Student responses to using Love-Ability in the classroom

STUDENTS SHARE EXPERIENCES ON LOVING

Love-Ability makes an excellent addition to Marriage and Family, Religion, Sociology, and Philosophy Courses for high school and college students. Contact the publisher for a textbook discount.

High School students studied Love-Ability in their Religion Class. They were to live an aspect of the book (go and love someone) and then write how it went as a class assignment. This was done several times throughout the book. These are some comments from one class on how the various members practiced love:

Student response to lessons using Love-Ability

Teacher: Mr. Mike Morse, high school teacher from California

I decided to love someone that I have been fighting with lately. I really don’t talk to her as much because she wanted to choose between her and one of my close friends. I sat down with her and talked to her about what I was feeling. I told her that it wasn’t right to tell me to choose and explained why. She realized she was wrong and I forgave her.

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I have a good friend who used to come to our school and we were really close and a lot of people disliked her. My best friend told me to stop talking to her because they hated her. But I kept defending her and was there for her. I didn’t just leave her even if everyone told me to ditch her. Yesterday she had a bad day and I showed her love by listening.

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I talked to one of my old friends. We hadn’t been talking in about a month or so. I decided to call her and we both admitted that we had stop talking over something really small. We began to talk about how we both felt and about the issue and we were able to resolve our problem and keep in touch.

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When I went home the other day a couple of my friends came over and there was one particular person that I didn’t like. But to be nice I said “Hi.” We were all hanging out outside and I gave them food. When my friends wanted to go inside, the person I didn’t like stayed outside so it was just the two of us. She was quiet and playing with her cell phone so I decided to ask her what’s up and talk to her in a nice way. So we started talking and it turned out she’s not that different from me. If I had started to talk to her earlier we could have been friends but we had to “dislike” each other. After that we always talk now and we’re always talking on the phone and hang out.

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Being part of our school volleyball team is very difficult because I have to go against other volleyball teams. On Wednesday we played pacific hills and won. I applied Wednesday’s lesson and at the end, even though we won with glory, I told the other team that it was a good game and I shook their hands.

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Today I was nice to someone I don’t like and it felt really great. We were in class and we had to do a group activity. When everyone was moving around she was there and I asked her something politely and said thank you. Even though it wasn’t a long conversation I felt like we were getting along. If I go little by little she won’t be creeped out by me for suddenly talking to her. If I continue to talk to her I think soon we can be friends. Later that day at lunch I saw her buying her food and when she passed me I smiled at her.

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I decided I would talk to a girl in my dance class who I considered my enemy because she is my competition in our studio. I used our lesson on loving our enemies. We had a good conversation and ended up being good friends now. We had a lot in common and we had some opinions on a lot of issues

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My brother and I have always been arguing since we were small. We argue over anything and I really do try to have patience since he’s my little brother. This weekend I tried to love him more, act positive and have more patience than usual. When he talked back to me I just stayed quiet and everything was better. I hugged him even though he refused. Everything felt way better because I refused and avoided fights and arguments.

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Today when I went home I said to my mom “I love you and kissed her on her cheek. At that point I remembered what I had learned in religion class.

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It is very hard for me to love my enemy because she is my enemy for a reason. I know that we have to learn how to forgive and forget, but it is very difficult for some of us. I am one of those persons that is having a hard time to forgive and forget what that person did to me. I know that God has taught us to forgive others and love them but hopefully, little by little, I will forgive my enemy and forget the past and look forward to the future and see what is planned for me. A couple of days ago I saw my enemy and I said a nice comment to her and it felt right. I might just keep doing the right thing and forgive her little by little.

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The way I loved someone is by helping my friend. It was on Wednesday night and my friend called me around 12:30 and when I answered the phone she was crying. I asked her what was wrong and she told me she got into a fight with her parents. She was crying a lot and when she finished talking I asked her if she felt better and she said yes.

