10/09/2026
Fifth grade recently finished the novel, Restart by Gordon Korman, in ELA this week! Today, Mrs. Seddon’s readers connected the themes of Restart to a hands on activity.
The idea of treating others with kindness, and the lasting impact of words and actions were a huge theme in this amazing book. It was all about a boy who used to be a really mean bully, and learns from his mistakes. He rediscovers who he wants to be, as he befriends the students who he hurt, and learns to do the right thing even when it isn’t easy.
For this activity, situations both from the story and possible scenarios in the students’ experience where unkind words or actions were used were read aloud.
Students squeezed out a little toothpaste each time they heard an example of hurtful words or actions. Then, apologetic actions for each hurtful situation using kind words/actions were read out. For every kind action, the students had to use a spoon to put some of the toothpaste back in the tube. Fifth graders discussed the power of our words and how we treat eachother both at school and at home. The students realized that just like toothpaste can’t easily go back into the tube—we can’t always simply undo the hurt we cause. We can, however, take responsibility, show kindness, and make better choices moving forward…just like Chase, the main character in the book did as grows throughout the story.
The students did a great job, and we all LOVED the story!