Kindness Chronicles May

A recent 2nd grade lesson I helped teach discussed being a "Bucket Filler".  It goes a little something like this....

All day long, everyone in the whole wide world walks around carrying an invisible bucket.  

You can't see it but it's there.

Recent journal page from my sketchbook

Materials used:  acrylic paint, paint pen

You also have a bucket.  Each member of your family has a bucket.  Your parents, grandparents, friends, and neighbors all have a bucket.  Everyone you can think of carries an invisible bucket.

Recent journal page from my sketchbook

Bird study

Materials used:  acrylic paint, colored pencils, black pen

Your bucket has one purpose only.  Its purpose is to hold your good thoughts and good feelings about yourself.

You feel very happy and good when your bucket is full, and you feel very sad and lonely when your bucket is empty.

Other people feel the same way too.  They're happy when their buckets are full and they're sad when their buckets are empty.  It's great to have a full bucket and this is how it works...

You need your bucket full and other people need you to fill their bucket.  

So, how do you fill a bucket?

I asked my 3 year what I should draw one day and she said an owl!  So that's what I drew...

You fill a bucket when you show love to someone, when you say or do something kind, or even when you give someone a smile. That's being a bucket filler. 

When you make someone feel special, you are filling a bucket.

But, you can also dip into a bucket and take out some good feelings.  You dip into a bucket when you say or do mean things, or even when you ignore someone.  That's being a bucket dipper.

Many people who dip have an empty bucket.  They think they can fill their own bucket by dipping into someone else's, but that will never work.  You never fill your bucket when you dip into someone else's.

But guess what... when you fill someone's bucket, you fill your own bucket too!  You feel good when you help others feel good.

All day long we are either filling up or dipping into each other's buckets by what we say and what we do.  Try to fill a bucket and see what happens.

Recent journal page from my sketchbook.

A bucket of kindness, love, flowers, and sunshine...

Bucket filling makes everyone feel good.  So why not decide to be a bucket filler today and every day?  Just start each day by saying to yourself, "I'm going to do something to fill someone's bucket today."

And at the end of each day, ask yourself,

"Did I fill a bucket today?"

"Yes, I did!"  That's the life of a bucket filler...and that's YOU!

This was a really awesome lesson for our 2nd grade class.  They were able to grasp the concept very quickly!  I enjoyed the fresh perspective on being kind to others!  It certainly stuck with me.

Thanks to Pam Russell, our Children's Minister for such a wonderful lesson!

trying to be a bucket filler each and everyday on this artist holiday,

hannah