Definition of Cooperation for 4 - 7 year olds: Cooperation happens when two or more people help each other to make something good happen. It can also apply to animals or parts of a whole that need each other and work together.  An example of this is the human body – all the parts work together to make you healthy. In a nutshell:

Together we can do more. 

Summary:

The ant prepared for the cold winter by working hard to harvest the grain to store so it would have enough to eat in the coming months. Meanwhile, the grasshopper played his fiddle and had a good time, until the winter came and he had no food to eat. He begged the ant for food, who helped him out with a warning, “next time, work-then play.” 

Lesson Objectives:

1.  Students act out this story, using props. They take turns playing the different parts. 
2. Students rewrite the story using different animals as characters. 

Guiding Questions: 

1. Why did the ant work so hard to prepare for winter? 
2. What was the grasshopper doing while the ant was working? 
3. Why didn’t the grasshopper help the ant?
4. Why was the grasshopper so hungry? 
5. Can you think of a time when you were more like the grasshopper and wanted to just have fun, rather than do something that needed to be done? What happened? 
6. What if the ant behaved like the grasshopper and they had nothing to eat when winter arrived? 
7. In the end, the ant colony helps the grasshopper. Do you think the grasshopper deserved to be helped?  Why or why not? 
8. Real ants live in colonies and rely on teamwork within the colony. Do you think humans rely on one another? If so, share some examples. 
9. Why do you think it is important to think about the future and plan ahead? 
10.  What do you think the author wanted you to learn from this story?