work to be completed plus doing it with attention will help save time. We also must find time to think of others and be of help to them.

A way to begin
 Ask them how they spend their day. Was it possible for them to squeeze in a few more activities? Give them examples of people who are able to achieve so much. (magazines always have stories about people who have been successful not only in their jobs but do many other things besides).
 Tell them how God has been very impartial in giving us all, the same number of hours in a day. The best way to thank Him is to use His gift of Time properly and purposefully. We can achieve a lot, if we plan ahead, do our work with attention and do not waste any time. In the case of small children, planning could just mean doing their school work on time instead of postponing it, getting ready for the next day by keeping their books ready, keeping some time in the day to help in the chores of the family and not wasting time watching too much of TV.

Story Time
Story 1 - Rita knew that it was the last day to complete her homework but there were so many distractions—the programs on TV, the storybooks, playing with her friends, etc. By the time Rita really sat down to work, it was quite dark. She was confident she would be able to complete the work. May be she would have to work till late at night, though she didn’t like being awake when the others were sleeping. So she decided to do her work quickly. It wouldn’t be very good work, she knew, but well… She had just started when, phut! the lights went off! Rita ran to the kitchen to take the candles out but found her mother had already taken the last one! “Aren’t there any more?” asked Rita. “Yes,” said her mother, “but in the shop! Remember you promised to get them last week? You also promised to give the emergency light to the electrician who is on the way to your school? Well, no lights now. Seems like it is a power cut. Wonder when it will come back? Anyway, all you can do is wait.” Poor Rita, how she wished she hadn’t thought that time would be always there for her. Has this kind of a thing happened with you also?
Story 2 - The Head Master said that he needed some students to help clean up the library and the art room, some to go round the classrooms and collect old clothes and toys to be given to the needy children and he wanted some volunteers to go to the blind school nearby and read for them. Sameer raised his hand for all the jobs! His friends teased him and warned him “Are you mad? How will you have the time to do everything? You have to study for the exams, take part in the school cricket matches and also practice your part in the annual day play! And you have to help your parents too; they both go off for work. How can you do everything?” Sameer just smiled. Soon he proved that he could not only do everything but do it well too. What was the secret, his friends wanted to know. Do YOU know? His secret was quite simple—he planned all the activities for the day, he did his work with full attention and he did not waste any time in useless ‘Time pass’ activities. No wonder he was so successful! How about YOU?
Story 3 - Once a man found an empty bottle with its mouth closed with a cork, lying on the ground. Out of curiosity he uncorked the bottle and to his astonishment, out popped a genie. “I am your slave, my master, order me and I will do anything for you,” it said. “but you have to give me work and keep me busy. Otherwise I will make you my slave!”. The man was happy in the beginning and asked for food. And there it was. He asked that he should have a palace to live and there was a palace for him. Soon, however, he didn’t know what to ask. Then he had a brilliant idea. He told the genie “Time troubles me. I want you to catch hold of Time and hold it and not let it move”. The foolish genie started to run after time to stop it. They say it is still running!
Points to Discuss
 Can you think of three differences between Time and Money?
 Keep track of what you did in one day. Did you feel you had missed something? Did you feel like going back in time? Or where you satisfied with your day? A famous author, H.G Wells wrote a science fiction book about a time machine which took one back into time. Do you think it would be possible to go back into time? If you did so, what would you see?
 What do you understand by the statement Time and tide wait for no man?
Activities
 Make posters telling people the value time.
 Puzzle these out. All words are related to ‘Time’. Clues–I run with my two hands-clock)
1. I sound like a part of your body --------(year)
2. The more you spend me, the longer I get----(time)
3. I wake you up in the mornings------ (alarm bell)
4. I keep running but you tie me to your body/wrist-----(wrist watch)
 Read this poem. Do you feel like this sometimes?
THERE ISN’T TIME By (WILLIAM JAY SMITH)
There isn’t time, there isn’t time
To do the things I want to do,
With all the mountain tops to climb,
And all the woods to wander through
And all the seas to sail upon,
And everywhere there is to go,
And all the people, every one
Who lives upon the earth, to know.
There’s only time, there’s only time
To know a few and do a few,
And then sit down and make a rhyme
About the rest I want to do!


