Family Fun Time: Kindness

Read “Happy to Help” (page 4). When we are kind, we help others be kind too! Be sure to get an adult’s help with this activity and recipe.

“Bean” Kind

You will need a jar or bowl and a lot of dried beans.

Step 1: Imagine you did one nice thing for five different people. Put a bean on the table to represent you, then put five beans below to represent the people you helped. What if each of those people helped five others? Put five more beans under each “person.” Keep going until you run out of beans. Now count them up! How many people were helped because you were kind to five people?

Step 2: Every time you do something nice, put a bean in the jar. Can your family members each do five kind things every day for a week?

Step 3: At the end of the week, count out all the beans in the second jar. This is how many people your family helped! What if each of those people helped five others? Multiply the total number of beans by five. See how far your kindness can reach!

French Apple Cake

You can make a tasty apple cake like William’s family did! Serve it with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

3/4 cup flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

pinch of salt

2 large eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup butter, melted

4 large apples, peeled and cut into 1-inch (3-cm) pieces

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs until foamy, then whisk in the sugar and vanilla. Whisk in half of the flour mixture, then gently stir in half of the melted butter. Repeat with the rest of the flour mixture, then the rest of the butter.

3. Fold in the apple pieces until they’re coated with the batter and scrape them into a buttered 9x9-inch (23x23-cm) cake pan. Smooth the top with a spatula.

4. Bake at 350ºF (180ºC) on the center rack of the oven for 45–50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when you stick it in the center.