Stories by Yuri Kuklachev
Ryzhik
I will tell you a case of how love saved my grandfather. This was a special person. His nickname in the village was Gerasim, because he fed all the homeless cats and dogs and stood up for them. The cat Ryzhik lived in his house. He caught it in the pond. He fed it from the papilla. I always carried it under my arm. Played Cossack robbers with him. And when Ryzhik grew up, he became so attached to his grandfather that he ran after him like a dog. Grandfather is getting ready to go hunting, he will throw the gun over his shoulder and into the forest, and Ryzhik is nearby. After some time they return with a bunch of porcini mushrooms. Grandfather strung them on a branch like a shish kebab and put a beautiful garland directly on the table for grandma.
Here, he says, are my trophies.
What a hunter,” the grandmother laughs.
She knows that in his entire life he has never killed a single bird.
The bird flies so beautifully,” said the grandfather. - I'll take aim. And just imagine how the bird flies down like a stone, my heart clench. I can’t raise my hand to a living thing. It's a pity.
Grandmother said that when she first appeared at her grandfather’s house, the cat began to be jealous of her grandfather.
The cat will sit on a stool,” my grandmother recalled, “and watch me vigilantly. As soon as I turn my back, he jumps from the stool onto my back, claws at me, and then back onto the stool. He turns his head to the side and sits as if nothing had happened.
I'm starting to get indignant:
Why are you scratching? I'll complain to the owner.
And he looks at me with innocent eyes.
Are you crazy, Agafya? I’m sitting here, not bothering anyone.
He will close his eyes, and only two cunning lights sparkle from the slits.
I leave the shawl on the bench, and he tears it to shreds. Sometimes he will look into your eyes, and there is such hatred in them! Just look, it will get in your face. If I pass nearby, I will definitely grab my leg with my teeth. I tore all my stockings. To avoid complaining to my grandfather, I walked around the house in felt boots.
One day my grandfather fell ill. The heat from it is like from a stove. Doctors said the situation was hopeless. Whatever the cat did. He hovered over his sick grandfather, warmed his feet, and the shaman pressed himself to his head and walked, walked on his grandfather, danced, gently massaging his body with sharp claws, but nothing helped. The cat was sad. He lay down next to him and didn’t move. I just watched how I took care of my grandfather all these days. She gave me infusions of various herbs. I didn’t sleep at night, held his hand and prayed. She prayed desperately, passionately. Every vein asked for help. Grandfather felt better, the disease subsided, and after a while he recovered. After that, the cat jumped onto my lap for the first time, licked my hand and snorted. This was the only way he could express his gratitude. The cat understood that the grandmother, with her love, saved a person dear to him.
Who doesn’t know about the famous good magician and wizard, circus performer Yuri Kuklachev! He is a true People's Artist of Russia! - who created the only Cat Theater in the world, is popular and very much loved not only in our country, but also abroad. Both mustachioed cat artists love him, and both children and adults admire his clown masterpieces. And here in front of us is a small colorful brochure written by Yuri Dmitrievich - “School of Kindness. Recommendations and suggestions for teachers and psychologists.”
Introduction... No, this is not a dry preface to the book -the cry of the soul of a person who suffers with all his heart: what is happening in our country now, in school?! “The situation is critical. Drastic changes and instability have dealt a blow to morality, moral and ethical aspects of human character... We must challenge those forces that are trying to bring about spiritual devastation in our children, - reads the appeal to readers.
Yuri Kuklachev shares with us:
“Once, during a tour in Paris, I said on television that I dreamed of holding a “Lesson in Kindness.” The French Ministry of Education called me and asked: “Could you conduct a demonstration lesson in the near future?” I agreed.
Seven thousand children gathered in the sports palace. With the help of a translator, I talked about my animals and immediately demonstrated tricks, revealing the secrets of my work. The lesson was a great success. And now you can read about me and the cats in a French textbook, in a book for extracurricular reading for fourth graders in French public schools.
It was twenty-five years ago. Then I proposed to conduct a Kindness Lesson in our country.
