DOUBLE TAP TO ZOOM WITH PHONE OR TABLET Introduction Parents want their children to be happy. Can we teach happy? Yes, because happiness comes from compassion for others and contentment within our- selves, and those values are what the activities in this book help develop. This book is intended for family child care settings, child care centers, the home, Head Start programs, preschools, hospitals, homeless shelters, and any- where young children are being cared for. Young children learn from the repetition of concrete experience. The fun activities in this book help them develop compassion for others by practicing simple, powerful lessons that incrementally foster love, feelings and empathy, gentleness, self-control, respect, friendship, and conflict resolution. Organization of the Book Each of the first eight chapters of The Kindness Curriculum involves a building block of character development. These chapters contain activities that are new or revised since the first edition. The first chapter, “Creating Calm,” sets the stage for prosocial play. Calm children are better able to choose positive behavior than are stressed-out ones, who may feel out of control. Activities in this chapter help children feel calm and choose kindness. The next four chapters deal with the fundamental val- ues of love, feelings and empathy, gentleness, and respect. In these chapters, children are introduced to the concepts of unselfishness, understanding, and valuing themselves and others. The following three chapters, “Self-Control,” “Friendship,” and “Conflict Resolution,” provide experience in dealing with others in constructive and enriching ways. Chapter 8, “Conflict Resolution,” is designed to help prevent bullying before it starts. The goal here is to cut off potential bullying behaviors before they become entrenched and to build up resilience/resistance to hurtful behavior. With consistent and systematic repetition of the problem-solving activities in this chapter, you are likely to see a strong impact on the level of cooperation among the children. As a result, your learning environment will function more smoothly.   1 COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL