These Learning Links provide ten quick-and-easy, five-minute mini-lessons to promote student thought and dialogue about service and civic engagement. You may use as many of them as you wish, and in whatever order best meets your needs and the interest of your students. The purpose of these mini-lessons is to provide a deeper understanding of philanthropy (the giving of time, talent, and treasure for the common good) and to reinforce the lesson focus. These Learning Links also promote the development of character traits, civic engagement, and student leadership. As appropriate to your grade level, it is recommended that students play an active leadership role in presenting these mini-lessons to their classmates.

1. Read: Did you ever fall and skin your knee? I bet it really hurt! What did you do? Most kids our age tell their parents, teachers, or other family members. These people usually clean our wound and put a bandage on it. The bandage helps keep dirt out of the wound so it can heal.  In that ways do bandages help make things feel and get better.
   
   Discuss: When adults say that a person is hurting they usually mean that person doesn’t have something he or she really needs. It could be that they need a job, a home, a friend, or food. Our drive event is trying to help those people who are hurting because they do not have enough food to eat. How is our drive like giving them a bandage that will help them feel and get better?
   
    
2. Read: Shawn’s grandmother reminded him that he would have to eat all of the food on his plate before he could have desert. The desert was his favorite. It was chocolate cake with thick milk chocolate frosting. Only his grandmother could make a chocolate cake that tasted that good! But Shawn was full. He was convinced that he couldn’t eat another bite. He sat there for a minute thinking of what his teacher told the class that day. She talked about the coming drive event. She said the whole school would be collecting food for those people who didn’t have enough to eat. It didn’t seem fair, he thought. Here I am stuffing myself so I can eat some chocolate cake while many people would gladly just to eat the other food I had on my plate.
   
   Discuss: What do you think Shawn ought to do? Stuff himself to get the chocolate cake? Quit eating and not have the chocolate cake this time?  When we think about what to give to our drive event how can we be reminded that there are those who don’t have enough to eat?
   
    
3. Read: Sprout was an acorn. He loved standing next to mother and father. They were tall oak trees. Sprout thought that they were so tall that they touched the sky. “Will I ever be able to grow up to be big and tall like you?” he asked his parents one day.
   
   “Once we were small just like you,” his father replied.
   
   “Yes, and we wondered too if we would ever grow up to be big and tall like our parents,” mother added.
   
   “How did you finally get so big and tall?” Sprout asked.
   
   “Well,” mother replied, “each day we did everything we could to eat right and do the right thing. As we got bigger we never forgot how important it is to do everything we can to make our woods a better place to live and grow.
   
   Discuss: How are we like Sprout? What are we doing each day to do the right things? Why is it important that we participate in our drive event? How can we be sure that other people in our community get good food to eat? How does that help our community to be a better place to live and grow?
   
    
4. Read: At first Donny was frightened by the school fire alarm. When it rang the kids in his class were supposed to quietly stand. By rows they were to follow the teacher out of the room. Once in the hallway they were to continue to follow their teacher out of the building through their assigned door. At their assigned spot on the playground, they were to wait quietly for further instructions.  The first time the alarm sounded things didn’t go so well. There was a plan but not everyone followed it. Donny isn’t frightened by the fire alarm anymore. He knows that his teacher and classmates will be there to help him if he needs it.
   
   Discuss: For some of us this may be our first service project. How can we be there to help those who might not know what to do? Why is it important that we have a plan for our event?
   
    
5. Read: Most boys and girls have heard of the tooth fairy. It is believed by many all over the world that the tooth fairy gives children a gift (often money) in exchange for their baby teeth. When a baby tooth comes out, the child places the tooth under a pillow. Like magic, the tooth fairy comes in the night to takes the tooth and leaves a gift.
   Kennedy just lost her two front teeth. She was excited to find some money under her pillow the next day. When it came time for her school’s annual drive event she asked her mom and dad if she could add a tube of toothpaste to her food items. “That way the tooth fairy will see shiny white teeth. Maybe the tooth fairy will leave more money for those children since they don’t have much money.”
   
