Table Manners

Suggested Grade Level: Preschool-K
Based on: Barney & Friends #703: "Tea-riffic Manners!"

Objectives:
Although learning to be polite may not be easy for children, it is an important lesson for young children to learn. Even the youngest child can learn to say "please" and "thank you." Good manners are best learned through modeling and everyday play activities between friends.

The children will:

• learn to say "please"
• know when to say "thank you"

Skills:

• Pretend play
• Social/Emotional development

Materials:

• Paper plates, cups, utensils, napkins
• Classroom table, housekeeping center, or school cafeteria

Directions:
To help teach children appropriate table manners, pretend to visit a very fancy restaurant.

Invite children to sit at a table (this may work best in the housekeeping center, art tables or the school cafeteria). Have children help set the table with plates, glasses, forks, spoons and napkins. Show children the correct way to set the table with napkins and forks on the left and spoons on the right of the plate.

When everyone is seated, show children how to place their napkins in their laps and how to wipe their mouths. Practice asking politely for items to be passed (using "please" and "thank you").

Talk about other table manners such as:

• not talking with food in your mouth
• taking small bites of food
• using forks and spoons
• chewing carefully

Extension:
Write "thank you" notes.

Children will understand the importance of saying "thank you" when they are encouraged to write "thank you" notes. Help them write a note to a school helper (cafeteria worker, janitor, nurse, secretary), a community helper (firefighter, police officer, mail carrier), or a parent or relative. Throughout the year, encourage "thank you" notes either individually or as a group project for class visitors or parent helpers.

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