Dear School Leader,

 

A very important Rockwood community event will be taking place in early spring.  This event is vital to Rockwood’s need to rebuild community in an effort to revitalize.   As part of the outreach to this event we would like to ask for our local schools to become involved by reaching the students with a valuable lesson about community, and hopefully involving their parents in the process.

 

This event will be based on the folktale by Marcia Brown (and other versions by other authors) called “Stone Soup.”  You may recall the story about a village that was suffering from poverty and when a person came into town asking for food, all the villagers could not feed him. The person said “I will make some stone soup then.” And proceeded to fill a pot with water, threw a stone in and began cooking.  The villagers were curious and dismayed how this fellow would eat this soup and one by one offered “a bit” of ingredients which they could spare.  By the time the soup was done the whole village was fed from the effort. 

 

Involvement to revitalize Rockwood is not easy – nor is the awareness of the various groups working to rebuild the neighborhood.  In early spring an event will be organized to invite the community to a large gathering at Vance Park called Rock Soup (Stone Soup), and based on the idea that if everyone gives a little, so much can be accomplished.  The various organizations working within Rockwood will be there, and opportunities to become involved will be plentiful. One of the ways we can teach our children the importance of community, and get the word to parents to become involved is through your assistance.

 

Below is some suggested lesson plans/themes that can be used.  We feel this is not only a valuable tool for us to utilize schools for community involvement, but thought there would be some wonderful lessons for the students who need to understand the idea of working together while living in a diverse community.

 

We’d be very interested in your input and whether your school(s) could participate by integrating this lesson plan for the good of the community.  Please read on for specific ideas.

 

 The book is used as a storybook for classes as young as kindergarten but has concepts that can be applied through high school.  This book is also a universal story, and is available in other languages for our diverse community.  It also brings all these ethnic groups together with a universal message.

 

Stone Soup: An Old Tale (Spanish: Sopa de Piedras) by Marcia Brown
Stone Soup by Ann McGovern

 

A very special activity, if it can be accomplished, would be live performances of Stone Soup performed in English, a version performed in Spanish, and a version performed in Russian.  This could bring entertainment and understanding throughout our community and would draw parents to this event as well.

 

 

Overall Lesson Plan Themes:

1 – 3rd Grade:  As simple as a mathematic assignment/graphing assignment (see sample lesson plans below.)

 

4-6th Grade: Performances of stone soup.

 

7th – 12th Grade:  Leadership, gaining consensus, reaching common goals - cooperation

 

Overall topic options: 

What does a community need to be a community?  Who needs to play a role?  What roles can people play to make a community stronger? Can thinking of another’s needs sometimes benefit you?  What are some things that are hard to accomplish on your own but you can accomplish in a group?  What can you do if you need to accomplish something in a group, but someone else doesn’t want to? (finding common goals/cooperation/consensus building)

 

Leadership –

What would have happened if a leader had not stepped up? 

Do you think the townspeople saw the stone soup maker as a leader, or that the idea to add the ingredients was their own idea?

Do you think the first person to add an ingredient to the soup was a leader? 

Did everyone play a valuable role in having a wonderful soup to feed all? 

 

Where is leadership valuable? 

Is there times someone is a leader, but doesn’t have to be the “boss”? 

Do leaders always persuade people to do the right thing? 

Are there times you shouldn’t let yourself be “led?” 

What happens if you have too many leaders? 

Is it better to lead or better to build consensus? Can you do both?

To be a good leader do you listen to others?

 

Think of political leaders: Hitler, Martin Luther King, Ghandi, Sadam Hussein, George Bush, Bill Gates

 

 

 

 

Specific Lesson Plans Used By Other Teachers w/Stone Soup Book

Stone Soup by Marcia Brown
Reading Level: 2    Read Aloud Level: K
Topic(s): cultures, folktales/fairy tales

Grade taught: 3
The Activity
This is a fun activity to do on a Friday! Prior to the Friday you choose to do this activity, send home a parent letter saying that the class will be cooperating to make Stone Soup. List the items needed for the soup, and assign parents to bring in each item. We used the following for our soup: potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, tomatoes, ground beef, beef bouillon, and celery. You can add whatever you would like! On Friday, act out the story again. Assign your students different parts and have them add the ingredients to the pot! Cook the soup on a hot plate and serve with bread! Yum!! Cooperation never tasted so good!

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Soups On!

 lesson plan for grade 1 mathematics and computer technology skills

This lesson integrates children's literature and math.
The students will listen to "Stone Soup" by Marcia Brown and bring items from home to make "First Grade Soup". The children will use the items to create a graph and share information about their graphs.

Teacher's lesson goals/objectives

Students will sort by a given attribute, gather and organize data, graph results of the sorting activity, and answer questions about the graph.

Grade 1 Goal 3: The learner will use a variety of technologies to access, analyze, interpret, synthesize, apply, and communicate information.

