3rd grade daycare: running the missions (once a week)
The adult leads a predictable Operation Thank You mission that children can recognize from one meeting to the next. This once a week plan is for 3rd grade children in a daycare group.
about 8 and 9- 5 to 10 minutes missions
- once a week
Running the missions for 3rd grade in a daycare group
The adult leads a predictable Operation Thank You mission that children can recognize from one meeting to the next. In this daycare room, 3rd grade children (about 8 and 9) practice with “The wiped lunch table.” Mr. Alvarez, the lunch helper, he wiped the table so the children had a clean place to eat. The once a week calendar is the one that fits: This is the once-per-week format from the second half of the manual, written for groups and clubs that do not meet daily. One meeting carries the mission. A single home task goes in the activity book. Do not try to compress five school days into one hour.
The daycare lead leads. Mixed ages share the room. The youngest children answer out loud. Older children write. Nobody waits while the other group finishes a long craft. Children answer in a brief discussion the children can lead, with the adult keeping it on one kindness. The spoken line is “Thank you for wiping our table..” The note line is “Thank you for wiping the table before we ate..” Alison Gilham’s program supplies the manual, the activity book, and the flashcards; this page is the plan for this group and this kindness.
One once a week meeting in the daycare room
This is the once-per-week format from the second half of the manual, written for groups and clubs that do not meet daily. One meeting carries the mission. A single home task goes in the activity book. Do not try to compress five school days into one hour. In the daycare room, the daycare lead has one sitting with 3rd grade children, about 8 and 9. Do not replay a school week. Mixed ages share the room. The youngest children answer out loud. Older children write. Nobody waits while the other group finishes a long craft.
Open on “The wiped lunch table.” Tell the group that Mr. Alvarez, the lunch helper, he wiped the table so the children had a clean place to eat at the lunch table. Put a cloth and a clean spot where crumbs were in sight. Ask all three questions, one at a time: “What did his hands do before you sat down?” “What would the table have felt like if he had walked past it?” “Who else cleans a place so you can use it?” Children answer in a brief discussion the children can lead, with the adult keeping it on one kindness. Stop answers that are only “they were nice.”
Words to say about Mr. Alvarez
This is a script the daycare lead can say with 3rd grade children during running the missions. It uses “The wiped lunch table,” a practice situation for this plan. It is not a list of the 30 printed flashcards. Those cards stay in the set and match the activity book. Use this script when you need the words in the room.
The note for Mr. Alvarez
They draft, then check three parts: who, what the person did, and a closing that is not a joke. The extra practice pages in the classroom book are for the draft. The note that goes out can be copied clean. For this kindness the sentence is “Thank you for wiping the table before we ate.” It has to mention the lunch table or a cloth and a clean spot where crumbs were, not a general compliment to the lunch helper.
Age tips for 3rd grade (about 8 and 9)
Third grade sits at the top of the program’s age band. Children can explain why thank you matters and write more of the note themselves. Missions still last 5 to 10 minutes so they do not crowd reading and math. Community thank-yous fit well at this grade. For this daycare plan, keep the mission inside 5 to 10 minutes. a brief discussion the children can lead, with the adult keeping it on one kindness.
Copy-ready lines for “The wiped lunch table”
Spoken line to practice: “Thank you for wiping our table.” Reply children may hear: “You are welcome. Enjoy your lunch.” Note line to write: “Thank you for wiping the table before we ate.” Spanish line for the same kindness: “Gracias por limpiar la mesa.”
Who is in the daycare room
Daycare days are full. The program is built for that: short missions, a manual with a once-per-week option, and materials that work for mixed ages 4 to 9. There is no cost to the provider when a sponsor funds the package. Register on Find a Sponsor and Alison matches the room with a business or an individual.
What Mr. Alvarez's lesson needs
The Operation Thank You Manual is 98 pages. The first half is the Monday–Friday classroom sequence. The second half is the once-per-week sequence for clubs. Each child needs Why and How To Say “Thank You,” the classroom edition: a saddle-stitched activity book with situations for saying thank you, the How To Write A Thank You Note template, and extra pages to practice. The flashcard set has 30 cards, 8.5 by 11 inches, colorful, with rounded corners. The cards mirror the activity book so the group can look at one situation before writing. The manual, the activity book, and the flashcards are available in Spanish. The MISSION Reminders Supplement can be added when some children speak Spanish. Extra activity books are sold in packs of 10. For “The wiped lunch table,” also set out a cloth and a clean spot where crumbs were. Follow the manual’s order. Do not invent a new craft. The child’s work is the mission and, at the end of the series, the note.
Classroom and group notes for the daycare room
Daycare days are full. The program is built for that: short missions, a manual with a once-per-week option, and materials that work for mixed ages 4 to 9. There is no cost to the provider when a sponsor funds the package. Register on Find a Sponsor and Alison matches the room with a business or an individual. Mixed ages share the room. The youngest children answer out loud. Older children write. Nobody waits while the other group finishes a long craft.
If 3rd grade children stall on Mr. Alvarez
Point at the clean spot on the table and ask one child to touch only that spot, then say who made it clean. A child who keeps thanking the daycare lead is avoiding Mr. Alvarez. Send them back to the lunch helper and the moment at the lunch table. Whispering “Thank you for wiping our table.” counts.
Home work after The wiped lunch table
Thank the person who clears the table after a meal at home, and name what they carried. Write that in the activity book so the family sees Mr. Alvarez's kindness, not a blank “say thank you.” They draft, then check three parts: who, what the person did, and a closing that is not a joke. The extra practice pages in the classroom book are for the draft. The note that goes out can be copied clean.
Spanish materials in this group
If any child in the daycare room speaks Spanish at home, order the Spanish activity book for that child and keep the same situation. The Spanish line for this plan is “Gracias por limpiar la mesa.” The English line remains “Thank you for wiping our table.”
Books for this daycare 3rd grade group
Spoken practice about Mr. Alvarez can start in the daycare room today. The activity-book template matters when 3rd grade children are ready to write “Thank you for wiping the table before we ate..” If a sponsor is funding this daycare group, parents get a sample letter, and shipping is included on full and partial packages. The leader can ask at no cost.
Questions leaders ask
Let's Grow a Culture of Thank You.
Whether you're a parent, teacher, organization, business, or individual looking to make a difference, there's a place for you in the Culture of Thank You.
Let's help the next generation learn to recognize kindness, appreciate others,
and say “Thank You” with meaning.