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Today I applied one lesson on love to my mom. She was having a bad day and had been arguing with a few people. Usually I just get mad at her for being mad at me for no reason, but today I talked with her. I asked her about her day, why she was angry and gave her a few opinions and solutions. She really appreciated it and made both of us feel really good.

----------------------

Today I was coming from school and I saw a homeless woman with a child. She was asking for money to buy food and instead of giving her the money, I invited her to eat with me at Jack-in-the-box. The woman accepted my offer and so we went and ate. The mother fed the child and she thanked me and my mom and we went our separate ways. I felt really good for helping her and the child. It also made me realize how fortunate I am. I gave food to them and it made a difference in me.

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Today it was a very hectic day at school. I was extremely tired but when I got home my brother was in great need of help. So instead of going to sleep I decided to help him out. I ignored the fact that he had been really rude to me that morning. I helped him with his project and it came out pretty good. He turned out getting an A+ and he gave me a big hug.

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So I tried to love some and it felt awkward at first. I knew this freshman and tried showing her some love. I introduced myself and gave her a hug. She was like what’s’ going on at first but she warmed up to me. We’ve started to hang out during break and lunch these past few days. From this experience I can honestly say by being friendly and showing love, it changes your outlook on people. It may be different from loving your family. It’s natural, but showing some love isn’t so bad.

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My friend was having problems with her boyfriend which had her really upset. When I talked to her on the phone Friday she told me what had happened between the two of them and instead of me telling her I had to go, I listened to her problems. In the end she started feeling a little better. I showed sympathy towards her by listening to her problems and showing her that I care.

Love-Ability: Becoming Loveable by Caring for Yourself and Others

By Madeline Pecora Nugent and Julian Stead, OSB

New City Press: Hyde Park, New York, 2007

$13.95

	Love-Ability: Becoming Lovable by Caring for Yourself and Others A guide to making friends and being one - for those who know and those who want to learn Home Preface Table of Contents Classroom Use Order Information Testimonials Links Contact


