Secular Ethical Education for Kids
We nurture the ethical development of children and their understanding of themselves and the world around them. We believe that our children should be active participants in their learning through stories, multi-media, crafts, experiments, movement, and discussion as they explore our core values.
Register your child(ren) for Sunday SEEK by submitting the form below.
|
|
Please notify SVES if your children will be attending SEEK no later than three days prior to the scheduled class. This will ensure that there will be enough materials and snacks for every child attending.
|
January/February/March
The following stories help children understand what it feels like to face bias and discrimination in daily life.
THEME: Privilege
Core Value:
Every person is important and unique.
Every person deserves to be treated fairly and kindly.
The following stories help children understand what it feels like to face bias and discrimination in daily life.
THEME: Privilege
Core Value:
Every person is important and unique.
Every person deserves to be treated fairly and kindly.
January: Maddi’s Fridge by Lois Brandt
Economic Privilege
Best friends Sofia and Maddi live in the same neighborhood, go to the same school, and play in the same park, but while Sofia’s fridge at home is full of nutritious food, the fridge at Maddi’s house is empty. Sofia learns that Maddi’s family doesn’t have enough money to fill their fridge and promises Maddi she’ll keep this discovery a secret. But because Sofia wants to help her friend, she’s faced with a difficult decision: to keep her promise or tell her parents about Maddi’s empty fridge. Filled with colorful artwork, this storybook addresses issues of poverty with honesty and sensitivity while instilling important lessons in friendship, empathy, trust, and helping others.
ACTIVITY:
Kids are given different amounts of play money. They then have to choose items off of a list provided (could be pictures of food items) If they have $4 they get to pick 4 items and so on. They take turns having different amounts of money. Then the class will talk about what it felt like to have $2, $5, $10 etc.
February: Lila and the Crow by Gabrielle Grimard
White Privilege
Lila has just moved to a new town and can't wait to make friends at school. But on the first day, a boy points at her and shouts: “A crow! A crow! The new girl's hair is black like a crow!” The others whisper and laugh, and Lila's heart grows as heavy as a stone.
The next day, Lila covers her hair. But this time, the boy points at her dark skin. When she covers her face, he mocks her dark eyes. Now every day at school, Lila hides under her turtleneck, dark glasses, and hat. And every day when she goes home, she sees a crow who seems to want to tell her something. Lila ignores the bird and even throws rocks at it, but it won't go away.
Meanwhile, the great autumn festival is approaching. While the other kids prepare their costumes, Lila is sadder and lonelier than ever. At her lowest point of despair, a magical encounter with the crow opens Lila's eyes to the beauty of being different and gives her the courage to proudly embrace her true self.
Lila is a modern-day example of classroom bigotry, and the racism might seem unrealistically blatant. Buuut it’s completely accurate, and when girls of color go to authority about situations like this, they get ignored.
It’s not okay that Lila’s bullies were never held accountable, and she shouldn’t have had to adjust to withstand their attacks on her own. BUT THIS IS NOT A FAIRY-TALE, this is a story about the experience of girls of color, and how they might find empowerment and pride despite haters.
March: Abigail the Whale by Davide Cali
Body-size Privilege
Fat people are people – worthy, lovely, and deserving of happiness and respect exactly the way they are.
Abigail dreads swimming lessons. Every time she dives into the pool, she makes a big splash, and all the girls in her class shout: “Abigail’s a whale!” Abigail can see that she is larger than the other girls. She feels huge, heavy, and out of place.
Abigail’s swimming teacher takes her aside and points out: we can change how we see ourselves. He offers a creative visualization technique she can use to feel bolder, more confident, and more accepting of herself. Abigail tries it out in challenging situations that week—walking home in the dark, eating her vegetables, trying to fall asleep. Illustrations in the book show her perspective morphing powerfully to match her new thought patterns.
Next time she’s in swimming class, instead of feeling heavy, Abigail thinks sardine, eel, barracuda, shark! She starts to figure out how to draw on mindfulness, creative thinking, resilience, and positive self-esteem to embrace exactly who she is. This picture book supports social/emotional learning and serves as a perfect jumping-off point for topics like bullying, empathy, confidence, and creative problem solving.
