11
"How Should I Deal With Mean People?”
Big Idea
Switch meanness with kindness.
Materials Needed:
None.
Setup:
None.
Lesson
1. Review the big idea from last meeting's lesson: "God knows bad buds can turn good kids bad." Ask the question, "Does God care who my friends are?" and have the children repeat the big idea a few times, doing the motions below as you say each word.
God: point up
Knows: tap your temple
Bad: thumbs down
Turn: spin around
Good: thumbs up
Bad: thumbs down
2. Explain the following:
Last time we met, we talked about who we should choose to hang around with, what our friends should be like. This week, we're going to talk about people who aren't our friends at all. In fact, they're pretty much the complete opposite. We're going to try to answer the question, "How should I deal with mean people?"
Write "Mean People" at the top of a chalk/wipe board.
3. Ask the following question, allowing several children to respond and recording their answers on the board: "What are some things mean kids do at school?"
4. Explain the following:
That's a lot of mean stuff you guys came up with. Now we're going to try to figure out how we're supposed to respond when people are mean to us. Our goal is to act the way God would want us to.
We're going to act out a typical thing a mean person would do, and then look at a couple of possible ways we could choose to deal with them. Later, we'll look in the Bible to find the very best way to which way is the best.
5. Explain the following:
The situation we'll act out is this: you're walking down the hallway, minding your own business. Suddenly, a bigger kid sneaks up from behind you and flicks your ear really hard and laughs at you.
Select a child to come up front and act this out. Have him/her sneak up behind you as you walk in the front of the teaching area, and then flick your ear and laugh at you. Have him/her stand to the side as you explain the following:
The first method I like to call "Payback." (Write "Payback" on the board.) Payback means that whenever someone is mean to you, you're mean right back to them.
Act out the above scenario with your volunteer again. This time, pretend to flick their ear right back after they flick yours. When finished, ask your volunteer to return to his/her seat.
Payback sure feels pretty good. Do you think there are any downsides to this method? (Allow a few children to respond.)
With Payback, you could get yourself into trouble. And you risk making the bully even angrier! Plus, it doesn't really seem like something God would want us to do.
6. Invite another volunteer up front and explain the following:
The second method I like to "W & C." (Write "W&C" on the board.) I'll tell you what the "W" and "C" stand for in a second.
Ask your volunteer to act out the scenario again. After he/she flicks your ear, say in a loud voice, "Teacher, he/she flicked my ear! Did you hear me? He/she flicked my ear really hard! He/she needs detention!" Ask your volunteer to return to his/her seat and explain the following:
You might have guessed this already, but the "W" and "C" stand for "whine" and "complain." With W&C, you can teach the mean person a lesson by getting them into big trouble! Do you think there are any downsides to this method? (Allow a few children to respond.)
With W&C, you'll probably just end up making the bully even more angry. And, he/she will probably just wait until the teacher is around and then flick your ear again.
7. Invite one more volunteer up front and explain the following:
The third method I call "The Switcheroo." (Write "Switcheroo" on the board.) Let's see what the Switcheroo looks like.
Ask your volunteer to act out the scenario again. After he/she flicks your ear, turn around and say to him/her, "That's a really cool looking shirt! It looks great on you. Where'd you get it?" Ask your volunteer to return to his/her seat and explain the following:
I call this method the Switcheroo because I switch their meanness with kindness. He/she flicked my ear, and I gave them a compliment. Maybe the bully is being mean because they don't feel very good about themselves. Do you think there are any downsides to this method? (Allow a few chilren to respond.)
The Switcheroo could make the bully a little annoyed. Plus, you might feel bad because the bully is getting away with being mean.
8. Explain the following:
So, what method is the best? Payback, W&C, the Switcheroo, another method we didn't talk about? Well, let's check out what the Bible says.
Ask for a volunteer to come up and read Luke 6:27-28: "But here is what I tell you who hear me. Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who call down curses on you. And pray for those who treat you badly."
Based on what Jesus said in this verse, which method do you think he'd have us do? (Allow someone to respond.)
I think Jesus would like the Switcheroo. He says we need to love our enemies and do good things to those who hate us.
Does that mean we shouldn't we let a teacher know when a bully is picking on us or someone else? No, we should definitely let an adult know. But you can do it in a nice way, and you can still try to find ways to be nice to those who do things like flick your ear in the hallway.
9. Explain that the big idea from today's lesson is: "Switch meanness with kindness." Ask the question, "How should I deal with mean people?" and have the children repeat the big idea a few times, doing the motions below as you say each word.