Love-Ability Insight A true testimony to love is a life well-lived. Many people today are unhappy but have no idea why. They are so consumed with the pursuit of pleasure, work, advancement, prestige, and financial gain that they have no time to be still and to understand their own inner goodness or that of others. Instead of viewing others as competitors, consumers, or pawns in the game of life, we all need to see people for who they are -- gifts who come with many talents and abilities. We are all valuable.	STUDENTS SHARE EXPERIENCES ON LOVING Love-Ability makes an excellent addition to Marriage and Family, Religion, Sociology, and Philosophy Courses for high school and college students. Contact the publisher for a textbook discount. High School students studied Love-Ability in their Religion Class. They were to live an aspect of the book (go and love someone) and then write how it went as a class assignment. This was done several times throughout the book. These are some comments from one class on how the various members practiced love: Student response to lessons using Love-Ability Teacher: Mr. Mike Morse, high school teacher from California I decided to love someone that I have been fighting with lately. I really don’t talk to her as much because she wanted to choose between her and one of my close friends. I sat down with her and talked to her about what I was feeling. I told her that it wasn’t right to tell me to choose and explained why. She realized she was wrong and I forgave her. ------------------- I have a good friend who used to come to our school and we were really close and a lot of people disliked her. My best friend told me to stop talking to her because they hated her. But I kept defending her and was there for her. I didn’t just leave her even if everyone told me to ditch her. Yesterday she had a bad day and I showed her love by listening. ---------------------- I talked to one of my old friends. We hadn’t been talking in about a month or so. I decided to call her and we both admitted that we had stop talking over something really small. We began to talk about how we both felt and about the issue and we were able to resolve our problem and keep in touch. ---------------------- When I went home the other day a couple of my friends came over and there was one particular person that I didn’t like. But to be nice I said “Hi.” We were all hanging out outside and I gave them food. When my friends wanted to go inside, the person I didn’t like stayed outside so it was just the two of us. She was quiet and playing with her cell phone so I decided to ask her what’s up and talk to her in a nice way. So we started talking and it turned out she’s not that different from me. If I had started to talk to her earlier we could have been friends but we had to “dislike” each other. After that we always talk now and we’re always talking on the phone and hang out. ---------------------- Being part of our school volleyball team is very difficult because I have to go against other volleyball teams. On Wednesday we played pacific hills and won. I applied Wednesday’s lesson and at the end, even though we won with glory, I told the other team that it was a good game and I shook their hands. ---------------------- Today I was nice to someone I don’t like and it felt really great. We were in class and we had to do a group activity. When everyone was moving around she was there and I asked her something politely and said thank you. Even though it wasn’t a long conversation I felt like we were getting along. If I go little by little she won’t be creeped out by me for suddenly talking to her. If I continue to talk to her I think soon we can be friends. Later that day at lunch I saw her buying her food and when she passed me I smiled at her. ---------------------- I decided I would talk to a girl in my dance class who I considered my enemy because she is my competition in our studio. I used our lesson on loving our enemies. We had a good conversation and ended up being good friends now. We had a lot in common and we had some opinions on a lot of issues ---------------------- My brother and I have always been arguing since we were small. We argue over anything and I really do try to have patience since he’s my little brother. This weekend I tried to love him more, act positive and have more patience than usual. When he talked back to me I just stayed quiet and everything was better. I hugged him even though he refused. Everything felt way better because I refused and avoided fights and arguments. ---------------------- Today when I went home I said to my mom “I love you and kissed her on her cheek. At that point I remembered what I had learned in religion class. ---------------------- It is very hard for me to love my enemy because she is my enemy for a reason. I know that we have to learn how to forgive and forget, but it is very difficult for some of us. I am one of those persons that is having a hard time to forgive and forget what that person did to me. I know that God has taught us to forgive others and love them but hopefully, little by little, I will forgive my enemy and forget the past and look forward to the future and see what is planned for me. A couple of days ago I saw my enemy and I said a nice comment to her and it felt right. I might just keep doing the right thing and forgive her little by little. ---------------------- The way I loved someone is by helping my friend. It was on Wednesday night and my friend called me around 12:30 and when I answered the phone she was crying. I asked her what was wrong and she told me she got into a fight with her parents. She was crying a lot and when she finished talking I asked her if she felt better and she said yes. ---------------------- Today I applied one lesson on love to my mom. She was having a bad day and had been arguing with a few people. Usually I just get mad at her for being mad at me for no reason, but today I talked with her. I asked her about her day, why she was angry and gave her a few opinions and solutions. She really appreciated it and made both of us feel really good. ---------------------- Today I was coming from school and I saw a homeless woman with a child. She was asking for money to buy food and instead of giving her the money, I invited her to eat with me at Jack-in-the-box. The woman accepted my offer and so we went and ate. The mother fed the child and she thanked me and my mom and we went our separate ways. I felt really good for helping her and the child. It also made me realize how fortunate I am. I gave food to them and it made a difference in me. ---------------------- Today it was a very hectic day at school. I was extremely tired but when I got home my brother was in great need of help. So instead of going to sleep I decided to help him out. I ignored the fact that he had been really rude to me that morning. I helped him with his project and it came out pretty good. He turned out getting an A+ and he gave me a big hug. ---------------------- So I tried to love some and it felt awkward at first. I knew this freshman and tried showing her some love. I introduced myself and gave her a hug. She was like what’s’ going on at first but she warmed up to me. We’ve started to hang out during break and lunch these past few days. From this experience I can honestly say by being friendly and showing love, it changes your outlook on people. It may be different from loving your family. It’s natural, but showing some love isn’t so bad. ---------------------- My friend was having problems with her boyfriend which had her really upset. When I talked to her on the phone Friday she told me what had happened between the two of them and instead of me telling her I had to go, I listened to her problems. In the end she started feeling a little better. I showed sympathy towards her by listening to her problems and showing her that I care. Love-Ability: Becoming Loveable by Caring for Yourself and Others By Madeline Pecora Nugent and Julian Stead, OSB New City Press: Hyde Park, New York, 2007 $13.95