Definition of Cooperation for 4 - 7 year olds: Cooperation happens when two or more people help each other to make something good happen. It can also apply to animals or parts of a whole that need each other and work together.  An example of this is the human body – all the parts work together to make you healthy.

In a nutshell:

Together we can do more. 

Summary:
This is a simple story but it has a very important message for kids of all ages. Three animal friends decide they want to build a leaf pile. When they take a break from working on their project, they start to argue and make fun of one another. Little Roo’s Mother reminds them that nobody likes to be laughed at. She encourages them to show what they can do instead of making fun of what they can’t do. An important lesson is learned that day - when we can celebrate each other’s unique gifts, we can enjoy being together.  

Lesson Objectives: 

1. Students are guided by their teacher to identify the unique talents/personality of themselves and their classmates. 
2. Students are able to differentiate between healthy competition and unhealthy competition that involves put-downs and criticism. 

Guiding questions: 

1. What did the animals want to do? 
2. The kangaroo, the mouse, and the duck were having fun until they started to argue - why did they argue?  
3. The animals were laughing at one another but no one was happy, why? 
4. What did Roo’s mother suggest to the friends?
5. The story ends with the animals saying,“Yes we can!” They can ______________ (fill in the blank)  
6. The word “unique” means one of a kind. Each animal in the story had a unique talent that the others did not have. The kangaroo was good at __________. The Duck was good at _______________. The mouse was good at ____________.
7. Can you tell us what is unique about you? 
8.  Has anyone ever laughed at you when you were trying to do something and it wasn’t working? What happened? 
9. Have you ever laughed at someone when they were trying to do something and it wasn’t working? What happened? 
10. Choose 3 people in your class or your family. Tell us what each of them can do that you can’t do. Can you still get along with them, even though you can’t do what they can do? Why or why not?