TITLE: The Color of WE

PURPOSE:
To help students appreciate how they are each unique.

MATERIALS NEEDED:

For the teacher:
•Set of People Holding Hands® dolls: TRACE, GAIL, JESSE, and CONNIE
•Printed Poem – I Love My Skin
•Paint – primary colors, black and white
•Bunch of popsicle sticks – several for each paint color
•One piece of cardboard – sturdy –for the kids to paint on


For the students:
•1 paper plate for each sudent
•1 mixing stick and one paint brush for each student

ACTIVITY:

1. Introduce TRACE, GAIL, JESSE and CONNIE to the class.
Ask for 4 volunteers who want to use a character to read the poem, I LOVE MY SKIN.

2. Print the poem. Cut it into the 4 seperate parts.
Let each character volunteer read their part.
*To add sequencing, do NOT put them in order. Let the students help the puppeteers figure out the sequence.*


1 I LOVE, I LOVE the skin I’m in

2 It keeps me all together.

3 The skin I’m in IS MINE, ALL MINE

4 My skin, my friend, forever!


3. Discuss our skin. Talk about how each one of us has unique skin. Discuss the skin's color, skin texture, skin health and skin’s purpose. Tell each student that skin is as unique to an individual as the shape of feet or the color of hair.

4. Talk about the skin color of Trace, and Gail, and Jesse, and Connie.

5. Ask each student to return to their place at the art table.

5. Time to try to MIX PAINT to be just the color of their own unique skin. Explain to the students that some people may have to use more yellow, some more orange, some a little extra white, etc. It will be fun to see how close the students can get their paint to match their own skin tone and color.

6. After the student has matched his/her own skin color, ask each student to color in one square on the cardboard at the front of the class with his/her skin color that they just mixed.

7. Here’s how it may look: