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full byline, hyperlinks and Resource Box.E-mail or courtesy link appreciated when you publish mailto:Joyful-Productions@comcast.net Word Count (including Resource Box): 460 Summary: Encourage children to have empathy and compassion --------------------------------------- Clean Slates and Fresh Starts Patricia Gatto ©2004 All Rights Reserved. Joyful Productions
Hope, excitement and anxiety all wrapped up in fresh haircuts and new clothes. Pens, pencils and notebooks, smell of a new box of crayons and a brand new book; it all speaks of such promise.
It's first week of school and everyone starts with an "A". Children are on their best behavior as they cautiously gauge their new surrounding. But once those first days fade and familiarity takes shape, playing ground is no longer even. A pecking order becomes evident as cliques form and personalities emerge. And it is this pecking order that can make children unintentionally cruel to each other.
If I could bottle up a time, it would be first week of school. Every child, for at least those first few days, has a new beginning, a fresh start and is on his or her best behavior. If I could capture essence that lingers in air and label it "open when necessary," it would be an invaluable gift.
