Helping People Who Are Hungry

• listen and respond to the story of Stone Soup.
• visualize people working together for the greater good, or common good.
• design and carry out a service project that helps people who are hungry.
• create a Service Experience Timeline

• read-aloud copy of Handout One: The Story of Stone Soup
• copy of Handout Two: Decision-Making Model, either on a chart or projected on an interactive screen
• a piece of paper several feet long (i.e. rolled “butcher” paper) to create a Service Experience Timeline as a class demonstration of their service experience
• drawing paper and crayons/markers for each student

Teacher Preparation:

• Food-related health issues involve nutrition, undernourishment, food security, fitness and exercise, and nutrition-related diseases. Some of these issues are based on personal choices, but many are determined by opportunities and availability of resources. The health of people across the world affects and determines political and economic decision-making.
• Although the majority of hungry people live in developing countries, hunger is also an issue in developed countries. (Food and Agriculture Organizationhttp://www.fao.org/hunger/faq/en/)

• Ask:"How do you feel when you are hungry?”Go around the circle and ask each student to share one idea for helping hungry people. Use the following sentence: “I can _________________ to help hungry people.”
• Remind children of what they learned about food insecurity.
• Tell the children you are going to read aloud a short story about people who experienced food insecurity but learned to work together to help the whole community. Read aloud the story in Handout One: The Story of Stone Soup. Discuss the questions at the end of the handout. Discuss the idea that "working together creates a greater good."
• Ask the children if they believe they have talents and treasures to contribute that can make a difference for hungry people in the world. Generate excitement about helping and contributing to a greater good.
• Brainstorm a list of activities they can do to take action for the common good related to health, nutrition, and global hunger.
• Children may work in a soup kitchen or hold a food drive to collect foods for a local charity or hold a fundraiser to collect money to donate to a world food organization. They may do something indirectly related to food and health, such as playing with younger children at a soup kitchen or donating gently used books, toys, stuffed animals, or clothes. Or they may develop a creative performance that raises awareness or teaches others about the issue.
• After brainstorming a list, use a decision-making model (Handout Two) to choose the service activity that best suits the interests, resources, talents and opportunities of the group. For example, plan an art activity to do with children at the soup kitchen. Advertise the activity at the soup kitchen and food pantry. Gather supplies and facilitate the activity with children teaching children.
• Teacher Note: Due to the ages of the children present, these activities will need adult assistance. Discuss ways that the children can get their parents and facilitators involved in charities and fundraisers, and how they can work with other adults to provide for their communities. Plant the seed for future service by developing these ideas early on.
• Help the children plan and carry out a service project.
• After the service project is completed, as a class the student will create a timeline. Work with the children to sequence what they did before the act of service (investigation and preparation), what they did during the service (action), and what they did after the project (reflection). As a group, compose a sentence or two about each stage of the project to put on the timeline. Ask the students to draw a picture of themselves at one of the stages of the project and to glue their picture to the appropriate part of the timeline. Teacher Note: If the service experience was chronicled using photographs, those photos can also be added to the timeline.
• Display the timeline in the classroom, school hallway or media center. Invite members of the school staff, families and/or other students to view the timeline and have the students act as "guides" through the timeline of their service experience.
• Facilitate reflection after the service project. Have children draw a picture of themselves showing how they participated in the service project. Ask them to draw either a happy, sad, or straight face with their illustrations. Ask for volunteers to share their illustration and why they chose to put the “face” they did indicating how they felt. Post the illustrations in the meeting room.

The teacher will assess the students’ learning by reading their reflection letters. The teacher should look for an understanding of the service project and how it benefitted the organization. The student should be able to answer the question, “Why did we do this project?”