“Kindness is for kindergarten,” they explained to me at the Ministry of Education, “we need fundamental sciences that will help us explore space.”
I calmed down and for many years I only dealt with cats. But one day an incident happened that blew me up from the inside.
A friend's son died from a drug overdose. He was only twenty-four... I could not hold back my tears and sobbed helplessly like a child. I cried not from pity, but precisely from powerlessness to change anything. I wanted to scream, tear out my hair, bury myself in the ground. And I asked MYSELF a question:
- Why didn’t I become a drug addict and drunk? Although in childhood there were all the prerequisites for this. Everyone who offered to drink or smoke at the entrances died very early. — I started analyzing. — I had a goal back in first grade. A dream to which I reached out with my whole being.
Here's a clue! Aspiration towards your dream, towards your favorite business is the main cure for death.
I realized that the time had come when I had no right to sit idly by. I am obliged to collect all my experience, observations, to reveal the baggage of my knowledge to everyone who is able to hear, see and feel. Therefore, I decided to offer a lesson in spiritual culture for children at school.
I called this lesson A LESSON IN KINDNESS AND SELF-KNOWLEDGE”.
Yuri Dmitrievich’s book, more precisely, a methodological manual, describes in detail the implementation of 17 Lessons of Kindness. The names of some of them:
In 2003, Yuri Kuklachev proposed the “School of Kindness” program. To conduct lessons, he wrote a series of books “School of Kindness” and methodological recommendations for teachers and psychologists on conducting “Lessons of Kindness and Self-Knowledge” for primary school children. The games and tasks included in the teaching manual were compiled by Yu.D. Kuklachev using the works of scientists, academicians, psychologists (Pavlov, Orlov, Anokhin).
From recent news:
The world-famous clown, cat trainer and children's favorite Yuri Kuklachev visited the Shakhovsky juvenile correctional colony.
Yuri Kuklachev entered the colony hall without makeup, wearing a funny hat with tassels, with a white lapdog under his arm. Smiling widely. And this childishly open smile involuntarily forced the teenagers to reciprocate. The artist’s voice immediately won the attention of the children.
They talked about evil, good, conscience, indifference, and love. More precisely, Kuklachev asked questions, and the guys answered. Sometimes out of place, and sometimes with philosophical overtones. And there was no distance between the people's artist and the convicted teenagers - he was not on stage, but in the hall, along with them.
Kuklachev has his own approach, his own language of communication with such teenagers. He did not speak in moral terms. Simple and accessible. Using examples from his own life, he told how he overcame difficulties, how he went towards his dream - the circus.
He developed his own program for working with difficult teenagers. For four years now, she has been traveling around the country with her, meeting convicts in colonies and teaching them lessons in kindness. And teenagers hear it. This was evident from their faces - beaming and at the same time puzzled.
Why did you come into this world?
For life.
Right. But it is impossible to live without some purpose. Do you, Deniska, have a goal?
He shrugs.
Must be a must. If it is not there, then there is nowhere to go further. There will be only emptiness. And this is scary. Now you have fear in your heart. He can be defeated. With love. Learn to love yourself - respect, appreciate, and then everything will come. Including the goal. Only she should be honest, bright, peaceful. Then you will feel good, and everyone will help you.
It was felt that Kuklachev was improvising. This is not a memorized and well-worn program that makes you sleepy. The artist's sincerity and sincerity, and in return - the openness and interest of his audience. Kuklachev did not work on the consciousness of teenagers. He's not a psychologist. He worked on their hearts. After all, he is a clown.
I am a happy person because I try to give children a piece of joy and kindness. I hope that you will get it too,” the clown said enthusiastically.
Not without clown gadgets. The kids learned to juggle and enjoyed posing for cartoons. By the way, they were not the only ones - the leadership of the colony willingly participated in this exciting event. Everyone laughed. For a couple of hours, the imprisoned teenagers turned into ordinary children - cheerful, contented and, albeit for a short time, carefree.
