My daughter and her cousin seem like an unusual pair. One is loud, outgoing, and adventurous, while the other is quiet and bookish. Yet they are good friends who have grown closer year after year. Their differences bring them together rather than pushing them apart.
Disney’s Lilo and Stitch also features an unusual pair. Lilo is a young Hawaiian girl who desperately wants a friend. When she ‘adopts’ the strange creature she calls Stitch, their friendship provides each with the sense of belonging and ohana (family) they both desire. Watch the movie with children 4+ and explore these themes further with one or more of the following activities.
Friendship bracelets. Walking to her hula performance, Lilo gathers items for a friendship bracelet. She shows it to the other girls, who laugh and make fun of her. While Lilo’s bracelet doesn’t look like the other girls’ bracelets, it is a reflection of who she is. Invite children to imagine how they would want their friendship bracelets to look. Ask: What colors would you use? What items would you incorporate? Encourage them to draw their friendship bracelets (or create them if you have elastic string, beads, and other materials handy).
Stress reset. After a stressful day, Lilo lies on the floor like a starfish and turns up her favorite music. Invite children to try out Lilo’s reset strategy. After listening for a few minutes in a starfish pose, pause the music and say: There are lots of different ways for us to reset after a hard day. What are some of your favorite positions to relax in? Try out the different positions that children suggest, restarting the music each time so you can really relax into the experience. Then ask: Which position was most restful for your body? Suggest that they use that pose whenever they need a stress reset.
Friendship qualities. Lilo sees a shooting star and wishes for a true friend. When she finds Stitch, she hopes he is the answer to her wish. Ask children: What are some characteristics of true friends? List the attributes they name and encourage them to highlight the qualities they see in themselves. Ask: Which characteristics are you still developing? Invite them to set goals and steps for developing one of those characteristics further.
Making amends. Lilo tells Stitch that making amends after making a mistake is part of being good. They apologize for taking a girl’s pretend car and return it. Invite children to act out this scene, taking turns playing each character. Afterward, encourage them to act out other ways they can imagine making a mistake and then making amends.
Ohana promise. Lilo’s and Nani’s mantra is “ohana means family, and family means no one gets left behind”. By the end of the movie, their ohana has expanded to include Stitch, Cobra, Pleakley, and their neighbors. Invite children to draw a circle and write the names of everyone included in their ohana in the circle. Encourage them to include family, friends, pets, teachers, neighbors – anyone with whom they have a close connection. Then ask: How do you take care of the people in your ohana? Share your caring strategies with one another.
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