Objective 1: Group items by different attributes using manipulatives and/or software. (Spreadsheet)
Objective 2: Gather, organize, and display data. (Spreadsheet)

Grade 1 Goal 3: Patterns, Relationships, and Functions - The learner will demonstrate an understanding of classification, patterning, and seriation.

Objective 1: Describe and compare objects by their attributes; order sets.
Objective 3: Copy, continue, and record patterns with actions, words and objects; translate into other forms.

Grade 1 Goal 4: Data, Probability, and Statistics - The learner will demonstrate an understanding of data collection, display, and interpretation.

Objective 1: Gather, organize and display information as a group activity.
Objective 2: Answer questions about charts and graphs.
Objective 3: Make predictions based on experiences.
Objective 4: Create concrete, pictorial, and symbolic graphs using prepared grids.

Materials/resources needed

Pictures of vegetables
"Stone Soup" by Ann McGoven
"Stone Soup" by Tony Ross
"Stone Soup" by Marcia Brown
Cans of vegetables
Large crock pot
Chart paper
Markers
Small index cards
Crayons
Glue

Technology resources needed

Computer
The Graph Club software
Printer
Ink
Paper

Pre-activities

Unit study on the four basic food groups.
Read the book "Stone Soup" by Ann McGoven and "Stone Soup" by Tony Ross.
List the foods used in the "Stone Soup" books on chart paper.
Sort the foods by food group and arrange in a graph on chart paper.

Activities

Day 1
*Read the book "Stone Soup" by Marcia Brown
*Have the children list the foods that were used in the stone soup. Write the foods on large chart paper.
*Tell the class that they are going to make "First/Second Grade Vegetable Soup" and that everyone will need to bring a can of vegetables to put in the soup. Remind the students that everyone will need to help to make the soup, so it will taste really good like it did in the story. (I always have a few extra cans of tomatoes in case a child does not bring a can of vegetables to class.)
Day 2
*Have students bring their can of vegetables to the
carpet and sit in a semi circle shape, so an open space
is on the carpet. Each student should place their can on the carpet in front of them.
*Have each child identify the name of their can of vegetable and share it with the class.
*Sort the cans of vegetables by the name of vegetable
on the carpet in groups.
*Ask the students how we could show how many cans of
each vegetable that we have. (Lead them to tell you to create a graph.)
*Children create a real graph on the carpet by placing
their can of vegetables by like names.(We look at the labels on the cans.)
*Discuss your findings. How many different kinds of
vegetables, number of each kind of vegetable; greater number of vegetables; lesser number of vegetables; etc.
*Ask your students how we could share their graph with others. Remind them that we plan to use the cans of
vegetables in our "First Grade Vegetable Soup". Lead
your students to create a picture graph on chart paper using pictures of their cans of vegetables.
*Have each child illustrate a picture of their
vegetable on a small index card.
*Create a picture graph on chart paper using the
pictures the children have drawn. Pictures of the
vegetables are arranged at the bottom of the graph and
numbers are written from bottom to top on the left side of the graph.
*Discuss results.
Day 3
*Review the "First Grade Vegetables" picture graph.
*Have class go to the computer lab and create the
'First Grade Soup" picture graph on their computers
using "The Graph Club" program. The children create a picture graph using this program. Their graph will use the same format as the class graph.
*The student created graphs are printed.
Day 4
*Make "First Grade Vegetable Soup". (I just put 2 cans of each vegetable, plenty of canned tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste.) The soup cooks for 2 hours in a
crock pot in the classroom, so the students can smell it as it cooks. Each child gets a small bowl of soup. They love it. The best soup ever!
*Children take their graphs home to share with their
families.
Assessment
Teacher observation
Student created graphs in the classroom & computer lab
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Stone Soup... Recipe for Success
Team Work and Math Applications
Implemented in grades 2-5, Adaptable for grades K-12

 OBJECTIVE: To develop students' awareness that what seems like an impossible task can be completed by team work with each member contributing just a small amount.

To give something back to someone who is giving so freely to students and teachers and who is inspiring others with his philosophy that "in life there are no barriers."

MATERIALS: Chalkboard or overhead, and/or chart paper and markers The book, Stone Soup, by Marcia Brown. Pencil and Paper

NOTE: MONEY MAY NOT BE THE BEST “TEAM-BUILDING” EXAMPLE!

PROCEDURE: List student responses to "How can we, who have no money, possibly pay a $12,500 entry fee? Read the story, Stone Soup, to the group. Using math skills and the following facts, develop a word problem to see how much each member of the group would have to provide in order to have the necessary ingredients for a successful recipe. (How many pencils would each student have to buy in order to raise the necessary entry fee?)

* $12,500 entry fee

* Pencils will be bought at cost

* 1 gross equals 144 pieces

* Selling price of 25 cents per pencil will generate $23 profit per gross

List barriers to overcome.

List solutions to problem.

Make a plan.

Set a goal.

Realize "S CCESS".

HEEELP!: Our "S CCESS" needs "U"!

EVALUATION: Students will chart in graph form their progress achieving their goal.