I am filled with positive emotions. Communication with Yuri Kuklachev made me think about a lot,” Dmitry, a prison student, shared his impressions of meeting with the artist.
“I have never seen anything like this in my life,” Sergei picked up, “I have never met such an open, kind person. His words made me believe in myself, in my strength. We must strive to be kinder. I will. With time.
It is a misconception that only children react with delight to the circus antics of our little brothers. 15-19-year-old boys greeted Kuklachev’s pet numbers with a bang. And after a short performance with a cat and a dog, we lined up to take a photo with them.
At parting, the artist firmly shook hands with each of the guys and said:
Yuri Kuklachev came to the children not only with his program, but also with gifts. So the inmates of the colony left the hall happy.
http://epressa.su/news/society/urok_dobroty_ot_kuklachyeva/
Interview with People's Artist of Russia Yuri Kuklachev about the problems of education
For the development of children's imagination, inner courage, imagination, ability to concentrate, be attentive and observant.
Exercise 1. Exchange
– Take some small item from your things: a comb, a pen, a key. While the presenter counts to 20, carefully examine the object...
…19! 20! Exchange items with your neighbor. Check out this new item...
…19! 20! Stop! Now tell each other in turn, first about one subject, then about another, and let your neighbor check you.
Don't miss any of the smallest details! What is this scratch on the comb, when did it appear, why? Remember or make up this. Your neighbor's watch - how long has he had it? Did he buy them or is it a gift? Decide who gave it? Why did you decide so?
Thus, visual memory training is associated with the development of imagination, inseparable from observation.
Exercise 2. Street photographer
The exercise develops visual memory and observation skills.
– When you walk down the street, practice “instant photography.”
You see a person walking towards you. Look directly at him and look away after a second. Immediately restore the image to memory, and then compare the photo with the original. As in the photo:
- we're filming
- we show
- we print,
- We look at the prints.
In the same way, exercise your memory on “photos” of billboards with posters, shop windows, houses. Your eye must be able to accurately capture an image in every detail in a second. Or rather, your eye can do this, that’s all it does. But we are not always able to have time to comprehend the image imprinted in memory. This skill needs to be trained.
Exercise 3. One letter
Another exercise that trains visual memory and observation.
– While the leader counts to 30, find and remember all the objects in the room whose names begin with the letter C.
…29! thirty! Please, who's first?
– Bundle, chair, table, matches, photograph, wall, glass, sash, bracket, seat,cigarettes…
- Who will add?
– Earrings, silver, steel, napkin...
– A grid, a bunch of books, a collection, pages, a fold, paper clips...
- Foot, back...
– Sandals, sundress, chintz, satin, cloth, morocco, back, line, stitches,folds, shirt...
- Sun! Light!
- Headman, dude!
- Bruise!
- Bitch! All!
- So, with our joint efforts, in a minute we found 40 objects in the room on S.
Now, in half a minute, find all the words starting with the letter T.
Exercise 4. What does it look like?
Leonardo da Vinci also recommended that the artist develop his imagination by looking at spots on the walls. “You can see different battles there,” he claimed, “fast movements of strange figures, facial expressions, clothes and an infinite number of things.”
Fantasy manifests itself in the work of imagination in a person with developed associative thinking, with trained visual memory, the basis of imaginative thinking.
Everything that surrounds us in the room can be an object of fantasy - the lines of wood layers of parquet, shadows on the ceiling, folds of curtains, tablecloths, clothes. Clouds in the sky.
Let's throw a few matches on the table and let them fall at random.
– Take a closer look, what does this remind you of?
- Logs float down the river...
- The bear bared its mouth - those are the eyes!
– No, the bear doesn’t have such hard lines. This is a vulture. He spread his wings and is about to fly...
Exercise 5. Blind Path
Closing your eyes, you need to walk across the room to your place and sit down.
- Do not hurry. There is still a lot to do before you go. Consider your future path carefully. While your eyes are open, imagine that you are walking. See what your path should be. When mentally, but with your eyes still open, you have gone all the way, that is, you have seen yourself walking to a chair and sitting down, close your eyes. Do the same with your eyes closed, mentally go the whole way. How many mental steps did it take you? Open your eyes, consider whether you calculated the steps correctly.