CHAPTER X - COURAGE

HAVE MORAL COURAGE

Objective
 To differentiate between physical and moral courage.
 To understand that moral courage comes out of knowing that God is within and that it gives limitless inner strength.

Introduction
It is necessary to understand how physical and moral strength differs. A physically strong person may bully others and intimidate them. He may appear courageous just because he looks stronger and does tough things. But real courage does not depend on physical strength alone. It is more dependent on moral strength, which is a result of knowing that God is within us and is giving His support and strength to us. This feeling makes even the puniest one stand up against a giant. It makes them unafraid and helps them to face any situation. In the olden days, the rishis were able to go to a forest and live amongst the wild animals because they were in the thought of God. Even today, prayer to the almighty gives us courage to face the challenges of life.

A way to begin
 Give examples of handicapped people who are able to achieve a lot in life. They may not appear strong and yet they have some kind of inner strength, which makes them courageous, and they are able to tackle problems that an ordinary person cannot. God gives them this strength.
 Help children discriminate between foolishness and real bravery. Trying to jump into or out of a moving bus, running across the street when there is no ‘Walk’ signal, teasing a dog, are all acts of foolishness, not courage. Ask them for more such examples.
 Tell them how when they have inner courage, they are not afraid of new people or new situations. Ask them to think about how they can be strong from inside. When they know they have not done anything wrong and are in the right, they don’t have to be afraid. So it is better to do things which are right. Thinking of God as a friend who stands by you makes you feel stronger.

Story Time
Story 1 - In Ramayana, there is a story of how Hanuman was able to achieve the impossible task of crossing the ocean which separated India and Sri Lanka. He was asked to cross over to Lanka and find out if Sita was there. He was only a small monkey and as he stood at the shores of the sea, he wondered how he would be able to do it. His friends told him that he was the only one who could accomplish this task. He thought of the deceitful act that Ravana had done and indignation filled his heart with anger and gave him courage. He remembered Rama whom he loved with all his heart and he saw himself grow much bigger with the image of the lord within him. Thus a giant Hanuman leapt across the vast sea in one leap and reached Lanka and later punished Ravana in his own way.

Story 2 - Story of Tiruppur Kumaran – to save the honour of India’s national flag, Kumaran took a lot of beatings from the physically strong British soldiers. He finally saved the flag at the cost of his life. His moral courage, his inner strength derived from the love for his country and its flag made him defy the soldiers.

Story 3 - Once when Swami Vivekananda was touring through India, he came across a tiger in a forest. He put his faith in his Master and Guru and thought that if his destiny was to survive, he would do so with his Master’s grace. The tiger ran away from him. Real faith is an expression of courage too.

Points to Discuss
 Britain ruled over India for more than a hundred years with the help of its strong army. Yet the Rani of Jhansi who fought against the British and Gandhiji who led the country to freedom were frail and puny. What gave them the strength to stand up to the British?
 Look at the following situations. Which one shows physical strength and which one shows courage?
 an older boy snatches away things from his little sister.
 a hunter goes to the forest and shoots a bird.
 a young boy jumps into a swirling river to save somebody.
 a girl tries to stop a man running away with somebody’s purse.
 a boy tries to burst the crackers on his hand.
 a boy ties an empty can to the tail of a dog.
 What would you do or whom would you inform in the following situations which require quick thinking and courage:
 You discover that due to short circuit there is a fire in your house.
 You see a child drowning in the river (you don’t know swimming).
 You see a car speeding away after hitting a pedestrian.
 You see a child running after its ball in a busy street.

Activities

 Draw pictures to illustrate one of the stories:
 Find out more about the struggle for Independence in India. It was a moral victory for India and was fought without weapons.
 Have a debate in the class ‘moral strength is more powerful than physical strength’. Have two teams, one for and one against the topic.


Enduring Struggles

Does there seem to be an inordinate degree of struggle
in your life or others that you know at this time?
Many, who seek to express the highest within themselves,
are experiencing a great struggle right now.
It does not matter the form it takes, the essence behind it
is the same for all who would bear the light and
show the way in humble service to others.
That essence is the birth pangs of our true spirit
rising into a New World that as yet can only be imagined.
And yet, the first signs of its manifestation is already moving from the ethereal into the more dense vibrations
that can be seen by all.

Therefore, let us take heart and know that the struggle
we are enduring has a deep and meaningful purpose