Preschool daycare: running the missions (Monday–Friday)
The adult leads a predictable Operation Thank You mission that children can recognize from one meeting to the next. This Monday–Friday plan is for preschool children in a daycare group.
about 4 and 5- 5 to 7 minutes missions
- Monday–Friday
Running the missions for preschool 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, preschool children (about 4 and 5) 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 Monday–Friday calendar is the one that fits: This is the Monday–Friday format from the first half of the Operation Thank You Manual. You see the same children on five school days. Each day is one mission of 5 to 10 minutes. The note is the work of the later days, not of Monday.
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 one picture and one question, answered out loud in a small circle. 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.
Five preschool missions in the daycare room
Monday in the daycare room belongs to the daycare lead. Look only. Put a cloth and a clean spot where crumbs were where preschool children can see it. Name Mr. Alvarez, the lunch helper, and say the kindness: he wiped the table so the children had a clean place to eat. It happened at the lunch table. Ask “What did his hands do before you sat down?” Stop at 5 to 7 minutes. No note yet. 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 they freeze, Point at the clean spot on the table and ask one child to touch only that spot, then say who made it clean.
On Tuesday, preschool children (about 4 and 5) stay with “The wiped lunch table.” Say the line. preschool children tell a partner, “Thank you for wiping our table.” 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. If the kindness disappears, point back to a cloth and a clean spot where crumbs were. 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 they freeze, Point at the clean spot on the table and ask one child to touch only that spot, then say who made it clean.
Words to say about Mr. Alvarez
This is a script the daycare lead can say with preschool 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
The note can be a dictated sentence. The child supplies the person’s name and the kindness. The adult prints it on the activity-book template so the child can see that spoken thanks and written thanks are the same idea. 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 preschool (about 4 and 5)
Preschool children can learn why thank you matters before they write much. They need a picture, a person, and one clear kindness. A long talk loses them. The leader shows the moment, the children say a short line, and the group stops while the words still feel friendly. For this daycare plan, keep the mission inside 5 to 7 minutes. one picture and one question, answered out loud in a small circle.
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 preschool 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.” The note can be a dictated sentence. The child supplies the person’s name and the kindness. The adult prints it on the activity-book template so the child can see that spoken thanks and written thanks are the same idea.
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 preschool group
Spoken practice about Mr. Alvarez can start in the daycare room today. The activity-book template matters when preschool 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.
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Let's help the next generation learn to recognize kindness, appreciate others,
and say “Thank You” with meaning.