- pictures of facial expressions
- picture of Between the Lions lion family
- family
- feel
- mama
- older
- younger
MA Standards:
Literature/RL.PK.MA.9: With prompting and support, make connections between a story or poem and one’s own experiences.
Social Emotional/Family 6.1: Describe different types of families, addressing membership and social influences, and the functions of family members.
Head Start Outcomes:
Social/Emotional Development/
Social Relationships: Recognizes and labels others’ emotions.
Social/Emotional Development/Self-Regulation: Recognizes and labels emotions.
Language Development/Expressive Language: Uses language to express ideas and needs.
PreK Learning Guidelines:
English Language Arts 2: Participate actively in discussions, listen to the ideas of others, and ask and answer relevant questions.
Health Education 16: Recognize and describe or represent emotions such as happiness, surprise, anger, fear, sadness.
Health Education 20: Describe members of their family and discuss what parents do for their children to keep them safe and healthy.
Watch Together: “But, Mama, But . . .” #1 (BTL show)
Educator Prep: Download and print a picture of the Between the Lions lion family (Leona, Cleo, Theo, and Lionel) from the Internet.
Before You Watch
Hold up the picture of the Between the Lions lion family and tell children that they will be watching a video about a family of lions. Point to and introduce the characters:
- This is Leona. She is four years old. Ask, Is anyone here four years old? (You may want to continue to ask ages to include all children.)
- This is Lionel. He is Leona’s older brother. Leona loves when Lionel reads to her.
- This is Cleo, the mother. Say, Leona calls her mother Mama. Ask, What name do you call your mother (or caregiver)?
- This is Theo, the father lion.
Explain that in the video, Mama is going away for a few days and Leona is going to miss her. Ask, How do you feel when you are away from your mother? You may want to have simple pictures of facial expressions on display. Have children point to the face that best describes how they would feel as you ask,
- How do you feel when you say goodbye to your <mother> in the morning?
- How do you feel when you see your <mother> at the end of the day?
As You Watch
Model active viewing by naming the characters, describing the action, repeating the featured words, or singing along with the songs. Give children a viewing focus by asking them to notice how Leona feels about her mama going away on a trip.
- Encourage children to repeat “But, Mama” when they hear the words in Leona’s song.
- Pause and explain the meaning of unfamiliar words, such as hot-air balloon, camel, cheetah, and astronaut.
- Stop the video when Cleo leaves Leona to go start packing. Point out the expression on Leona’s face. Ask, How do you think Leona feels?
After You Watch
Talk about the video with children. Ask questions such as,
- How does Leona feel about her mother going away? Do you ever feel that way when your <mother> goes away?
- How do you think Leona will feel when her mama comes home?
Social Emotional Tip: Giving children opportunities to recognize their emotions helps them learn the ability to regulate impulses and behaviors associated with these emotions.
Educator Tip: Be sensitive to the fact that not all children's primary caregivers are mothers. Adapt the wording of your questions throughout to represent different family makeups. For example, say, Sadyia, how do you feel when you say goodbye to your grandmother in the morning?
English Language Learners: Discuss and list different terms for the word mother (mom, mama, mommy, etc.) Explain that these words all mean the same thing--mother. Have children name the word or words they use for mother in their languages. Make a list of all reponses.
