K-3rd Manners and Etiquette Class

Yesterday I had the opportunity to teach a manners and etiquette class again, only this time instead of teaching it to older students, I taught it to the Kindergarten through 3rd grade students. The class is part of an enrichment after-school program.

Watching the youngest ones try to set a "proper" place setting was interesting!  They were trying their very hardest to do it correctly!  After a few minutes, I handed out the correct place setting mat, which showed them exactly what to do.  The mat is from Parents.com, and is printable.  The students were excited to learn they would take their mats home with them.

One thing that has impressed me about the groups I've taught is that in almost all of them, one of the students has said, "We need to pray!".  We pray before every meal too, thanking God for the food and all of His blessings.  It's heartwarming to hear these students ask to pray and know that not one of them has a problem with praying to God!  We live in a special part of the world to be able to do that freely!

The snack bowls were passed around the tables, correctly of course!  Counter-clockwise or clockwise???  Do YOU know?? :)  Counter-clockwise....to the right.

Two young girls were in my older etiquette class last month.  As they sat down they were embarrassed to have to tell me they had forgotten all I had taught them!  Ha!!  Well, it just goes to show you that good manners and etiquette is something that should be taught all of the time.  Only then will it become a habit.  A one time thing during a short 25 minute class won't cut it!  Practice makes perfect...or at least 'better'!

As they eat their snack, I do a question and answer time, asking the students several questions with multiple choice answers.  I also like to read them this poem that I'll share with you:

THE GOOPS

by Gillette Burgess

The Goops they lick their fingers
And the Goops they lick their knives:
They spill their froth on the tablecloth
Oh, they lead disgusting lives!
The Goops they talk while eating,
And loud and fast they chew;
And that is why I'm glad that I
Am not a Goop, are you?

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Teaching Manners and Etiquette

 New to our school this year is an after-school program that is filled with all kinds of enriched learning experiences for students.  Recently I was asked to teach a few classes on manners and etiquette.  I had done a lesson like this for the 4-H club a few years ago and looked forward to sharing it with a different group of kids.  However, I wasn't sure how excited they would be about learning these topics!

As I talked to my own children about what I would be teaching, they quickly said there was no way anyone would listen to me if I didn't make it fun.  I knew that, of course!  Manners?  Etiquette?  No way!

As the students came into the room, they sat down at a table.  They had to set their place setting properly by just using disposable tableware.  There were probably 40 students that came through that afternoon.  One got the table setting almost right.  Of course, many got it "close" to right :).  I gave them a placemat (from Parents.com) of a proper, but simple place setting, so that they could "fix" their mistakes.

After setting the table, the students passed snack foods around.  As they passed them and served themselves, we talked about table manners.  They were already okay with learning manners and etiquette once they saw that they were going to eat snacks, but we played a game as they ate that became even more fun!

I divided each table up into teams and gave them multiple choice questions.  The team would choose A, B, C, or D and hold up the corresponding card for their answer.  They had fun, learned, and filled their tummies with goodies.  It was kind of fun hearing them say that they "loved" that class as they left!  

Hopefully the manners and etiquette didn't stop at the door as they left the class that day.  Hopefully there are table settings being set properly from time to time.....that there are less electronic gadgets at the table and more family time talking.  Hopefully there are more "thank you" and "please" responses coming from their mouths.  Hopefully what they learned that day was something that will stick with them for a long time.

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