Make and decorate a good deeds jar

You’ll need

Plastic jar with lid, one per person.
Scissors
Pens
Felt tips
Paper
Colouring pencils
Craft materials

Good Deeds Cards

PDF – 93.5KB

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Before you begin

Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. There's also more guidance to help you carry out your risk assessment, including examples.
Make sure all young people and adults involved in the activity know how to take part safely.
Make sure you’ll have enough adult helpers. You may need some parents and carers to help.

Planning and setting up this activity

Ask everyone to bring in a clean and empty plastic jar with a lid, such as from chocolate spread. Remember, not everyone will be able to bring donations from home. This may be due to lots of reasons, such as living situations or cost. Therefore, make sure you have some extra jars for people to use.
Avoid using glass jars, as these may break or be easily smashed if dropped or knocked.
If you do use glass jars, make sure everyone knows to stand or sit still if they see or hear a jar smash, so that any adult can cordon off and clean the broken glass.

Running this activity

Gather everyone in a circle tell them that you’re going to be doing an activity for Islamophobia Awareness Month (IAM). IAM happens every year in November. It highlights the positive contributions of Muslims in the UK and raises awareness of Islamophobia. Islamophobia is the fear of, hostility towards or hatred against the religion of Islam and against Muslims. When people understand more about Islam and the Muslim community, it can help to stop discrimination, bullying and stereotyping, and create a more inclusive society.
Explain that Muslims believe in one God, Allah, and follow the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), Allah’s messenger. After saying Prophet Muhammad’s name, Muslims say Peace Be Upon Him or PBUH. The phrase is used in Islamic practice to show respect. Muslims say or write the phrase to get Allah's blessings for the prophet/messenger, and in turn, get blessings for themselves.
Tell everyone that Islamic values are primarily inspired by teachings from the Quran, the holy book believed to be the literal word of Allah (God), and the Hadith, which are records of the sayings and actions of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
Explain that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) always practiced kindness, compassion and honesty in his daily life. He was known as Al-Amin, or ‘the trustworthy’, and he showed kindness to everyone, from family and friends to strangers and animals. For example, he once taught his followers about a man who gave water to a thirsty dog, famously teaching that ‘There is a reward for kindness to every living thing.’
Explain that by following the Prophet’s (PBUH) example, Muslims want to bring kindness to our own lives and spread it to those around them. They value kindness, charity, forgiveness, patience, justice, respect and keeping promises. These are like our Scout values too.
Ask everyone to think of some simple ways they could be kind, such as listening to a friend, helping someone carry their bag, or even sharing a smile. Have you done anything to be kind today? Let anyone who wants to share their ideas.
Tell everyone that you’re going to make good deed jars. Each time you do a good deed, write it down or draw it on a piece of paper. It could be anything from helping a friend, sharing a toy, or saying something nice to someone. Once you’ve written down or drawn your good deed, fold the paper and place it in the jar. Watching the jar fill up over time will remind you of all the kind things you've done!
Remind everyone to be specific. For example, instead of just writing ‘helped someone,’ they should write down ‘helped my little sister with her homework.’
Give out any empty jars and lids as needed, then let people decorate the jars. They could use craft materials, paints or anything else you have available. They may want to write on the jar what it’s for. You could let people cut up blank pieces of paper into squares to use, then place them in the jar.
After completing their good deeds jars, ask if anyone has completed a good deed today or during the session, then get them to write it down or draw it and add it to their jar.
Alternatively, people could write down or draw any good deeds they’ve done over the last week that they can remember and add them to the jar.
At the end of each week or month, remind everyone take some time to look through the good deeds you've done. This can make you feel proud of your kindness and inspire you to keep doing more good deeds.
You could have a competition. Ask everyone to get into groups and see which group can complete the most good deeds in a week or in a month, then give out a small prize to the winning team.

Reflection

This activity was all about learning about some of the values that are important in Islam, such as charity, generosity, patience, kindness and respect. Islamic values are primarily inspired by teachings from the Quran, the holy book believed to be the literal word of Allah (God), and the Hadith, which are records of the sayings and actions of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said, 'removing harmful things from the road is charity' and 'smiling is charity'.

Together, these texts guide Muslims on how to live with integrity, compassion and a sense of duty toward others. Why do you think it’s important to have values? Which of these values have you shown today? How do you think Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) felt when he helped others? We made some good deed jars to help us remember our kindness. What are some ways you can keep doing good deeds every day? How do you feel when you completed your good deed?

Islamophobia Awareness Month (IAM) happens each November to highlight positive contributions of Muslims and to raise awareness about Islamophobia. Can you remember what Islamophobia is? Why do you think understanding more about different faiths and beliefs can help prevent fear, bullying or prejudice? What good deeds can we do to help stop discrimination or bullying? How might it help us create a more welcoming community?

Safety

All activities must be safely managed. You must complete a thorough risk assessment and take appropriate steps to reduce risk. Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Always get approval for the activity, and have suitable supervision and an InTouch process.

Sharp objects: Teach young people how to use sharp objects safely. Supervise them appropriately throughout. Store all sharp objects securely, out of the reach of young people.
Scissors: Supervise young people appropriately when they’re using scissors. Store all sharp objects securely, out of the reach of young people.
Rubbish and recycling: All items should be clean and suitable for this activity.