   Discuss: How might our drive event be like magic? What are some things that we can bring to our event that people who don’t have much money can use? Do you think the people who we give our items to will be excited?
   
    
6. Read: Giraffes are the tallest living animals on land. They have spots covering their entire bodies except on their stomachs. On their stomachs, each giraffe has a unique pattern of spots. Like snowflakes no two giraffes have the same design on their stomachs. Giraffes are well liked by the other animals. Most animals will not bother a giraffe. Because they are so tall giraffes can see danger coming from far away. This warns the other animals to be careful. Because they cooperate everyone can be safe.
   
   Discuss: Why is it important for the giraffe and the other animals to cooperate? How does cooperating help the animals and the giraffes? Why might it be important for everyone to cooperate during our service project?
   
    
7. Read:  Kim overheard her mom telling her grandma that Grace was Kim’s friend at school. Mom also told her grandma that Grace’s mom was really poor. “It has to be hard to raise four kids on your own,” mom told grandma. Grandma agreed, “It’s nice that she has a friend like Kim.”
   When their teacher announced the annual drive event, Kim wondered what Grace would do. Would she be able to donate any food to the drive? Should she offer to bring in extra food? That way she could give some of it to Grace so she would have something to give to the drive? The next day Kim was in for a surprise. Grace came to school with a shopping bag full of food items to donate to the drive. That night when she came home from school Kim told her mom what Grace had done. Mom smiled. “She’s quite an inspiration, isn’t she?” Kim wasn’t sure what that meant. Kim’s mom explained that someone who inspires is someone who does something that makes other people want to do the same thing.”
   
   Discuss: Why was Kim surprised at what Grace had done? How can we be an inspiration to others during our event? How do you think Grace felt as she gave her shopping bag full of food items? Would it be nice to have a friend like Grace? Why or why not?
   
    
8. Read: Our music teacher gave us instruments to play. She said that we were going to become a band. Everyone wanted to play the drums. But she said that a band needed more than just drums to be a band. So she gave out two drums that went thump, thump. She gave out two tambourines that went jingle, jingle. She gave out two bells that went tingle, tingle. She gave out two sticks that went clack, clack. She gave out two symbols that went clang, clang. She gave out two kazoos that went zoo, zoo. And finally she gave out two maracas that went swish, swish! When everyone had his or her instruments, she sat down at the piano. She began to play telling us that we should use our instruments to keep the beat. Wow! We sounded pretty good together!
   
   Discuss: In a band everyone has an instrument to play. All the instruments are not the same. Played separately, the separate parts may not even sound like music. But when everyone plays together, “Wow!” It can sound pretty good. Why isn't it important for everyone to bring the same item to our drive event? Why might our service project be more successful if we all participate in it together?
   
    
9. Read: Andrew wanted to join in the game of tag. When he was asked to play too, Steward said “No!” All the other kids kept on playing. Andrew was sad.
   Darcy seeing Andrew walk away said to Steward, “Let him play."The more people playing the more fun it is.” Everyone else agreed.
   
   Discuss: Do you think Andrew would have been allowed to play tag if it were not for Darcy? The big word for what Darcy did is called advocate. When you advocate for something it means that you are in favor of it. You try to get others to be in favor of it as well. Why should we advocate for our drive event? Why is it important that everyone gets to play in our games? Why will it be more fun if everyone gets to join us in our drive event?
   
    
10. Read: When things are really easy or simple sometimes people say things are as easy as ABC. There was a time when we didn’t know our ABCs. They weren’t simple then. But now that we know them we can easily say them. When Derrick’s class was trying to come up with a simple and easy way to help remind kids of their drive event, Derrick suggested the ABCs.  A= Although things are not perfect; B= Because people are still in need, we should; and C= Continue to do our best to help them. “Bringing in items to give to people in need is as simple as ABC,” Derrick said. All his classmates agreed!
    
    Discuss: Is it always easy to help people in need? Why or why not? How will our service project make it even easier to help those in need? Just as we practiced our ABCs until they became easier, do you think it’s is important that we keep practicing helping people? Why or why not?