We define community as "coming together with a common purpose" and brainstorm communities we are part of: classroom, sports team, interest and faith groups, and neighborhood.  We reflect on how philanthropy and trust affect the common good of the community.

Learners increase their reading fluency and awareness of philanthropy by reading to younger children.

Students identify emergency food assistance programs and stereotypes surrounding hunger.

With the Nobel Peace Prize as an example of an award given for improvements to the common good, the young people list descriptors of people and organizations in their community or families who exhibit generosity and promote peace in some form. 

Introduce the philanthropic behavior of Native Americans through the speech attributed to Chief Seattle, using the book Brother Eagle, Sister Sky: The Words of Chief Seattle.

We are commanded to “master the earth”. How one elects to do that, is a product of one’s understanding of the concept of mastery. This lesson enables learners to create a personally meaningful model and action plan of mastery/stewardship based upon their interpretation of traditional texts.

Music may bring joy or it may help people reflect on their feelings. The "freedom songs" may have motivated the Civil Rights activists as they sought to aid the common good, and we can bring music to someone in the community as a gift of generosity and inspiration.

We're all the same in one basic way: We all want other people to understand us. In this lesson, youth learn about needs of differently abled children in their school or community and take a step toward removing barriers. They use the persuasive power of communication to raise awareness of ways to understand and show respect for people with disabilities through a service project.