Now close your eyes and walk. Mentally shorten the distance. You should have the feeling that you are moving in a space that is well known to you. No, no need to count steps! Better open your eyes for a moment to make sure you are where you thought you were.
This is not a sports exercise, do not strive to be the best, the fastest, this is not what you need. We are working on development conscious inner vision. Therefore, the most important thing is that when you walk, try to see your path on the screen of your inner vision...
After confidently completing the exercise, when it is clear that the student is not acting mechanically, counting the number of steps, but is actively using inner vision, a complication can be introduced. One or two obstacles, chairs or tables are placed on a straight line of path, which must be avoided and avoided.
Exercise 6. What's new?
Checking the degree of development of observation, ask students at the beginning of the lesson: - What new things have you noticed in our classroom today? – How were the chairs standing yesterday when you left?
- What's new in the clothes of your comrades - who is wearing a different dress today? In other shoes?
– Remember what new things you saw on the street today when you left the house?
Exercise 7. Box of beads
– Imagine that you have a box of beads on your lap. It has different compartments: red beads, blue, yellow and white. Get comfortable, decide which box you need, open it, see where the beads are. Take an imaginary thread and string beads on it in the following sequence: three blue beads, one yellow, one white, two red, one white and again three blue, etc.
In this exercise, you need to train continuity, a logical sequence of imaginary actions, and their completeness.
Exercise 8. Action with imaginary things
Stanislavski called action exercises with imaginary objects “basic scales for actors.” “He who performs small physical actions,” he said, “knows half the system.”
As a list of possible exercises, we present an extract from E. Vakhtangov’s notes:
- cross stitching,
- wash clothes,
- clean boots
- sculpt from clay,
- make jam,
- do your hair,
- untie the box of sweets,
- make a fishing rod and catch fish,
- light the oven,
- get dressed,
- cut out a sleeve,
- clean the gun,
- glue the box
- play with dolls, etc.
Exercise 9. Talking on the phone
– Call your friend on an imaginary phone!
Before the student starts talking on the phone, you need to ensure that he handles the imaginary phone correctly, accurately dials a certain number, knows the location of the action (where is the phone? In a booth? Where is this booth? Remember a specific booth on the street!).
-Who are you talking to? Do you see your partner with your inner vision?
Whenever you talk on the phone in life, remember! – you always imagine your partner, see him on the screen of your inner vision. What makes you see him? His voice! Now, when you are talking to an imaginary partner, how can you hear his voice? How to hear your partner with your inner hearing? Try to mentally answer for your partner the way he would answer, in your opinion. Mental speech must be combined with the vision of the partner.
Fictional relationship with a fictional partner is an important section in mastering stage action.
Exercise 10. Hitch
An exercise to develop communication skills between two partners.
– Your partner can’t hear you through the massive glass, so try to explain yourself in writing, write letters in the air with your finger, let him read them and write his answers.
Come up with a goal and take action.
The students write in the air with their fingers, but it soon becomes clear that words are not enough for them. They actively look into each other's eyes, and not just at the letters. They guess the beginning word and even the entire future phrase. They answer and ask, finally, not only with letters, they use them only if
your partner doesn't understand something. A strong internal connection is established between them, hitch.
– When was it easier for you to both transmit and receive, at first, when you used only letters, or later, when a link was formed? Of course, later. From the moment of coupling, you began to interact with each other, but at first there was no interaction, because each of you spent all your efforts on letters, that is, on another object, and not on your partner.
Exercise 11. Orchestra
– Now we will create an orchestra that will perform in the concert.
I distribute responsibilities:
You are a piano (you are not playing an imaginary piano, but the piano itself!).
You are a pianist.
You are a violin, you are a violinist.
You are a double bass, you are a double bass player.
You are a clarinet, you are a clarinetist.
You are the drum and cymbals, you are the drummer.
