02 Broadcaster Press February 10, 2015 www.broadcasteronline.com L I L’ BIT S Best Buddies By Sarah Wetzel For the Plain Talk For a first-grader, the playground can seem like a large, ominous place especially if you don’t have anyone to play with. At Austin Elementary, the kids have solved this problem by creating the Buddy Bench. “It’s for if someone doesn’t have a buddy,” said Crue, age 6. “They sit on it and then if your signature is on it, you can say, ‘Do you want to play with us?’ and then they can say ‘yes.’” The bench has been painted and signed by all the kids at the school as a commitment to reach out and welcome new playmates. “If you see somebody sitting on the buddy bench and your signature is on it, you can ask them if they want to play and they can say yes or no,” said Skylar, 6. Crue himself has used the bench to find someone to play with. “These two girls wanted to play with someone,” he 1 5 % off ff said. “They wanted to play tag and me and my friend said ‘Do you want to play with us and we will let you guys choose.’ Then they played tag with us.” Tessa, 7, also knows the Buddy Bench drill. “If you see someone walking to the Buddy bench you say to them ‘Will you play with me?’” So why is it important to have people to play with? “So we can be a kinder school,” said 7-year-old Jason. “And people don’t feel like they’re left out” These first-graders know what it means to be a good buddy. “Sharing stuff and just, well, playing with them,” Jason said. “You never fight over stuff and you never shove them.” “Being nicer to other people,” Crue added. “Treat them nicely.” “You never say bad words to them,” said Tessa. “Never treat them like they’re left out,” Skylar added. One important aspect of making a buddy is knowing who you can be buddies with. “It doesn’t matter what color hair they have, it just matters if you like each other or not,” Skylar said. “What makes you like somebody is if they play with you a lot.” “They could be the same age or not,” Jason said. “They could be girls and boys. You could have a girl-friend.” Especially in lieu of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the students recognize that it’s not what you look like that makes you a good buddy. “It doesn’t matter between their skin because I have a friend named Evan and his skin is dark chocolate but I really like him,” Jason said. “Me and him have been best buddies for five years.” Jason knows that similar interests are important, though differences are ok. “It depends on what they like because I like sports and many of my other friends like sports,” he said. “They each like different ones. I think none of them like golf.” Crue has also noticed similar and different interests between him and his friends. “One of my other friends likes Transformers and Ninja Turtles,” he said. “I like Ninja Turtles but not Transformers that much. I also like karate and sports.” This group of firstgraders even found similar interests between themselves. “I like bunny rabbits and my other friends do too,” Jason said. “I like bunny rabbits too,” Crue replied. Skyler said she and her friends enjoy bows and arrows. “I like to watch sports but my other friend doesn’t,” Tessa shared. “Everyone needs friends.” Though being buddybuddy is fun, inevitably friends will make you sad as these kids know. “Sometimes my friend rubs it in when I lose a football game,” Jason said. “I just walk away and sometimes I say I think it’s a tie because then we don’t have to fight over it.” “Sometimes I play with my friend but she doesn’t play with me so i’m kind of sad,” Tessa shared. “I go to the buddy bench and play with someone else.” Tessa agrees it’s ok to play with someone again if they say they’re sorry. Skylar has a similar tactic to Tessa. “If me and my friends ever get in a fight then I just make a new friend and then I have more friends when me and my friend get back together,” she said. Jason also recognizes that sometimes he accidently makes his All U.S.A Made: Mad de: (Left-Right) Jason, Skylar, Tessa and Crue show what it means to be a buddy on the school’s Buddy Bench where kids can come to find a playmate at recess. Last names were withheld for privacy reasons. SARAH WETZEL / FOR THE PLAIN TALK friends sad too. “We were playing football in my basement and I accidently hit my friend’s tooth,” he remembered. “I followed him around and said I’m sorry and then he went downstairs. He has to adjust to it and then he’ll come back and then we’ll be really good friends again.” Though friends make us sad sometimes, they’re always there when you need them. “One time I was really sad and I got really frustrated because one of my dogs died and then my friends helped me cheer up,” Skylar said. Can family members be your buddies? The first-graders answered with a resounding ‘Yeah!’ “My sister says to Patrick, I’ll be your best friend and Patrick already says no, but then they’ll be best friends again,” Jason says of his family. Parents can also be considered your friends according to these kids. “They do fun stuff for you,” said Crue. “We watch Getting Chased By Dinosaurs on TV. It’s on Netflix.” Jason said his parents are his buddies too. “They give me apps for my kindle,” he said. “They feed me and they do my laundry and they do mostly everything for me.” To read more about the Lil’ Bits look in the Plain Talk or go online to www.plaintalk.net. & John Barbara BERNARD will celebrate their 65wedding anniversary on th OPEN FEBRUARY 14TH. An Open House will be held at a warmer, later date. Please help them celebrate this special day by sending greetings to: 1635 Princeton, Vermillion, SD 57069 Farmers Mutual Hail provides the insurance products you need to protect your farm. Whether it is your home, machinery, crops, or vehicles, our agents are ready to tailor an insurance package that is right for you. Farmers Mutual Hail has the coverage you need and the service you expect. SEE YOU AT THE NEXT YOU AT OU NEX NEXT XT COYOTES GAME! COYOTES GAME COYOTES GA E! T THURSDAY, FEB. 12TH THURSDAY, FEB. 12TH RS AY 2T Wome Womens VS Omaha Womens VS Omaha 7 pm e maha a TUESDAY, FEB. 17TH TUESDAY, FEB. 17TH ES AY 7 CALL YOUR FMH AGENT TODAY! Mens Mens VS Avila 7 pm e Av l Avila m “Come and get it!” Chili, Soup and Pie Supper First Baptist Church 101 E Main St. Thursday Feb 12th, 2014 5-7 PM Adults $6.00 • Kids (3-11) $4.00 Admission includes: all-you-can-eat soup and chili and one slice of pie. Are you becoming eligible for Medicare or looking to compare Medicare plans? See me as I represent many ?ne companies. Lloyd Rowland P PO Box 334 Verm Vermillion, SD 57069 605-350 605-350-3849 lloydrowland@ lloydrowland@hotmail.com 605-760605-760-7324 60-7324