Wooly Worm Kids of Character Reading Program

The purpose of Wooly Worm Kids of Character Reading Program is to teach students to develop attitudes and values which will allow them to make good choices about equality, respect, understanding and appreciation of human diversity in the classrooms, communities and throughout the world.

Wooly Worm Kids of Character offers students the opportunity to listen and participate in discussion of children’s literature that transmits values and perceptions of the world. What’s even more important, students are motivated to learn because what they are doing is fun. While the program meets the needs of educating students, all individuals will develop skills for tolerance, understanding and appreciating human diversity regardless of real or perceived differences.

Camp Fire USA Central Ohio Council will provide trained instructors who visit classrooms for six literature-based lessons, each lasting 30 to 45 minutes. A letter is sent home to each family to explain the program. Each student will receive a “Wooly Worm” bookmark and a journal in which to write his/her response to each lesson. During the last lesson, each student will receive a “Kids of Character” Course Completion Certificate. The students are encouraged to write an essay, reflecting his/her feelings about tolerance. These essays are entered into a contest and the winners receive a Savings Bond. A copy of all the books used in this program will be donated to each school library.

Each lesson contains specific objectives that include:

Lesson 1: Celebrating Diversity – Introduces the students to the program and what it means to be tolerant. Reinforces the appreciation of diversity and uniqueness of different countries while having students visualize what it would be like if there were no diversity.

Lesson 2: Appreciating Differences – Teaches students to develop and appreciate an interest in each individual’s unique differences and unusual talents. Students participate in a puppet show.

Lesson 3: Learning from Many cultures – Permits students to differentiate tastes after sampling foods from various cultures. This includes where the foods originate and how they are similar and different.

Lesson 4: Creating Community – Teaches students about the responsibilities of being a citizen.

Lesson 5: Confronting Prejudice – Helps students recognize the differences between peaceful and violent solutions to problem or situations, such as not being a bystander or bully.

Lesson 6: Beginning Intolerance Studies – Teaches students the historical intolerance events that have impacted the views of society today.

2006 Books for the 3rd & 4th grade program:

Lesson 1:
Every Cooks Rice by Norah Dooley

Why am I Different by Norma Simon

Lesson 2 :
How my Parents Learn to Eat by Ina R. Friedman

Lesson 3:
My Buddy by Audrey Osofsky

or
Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold

Lesson 4:
Uncle Willy and the Soup Kitchen by Dyanne DiSalvo- Ryan

Lesson 5:
Terrible Things by Eve Bunting