Fizzy Mess
![Picture](/uploads/2/0/1/8/20185581/3841576_orig.jpg)
– adapted from Kids with Integrity
This exercise in simple science is designed to help your children understand the importance of dealing with emotions before they get to the point of “boiling over.”
You will need soda pop in a clear bottle and a suitable place to make a mess.
Shake the bottle of soda up a lot.
As you are shaking the soda, explain that life has its shake-ups, too. Life’s shake-ups are times when we feel a lot of pressure. For example, perhaps teasing from a classmate shakes you up; maybe it is feeling as though you’re not getting your fair share or being treated unjustly. Use examples of things that press your student’s buttons.
Next, take the top off the bottle and fizz from the soda will fly everywhere.
Explain that when we lack self-control, we are just like the bottle of pop. Just as the soda flying everywhere makes a mess, we make messes when we lack self-control.
Discussion Questions
– What kind of messes do we get ourselves into?
– Is it a mess when we hurt someone’s feelings?
– What other messes can you think of?
– Would you rather learn in a classroom where people encourage each other or hurt each other?
Discussion Points:
– When we do not use self-control, we end up hurting each other.
– This makes our classroom an unsafe and negative place to be.
– Then we can’t learn and achieve our goals.
– When we feel like fizzing all over everyone, it is time to take a break or a cool down.
– One idea can be to hold one hand in a fist and clamp the other hand over top of it, pretending that it is a bottle of pop ready to explode. In order to “keep the lid on,” he/she can to come to a teacher who will help them find a quiet place to cool down or to make a plan for talking out their problems with a classmate.
A great follow up is the book Soda Pop Head by Julia Cook
This exercise in simple science is designed to help your children understand the importance of dealing with emotions before they get to the point of “boiling over.”
You will need soda pop in a clear bottle and a suitable place to make a mess.
Shake the bottle of soda up a lot.
As you are shaking the soda, explain that life has its shake-ups, too. Life’s shake-ups are times when we feel a lot of pressure. For example, perhaps teasing from a classmate shakes you up; maybe it is feeling as though you’re not getting your fair share or being treated unjustly. Use examples of things that press your student’s buttons.
Next, take the top off the bottle and fizz from the soda will fly everywhere.
Explain that when we lack self-control, we are just like the bottle of pop. Just as the soda flying everywhere makes a mess, we make messes when we lack self-control.
Discussion Questions
– What kind of messes do we get ourselves into?
– Is it a mess when we hurt someone’s feelings?
– What other messes can you think of?
– Would you rather learn in a classroom where people encourage each other or hurt each other?
Discussion Points:
– When we do not use self-control, we end up hurting each other.
– This makes our classroom an unsafe and negative place to be.
– Then we can’t learn and achieve our goals.
– When we feel like fizzing all over everyone, it is time to take a break or a cool down.
– One idea can be to hold one hand in a fist and clamp the other hand over top of it, pretending that it is a bottle of pop ready to explode. In order to “keep the lid on,” he/she can to come to a teacher who will help them find a quiet place to cool down or to make a plan for talking out their problems with a classmate.
A great follow up is the book Soda Pop Head by Julia Cook