Course Name: Social Studies

Unit Title:                   Our Playful Community

Lesson Title:    Lesson Three: Our Neighborhood as a Community

Grade Level:   K – 2nd Grades

Duration:                    Two Thirty-five Minute Class Periods

 

Purpose:

As the students learn about communities, their neighborhood becomes a broader picture for them to think about as a place where they are a member and can make a difference.  Learning that the community is diverse is important  The lesson will introduce some community helpers in whom the learners can put their trust.

 

Objectives:

The learner will:

·        identify places where people in their community gather together.

·        describe ways that each member in the neighborhood can work together to make it a nice place to live.

 

Experiential Component:

The students will determine what they can do to contribute to their classroom or school community.  They will volunteer to do one job.

 

Materials:

·        The People in your Neighborhood (song) from Sesame Street

·        A piece of colored paper for each student large enough to trace their hand

Instructional Procedure:

Anticipatory Set:

Play the song “The People in your Neighborhood” from Sesame Street.

·        Day One: Make a list of items in the neighborhood that are shared by others (parks, libraries, etc.).  Write them on large newsprint.  Ask students who they would trust in their community to help them with certain problems or situations, for example:

·        Who would you call if you were home alone and heard a strange noise and saw a person walking around your house? 

·        Who would you trust to help you if your cat was stuck in a tree?

·        Who could you trust to call if you saw smoke in your house? 

Create a list of people around the community that can be trusted to help in those situations.  (Neighbors could be included in some of the answers.)

·        Have community speakers come and show the equipment that they need when they help people in the community.  Ask the speakers to share what time, talents, and treasures they use to help the community and to discuss why the learners can trust them to do their job.  Have your classroom set up into as many stations as you have visiting community volunteers.  Rotate the students from station to station approximately every seven to ten minutes.

·        Using a digital or Polaroid camera, take a picture of each helper.  (Many public libraries loan these free of charge.)  After the visitors leave, ask the children to dictate a few facts that they remember about each helper.  Mount the pictures and sentences on large paper and staple into a book for the class library.

·        Day Two: Who needs to help in our community?  Allow the students to brainstorm and remind them that: “Everyone is a community helper in our community!”

·        Through class discussion, make a list of jobs that need to be done in the classroom/school common area to make it the best place to learn.  Using the colored paper, have each child trace and cut out a hand pattern and label it with their name.  Ask each student to decide what one thing on the list they are willing to do for the common good, and attach their hand to the list near that job.  Set a time for the “jobs” to be done.

·        Make a list of ways to improve our neighborhoods, for example, build a park with toys, have more sidewalks to ride bikes on, clean up the trash, etc. Ask the learners to decide why these things should be done.  Who should do these projects? 

·        Discuss who it is in the neighborhood that does take care of the commons areas (those that belong to everyone) in the neighborhood.  Do the police officers pick up trash or do volunteer groups?

·        Make a T chart with the headings Volunteer/Work.  Ask students to fill in the chart with their knowledge from the community volunteers.

·        Contact your local volunteer office to find out service projects that they contribute to neighborhoods.  More resources for civic groups include: Lions Club, Rotary Club, Optimists Club, etc.

Assessment:

Teacher observation of the student responses in creating the class book.

 

 

Extension:

·        Take a neighborhood walk to look for “common” areas.  Talk about who is responsible for their care and what needs to be done to keep them as usable resources.

·        Create “I’m a Volunteer” badges for the students to wear as they do the jobs they have selected.  They can then wear them home and use it to explain their job.

The Activities
Language Arts
 1. How did the villager’s curiosity get the best of them?
2. Make a list of things that everyone contributed to the soup.

Writing: Write a story. Why is it important to share with those who are less fortunate?

Social Studies: Community out reach

Part I. Personal Leadership Philosophy

When I began this leadership program, I felt very much like the old woman in "Stone Soup." My stone was unpolished, with a rough texture--but it was also unique. The stone that I brought to the leadership class is the core of my values, experiences and beliefs. By itself, my stone may not be enough to make a very hearty soup. But with interactions and contributions from students, peers, family, colleagues, supervisors, community people and friends, the resulting soup is rich, robust, nourishing and invigorating. And I know that, although my core values may be the foundation of the soup, others have really been the cooks.

I do not consider my inability to provide the whole soup a weakness; in truth, I consider my ability to interact with, to be inspired by and to learn from others to be one of my great strengths. As much as I am able, I choose colleagues and peers that reflect my values of intelligence, competency, creativity, enthusiasm, determination, stamina, flexibility, integrity and compassion. I expand intellectually when I interact with these people: I set higher goals for myself and I achieve them.

Core Values And Beliefs

Setting high goals and achieving them are important to my sense of worth. My core values and beliefs center around integrity: integrity of intellect, integrity of service and integrity of commitment. Integrity, according to my grandmother, is what you do when no one is watching. It is the acknowledgement deep inside that you can face with a clear conscience your sternest critic - yourself. Integrity is being true to your potential (integrity of intellect), being true to those who depend upon you (integrity of service) and always keeping promises (integrity of commitment).