The Little Things

• something to hold eg bottle or watch

Goal:            To demonstrate that the little things we do actually matter. (Kiddush Hashem etc.)

Peulah:   

1^st-3^rd Grade

Here are a number of games you can use to demonstrate that all the little things we do, in terms of how both G-d and other people see us, really do matter!

1)      Can You Tell The Difference?

·        Have one chanich/a leave the room and assemble the others in a sitting down circle.

·        Tell the chanch/a outside that s/he should change one (itsy bitsy teeny weeny) thing about how s/he looks.

·        Bring the chanich/a back inside and ask the others to “Tell the difference”!

No, we don’t want to make the chanichim fashion conscious…rather, we want to make the point that every little thing we DO, especially in public with the added consideration of Kiddush Hashem, really does matter.

2)      “Uh? Hunh? Eh?”

·        Have one chanich/a stand up in front of the group.

·        Ask them to talk about anything (give them a topic: sports, music, school…). But here’s the catch: They can’t say any of the buzz words: Umm, Hunh , Eh, Like…

·        See who can go the longest without saying a buzz word!

3)      “What Can’t You Do?”

·        Pick two chanichim, send one out of the room.

·        Tell chanich/a B that when chanich/a A comes back s/he will have to get him/her to do a certain action. (eg. Touch their head).

·        Send chanicha/a B out and tell chanich/a A the same thing.

·        Bring them both back and have them both, by having a normal conversation try to get each other to do that certain action. (eg I have to get you to touch your head, you have to get me to put my hands in my pockets. But we can’t just tell each other to do that cause then we’ll know what not to do!)

These two games as well are designed to demonstrate that we are not conscious of all the little things that we do…but, in truth, they really do matter!

Sikkum:

·        Why do the little things matter?

·        Who is watching when you’re doing the little things?

·        What type of little things would you change if you knew that someone was watching?

4^th-8^th Grade

1)      Try games number 2 and 3 from above. (Trust me, I’m 21 and I still like playing ‘em!)

2)      “The Moon is a Spoon”

·        Holding any object (eg. Watch…) in your, make a statement about the moon.

·        Pass the watch to your right and have the chanich/a seated there make a statement.

·        Tell the chanichim whether this statement was right or wrong. (If the chanich/a said thank you when receiving the object then the statement is correct.)

·        The game continues until the chanichim have guessed the “trick” and have realized that sometimes we take the little things, like saying thank you, for granted.

3)      “Door but not Window”

·        Say the above statement, tell the chanichim that it is correct but don’t tell them why.

·        Go around the circle having them say similar X but not Y statements.

·        In order to be correct the first word must repeat a vowel (door) and the second word must not (window).

·        The game continues until they have figured out the trick.

4)      Sicha:

·        Have you ever been on a trip with your school?

·        Did you get that same old speech about making a kiddush hashem, acting nicely when you’re in public?

·        What did you think about it?

·        Should we act differently when we’re in public than when we’re in private? Why?

·        (See the first siman of the Shulchan Aruch)

·        What about the “little things’? What are some of the little things you do, that you don’t think about, but that someone else might be hurt or offended by?

·        Do such little things matter? Why?