This page is from the teaching guide for the video "Groark Learns About Prejudice" in the video series Getting Along with Groark featuring the Popcorn Park Puppets™. Even if you aren't showing this video there is a lot of useful material here you can use to create a lesson. Feel free to modify it to suit your needs.

HOW TO
OVERCOME PREJUDICE

 

  DON'T pre-judge people. Get to know them as individuals before you decide whether or not you like them.

 

  TREAT people the way you want them to treat you.

 

 STAND UP for people who are being treated with prejudice. Don't go along with the crowd when people are being unfair to someone.

 

 LEARN about other cultures, countries, and peoples.

 

 
Groark and Essie are alarmed at Burna's prejudices.

Color   these  characters!

Click on the Popcorn Park Puppets below to get blackline masters you can print out for your children to color.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

If you are using the video, ask the first two questions before viewing.

1.  Are all of us here exactly the same? In what ways are we different? In what ways are we alike?

2.  Are differences bad? Why or why not?

3.  The kids in the discussion part of the video said Burna was being prejudiced. Do you agree or disagree? Why?

4.  Why did Essie decide not to invite Wonker to her party?

5.  How did Groark feel about not inviting Wonker to the party?

6.  How did Groark handle the situation with Essie and Burna? Was that a good way to do it? Are there other ways he could have handled it?

7.  What is prejudice?

8.  How is prejudice different from not liking someone?

9.  How many different forms of prejudice can you think of?

10.  Were any of the other characters in the video victims of prejudice? In what ways?

11.  Have you ever experienced prejudice? In what way? How did it make you feel?

12.  How do prejudiced people treat others?

13.  How do people become prejudice? Where do they learn prejudice?

14.  What would you do if someone acted prejudiced toward you?

15.  What would you do if a friend of yours acted prejudiced toward someone else?

16.  What did you learn from this video?

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STUDENT ACTIVITIES

1. Discuss with the students how the following situations may be showing prejudice.

•  Making fun of someone's weight.
•  Not playing with someone because he or she can't run fast.
•  Teasing people because they speak a different language.
•  Calling people names because of skin color.
•  Ignoring someone because he or she is in a wheel chair.
•  Not letting a girl play with trucks because she's a girl.
•  Not letting a boy take dance lessons because he is a boy.

2. Have the kids make self-portrait puppets. Use these puppets to role play prejudice situations. Have students find ways to handle those situations and change the prejudiced behaviors.

3. Play a sorting game. Have the kids group themselves according to one of these categories:

Hair color, Skin color, Eye color, Gender, Height (tallest and shortest according to a selected measurement), Month of Birthday, Birth places (all those born in the same state or city), Clothes (certain colors or styles), Likes or Dislikes (such as colors, foods, music, etc.).

With each category, describe a situation that demonstrates an unfair situation. For examples, "What if today I only let those who had brown hair go out for recess. Is that fair?" or "What if today, only the girls could have lunch. Is that fair?"

After the game, discuss how prejudice is not being fair to others.

1. Take home Groark's rules for How To Overcome Prejudice (see the top of this column) and post it in a place where your family can see it. Discuss it with your parents or other adult family members.

2. Talk with your family about prejudice. Discuss experiences they may have had with prejudice and how it has affected them or their family.

3. For one week, keep a listing of television programs in which prejudiced comments or actions are shown. Discuss these with your family or class. How do these programs affect our views of each other and how we treat each other?

4. Select a person you do not know very well. Make an effort to try to get to know him or her. Learn about his or her culture or background. Try to find ways in which you may be alike.

Your child is learning some valuable skills which will help him or her get along well with others, solve conflicts peacefully, and avoid violent situations.

The current lesson is about prejudice. We have shown your child a video entitled "Groark Learns About Prejudice", which presents a puppet show and discussion about what prejudice is and how we can overcome it.

Here are some things you can do to help your child recognize and deal with unfair prejudices.

•  Ask your child to tell you about the video program and what he or she learned from it.

•  Discuss with your child what prejudice is and what kinds of behaviors demonstrate prejudice.

•  As you watch television with your child, help him or her identify language, dialogue, or actions that demonstrate prejudiced behavior.

•  As your child deals with instances of prejudice at home or school, be open to discussing ways in which he or she can safely handle those situations.

•  Help your child become sensitive to his or her own behaviors or language that may be of a prejudiced nature.