January: Maddi’s Fridge by Lois Brandt
Economic Privilege
Best friends Sofia and Maddi live in the same neighborhood, go to the same school, and play in the same park, but while Sofia’s fridge at home is full of nutritious food, the fridge at Maddi’s house is empty. Sofia learns that Maddi’s family doesn’t have enough money to fill their fridge and promises Maddi she’ll keep this discovery a secret. But because Sofia wants to help her friend, she’s faced with a difficult decision: to keep her promise or tell her parents about Maddi’s empty fridge. Filled with colorful artwork, this storybook addresses issues of poverty with honesty and sensitivity while instilling important lessons in friendship, empathy, trust, and helping others.
ACTIVITY:
Kids are given different amounts of play money. They then have to choose items off of a list provided (could be pictures of food items) If they have $4 they get to pick 4 items and so on. They take turns having different amounts of money. Then the class will talk about what it felt like to have $2, $5, $10 etc.
February: Lila and the Crow by Gabrielle Grimard
White Privilege
Lila has just moved to a new town and can't wait to make friends at school. But on the first day, a boy points at her and shouts: “A crow! A crow! The new girl's hair is black like a crow!” The others whisper and laugh, and Lila's heart grows as heavy as a stone.
The next day, Lila covers her hair. But this time, the boy points at her dark skin. When she covers her face, he mocks her dark eyes. Now every day at school, Lila hides under her turtleneck, dark glasses, and hat. And every day when she goes home, she sees a crow who seems to want to tell her something. Lila ignores the bird and even throws rocks at it, but it won't go away.
Meanwhile, the great autumn festival is approaching. While the other kids prepare their costumes, Lila is sadder and lonelier than ever. At her lowest point of despair, a magical encounter with the crow opens Lila's eyes to the beauty of being different and gives her the courage to proudly embrace her true self.
Lila is a modern-day example of classroom bigotry, and the racism might seem unrealistically blatant. Buuut it’s completely accurate, and when girls of color go to authority about situations like this, they get ignored.
It’s not okay that Lila’s bullies were never held accountable, and she shouldn’t have had to adjust to withstand their attacks on her own. BUT THIS IS NOT A FAIRY-TALE, this is a story about the experience of girls of color, and how they might find empowerment and pride despite haters.
March: Abigail the Whale by Davide Cali
Body-size Privilege
Fat people are people – worthy, lovely, and deserving of happiness and respect exactly the way they are.
Abigail dreads swimming lessons. Every time she dives into the pool, she makes a big splash, and all the girls in her class shout: “Abigail’s a whale!” Abigail can see that she is larger than the other girls. She feels huge, heavy, and out of place.
Abigail’s swimming teacher takes her aside and points out: we can change how we see ourselves. He offers a creative visualization technique she can use to feel bolder, more confident, and more accepting of herself. Abigail tries it out in challenging situations that week—walking home in the dark, eating her vegetables, trying to fall asleep. Illustrations in the book show her perspective morphing powerfully to match her new thought patterns.
Next time she’s in swimming class, instead of feeling heavy, Abigail thinks sardine, eel, barracuda, shark! She starts to figure out how to draw on mindfulness, creative thinking, resilience, and positive self-esteem to embrace exactly who she is. This picture book supports social/emotional learning and serves as a perfect jumping-off point for topics like bullying, empathy, confidence, and creative problem solving.
Children's Core Values
Every person is important and unique.
Every person deserves to be treated fairly and kindly.
I can learn from everyone.
I am part of this earth: I cherish it and all the life upon it.
I learn from the world around me by using my senses, mind, and feelings.
I am member of the world community which depends on the cooperation of all people for peace and justice.
I can learn from the past to build for the future.
I am free to question.
I am free to explore and develop my beliefs.
I accept responsibility for my choices and actions.
I strive to live my values.
Every person deserves to be treated fairly and kindly.
I can learn from everyone.
I am part of this earth: I cherish it and all the life upon it.
I learn from the world around me by using my senses, mind, and feelings.
I am member of the world community which depends on the cooperation of all people for peace and justice.
I can learn from the past to build for the future.
I am free to question.
I am free to explore and develop my beliefs.
I accept responsibility for my choices and actions.
I strive to live my values.
|
GREAT RESOURCES FOR RAISING COMPASSIONATE KIDS
|
Join the SEEK parent FB group page for the latest updates, programs, and events. JOIN HERE!