You are a singer, soloist.
You are the conductor of an orchestra.
The composition of the orchestra is unusual, but this should not bother us. The teacher or one of the students, the presenter, takes on the duties of an entertainer and announces numbers that are unexpected for the orchestra itself:
– Romance in Patagonian language accompanied by an orchestra!
– Symphony “Football”!
– Aria of the Martian woman from the opera “Cosmos”!
Musicians must play their instruments, and they must make appropriate sounds. The soloist singer should sing as if she had a voice unique in beauty and power of sound (but, perhaps, without sound at all!).
– What is it – “I am a violin”? I stretch out in my chair and throw my head back. My head is a tailpiece with pegs that tension the strings. I see, feel, feel how they are stretched, these strings are my hands stretched down and placed on my knees (on the “stand”). When the violinist moves an imaginary bow across my strings, I feel how the string vibrates and transmits its sound to my body, the body of the violin. And when I, the violin, sing this melody, I feel how my body sounds...
Strictly speaking, I don’t feel, but it seems to me that I feel. But is it all the same if I act as if I feel?
Exercise 12. Wristwatch
– What if each of you were a part of a watch? Gather in a small group and imagine that this group is a watch on a strap. Distribute responsibilities among yourself:
one is the hour hand,
the other is minute,
third – second,
fourth - mainspring,
fifth, sixth and seventh - three connecting gears,
the eighth is a balance with a hair and an anchor fork.
Look for the right “feeling” of every detail.
Who is the calmest? The hour hand, she has nowhere to rush. And the second is a hard worker, loves precision and is proud of his punctuality and tirelessness. How to show it in action? Whatever you want: you can, for example, describe a large circle with your finger and say “tick-tick-tick” while doing so. And the hour hand just stretched out its hand and froze...
- What time is it now?
Exercise 13. Playing with dolls
You need to bring several real toys to class - dolls, teddy bears, bunnies.
– We continue to play with dolls. Make a circle of chairs, sit down and pass toys to each other.
You observed the children and saw what the child’s belief in the authenticity of what was happening to him and the doll was based on. A child always treats a doll as if it were a living creature. He always justifies - yes, Tanya has a celluloid face, yes, her mouth does not open, yes, her hands are on elastic bands, yes, she is like that, but she sees, hears, and understands everything, she is completely alive!
The child believes this while he plays. After the game, he can kick Tanya away - she is just a doll, and not alive. But during the game, let one of the adults try to accidentally step on Tanya, what a tragedy it will be!
– Hand over toys and treat them as if they were living beings. Don't substitute imaginary people and bears in their place.
Justify - both cloth fingers and beads instead of eyes. That's how they are made, these cute living creatures! Play with them and pass them on to your neighbor. Act as if the dolls actually saw, heard, and understood you.
Exercise 14. Cat and mouse
– Play as if you were children. What will you play? In "cat and mouse"? Calculate:
One, two, three, four, midges lived in the apartment. A spider got into the habit of visiting them. Phew!
- There is a cat. Also calculate:
Glass, lemon, get out!
- And there is a mouse. Does everyone remember the terms of the game? Stand in a circle, hold hands. Remember that a cat is a very scary and treacherous animal; you must not let it near the mouse!
Exercise 15. Zoo
Helps to recognize the language of facial expressions and gestures, develops observation skills and relieves bodily tensions.
A group of children depict different animals. They try to accurately copy the behavior poses. The other group is the audience. They walk around the menagerie, guess the animals, praise them and take photographs. Having guessed everyone, the children change roles.
Exercise 16. Giant octopus
Children learn to work in a team, show dexterity, intelligence, and determination.
Children lie down on the mat in a circle, hook their legs together in the center and thus turn into an octopus. Another group of children are “divers”.
They quickly move between the “tentacles” (arms) of the octopus and try to get the “shells” - balls that lie between the octopus’ tentacles. The winner is the diver who can collect the most “shells” without being caught by the “octopus” and placed in the center of the circle.
