Preschool: Friendships
“What is an echo?” a teacher asked to preface the beloved book Little Beaver and the Echo by Amy MacDonald, a Falmouth resident. One child raised her hand to share, “It’s like your voice.” As part of our new Peace curriculum, Peace with Others, the book is a perfect introduction to concepts of loneliness and friendships. The story is about a little beaver without any friends. One day, he cries and hears his echo from across the pond. On his venture to find his echo on the other side of the pond, he makes some friends along the way.
The children quickly connect with the story, as they have all felt lonely at some point in their lives. One child shared, “Just because you’re alone, doesn’t mean you feel lonely” as he described a time when he played by himself. Another child told a story about a time when he introduced himself to a new friend and asked, “Will you be my friend?” The conversation evolved into thoughts on what it means to be a friend. One child shared, “You need to be nice” and another child reminded the group of the golden rule. We agreed as a class to remember, “To make a friend, be a friend.”
