How to Make a Friendship Salad: A Lesson Plan for Elementary School Students

I recently went into my daughter's kindergarten classroom to assist in a Friendship Salad lesson. It was such a fun experience for all of the kids and a great bonding experience; plus, it doubled as an easy cooking lesson. Below are my notes as well as the lesson plan for the activity.

Time: About 1 hour

Objective: For kids to realize that every single child has a part in making the classroom a great place to be and learn that friendship is the key ingredient.

On the rug:
Read: That’s What a Friend Is by P.K. Hallinan (Or use any other Friendship book that you have on hand)

Questions to ask before and during reading:

• What makes a good friend?
• Raise your hand if you have made friends in our classroom. What are some of the things that make them your friend?

After you have finished reading your friendship book, explain to the class the activity.

• Today we are going to make a friendship fruit salad.
• We are going to go back to our desks to make our fruit salad. The parent at your desk will give you pieces of fruit to cut up to add to our salad.
• Each table will have one type of fruit that is ready to be cut, e.g., apples, grapes, strawberries, melon, cantaloupe. (Parents should have two bowls on every table. One for uncut fruit and one for the children to put the fruit once it is cut. There should also be plates, plastic knives, and napkins for each student. Fruit should be washed and precut in large chunks so that children just need to cut into smaller pieces with a plastic knife.)
• Parents or teacher models how to cut the fruit before the students begin. How to properly hold a knife and knife safety.
• Excuse students to their desks. Make sure parents have their handouts to ask pertinent questions.

After Fruit is all cut:

• Invite children to gather in a large circle on the rug.
• Bring out a large salad bowl.
• Ask students what type of fruit they think would make a great salad? Bring over the apples (or any other fruit.) Ask students, "Do you think we should only put in apples? How about grapes?" Add grapes and rest of fruit. Before you finish, bring out a rotten banana or other type of fruit. What about rotten fruit? What would one rotten banana do to the whole salad? How does a rotten friend affect our classroom? Let students respond.
• Tell students, "Your classroom is like our fruit salad. All of you are different and wonderful and the salad would not be the same without you. Are any of you rotten bananas? NO!! You are all sweet; just like a good friend!"
• Now that you are all finished, you can have a friendship fruit salad party!
• After the cutting and Good Apple activity (explained below), parents help clean up: stack plates, collect knives, wipe down tables with wipes, etc.

This is a guide for parents as they help at their table. One sheet can be given to each parent if they have any questions while guiding kids through lesson.

Friendship Fruit Salad Parent Guidance

The teacher will give instructions on making the friendship salad, but if there are any questions please answer them. Kids will be cutting up their fruit on the same plates that they eat their salad. Let them know so they don’t ask for another plate. When students are finished they will help clean up their desks by stacking their plates and wiping down their area. We may need to wipe it down again.

Possible questions you can ask your students after teacher has read her story:

• What makes a good friend?
• What is something that a friend has done for you?
• How did it make you feel?
• Do all of your friends need to be exactly like you?
• How are we different?
• Why does that make us better as a group?
• How is our classroom like our fruit salad?
• Why are we cutting up this XXX. What are we making?
• Have you made fruit salad before? How is your similar or different?
• How is the XXX similar or different than the XXX at the table?
• How do you predict this XXX to taste?
• Where do they grow? How do you know?
• What are some other things we can make with XXX?

After children have finished eating their friendship salad they can begin the “Good Apple” activity.

• Show the students the apple template. Found here
• Explain that we are going to make a Friendship Book that they can read throughout the year to remind them what great friends they have in Room XXX.
• Create your own handout with the apple that can says something like, “I’m a good apple because ___________.”
• Students are suppose to say why their a good friend. They can write their reason, draw their reason or do both.
• Pass out the template while the parent helpers pass out the fruit salad.
• If time allows, a great closing to the activity is to ask a few students to share their apple handouts.
• Ask a parent to bind the book so that students can read throughout the year.

The following can be sent out the week before the lesson to let students know what they need to bring to school. There usually is plenty of fruit. We had a massive amount of leftovers that we left in the Teacher's Lounge.

Our class is making a Friendship Salad! I need to bring one __________ to school on Wednesday.