Exercise 17. Bunnies on a tram
The game develops the ability to work in a group, feel for comrades, and relieves bodily pressures.
The “head car” is selected. The rest of the children squat down, take each other by the waist - they are bunnies sitting on a tram.
Following the “lead car”, they try to move with their whole “body”, avoiding obstacles, fall on their side, slowing down or accelerating their movement, and wrap themselves in a ring. The bunny’s task is not to fall out of the carriage, to feel the general rhythm. The team that passes the obstacle the fastest wins.
Exercise 18. Hippopotamus
The game develops dexterity, observation, attention, and relieves fears.
The driver is chosen - he will be a “hippopotamus”: he stretches his arms forward, one above the other, depicting a huge toothy mouth. The rest of the children put their hands into the “mouth”.
The hippopotamus, with a calm look, distracts the children, sings songs, stamps its feet, jumps up and suddenly closes its hands - “mouth”. Whoever gets caught becomes a hippopotamus.
Exercise 19. Circus walrus
The game promotes the development of intelligence, the ability to overcome obstacles using the resources of the body, and activates the imagination.
Children lying on the floor have their legs tied under their knees with a scarf, and they turn into a pinniped walrus. The presenter throws a balloon, and everyone tries to catch it, take it from others and throw it into a basket on the floor, moving in an unusual way.
The most accurate and polite “walrus” wins.
Exercise 20. Kangaroo
The game develops a sense of empathy and teaches you how to control your body.
A scarf is loosely tied to the children’s waist, forming a “kangaroo” pouch. A baby is placed in it - a favorite soft toy animal. At the command of the leader, the kangaroos begin to jump to the designated place, while trying not to drop the baby. You cannot support it with your hands. The fastest and most caring “kangaroos” win.
Exercise 21. Hand-to-hand combat on one leg without arms
The game promotes emotional release, releases aggression, teaches you to follow the rules, and relieves bodily tensions.
Children in pairs stand opposite each other on one leg. Hands hidden behind back. At the leader’s command, they begin to jump on each other, push with their shoulders and body, trying to force the opponent to stand on both legs. The leader monitors compliance with the rules.
The second option, more complicated, is for older children. Children in pairs stand opposite each other. They are blindfolded. They give you foam rubber pillows. Each warrior is spun in a circle and on command they begin to look for each other: whoever hits his opponent with the most pillows in one minute or knocks him down wins.
Exercise 22. Communal apartment for animals
As you know, quarrels often occur in communal apartments and people often cannot find a common language over various trifles, because they do not know how to give in and be polite towards others. The ability to negotiate, work in a group, and think about others are very important for productive communication.
On a small table, children should build a little house and live in it. Children consult and choose the roles of different animals. The task is to take turns identifying yourself and take a place on the table, thinking about others. It is clear that a bear takes up a lot of space, and a mouse takes up little. Let everyone remember the goal - to build a mansion and populate it with all the animals, occupying their own piece of “living space”.
Exercise 23. Robinsons
The game develops initiative, courage, the ability to stand up for oneself, and come to an agreement with a communication partner.
Pillows are laid out on the floor at a distance that can be overcome in a jump with some effort. Children are “Robinsons”, pillows are “islands”, there are two or three fewer of them than “Robinsons”. If the Robinsons are cramped on the island, then they must agree on how to live together. And if that doesn’t work out, they jump to other islands and, choosing different strategies (pushing, hugging, asking to move), look for a place in the sun.
If the Robinsons cannot agree with each other at all, an adult prompts and helps find a way out of the conflict.
Exercise 24. Animal poses that don’t get angry
Two teams. Whichever team can show the most poses of animals that are not angry wins.
Help the children by reminding them that kind animals breathe evenly and calmly. Ask your child to think about something kind and joyful.
Exercise 25. Poses of animals that are angry
And now the teams pretend to be angry animals. Breathing is voluntary. The child is asked to think about what makes him angry and angry.
Exercise 26. Poses of animals that were sleeping and now stretch
– You remember well that animals always stretch after sleep. Show how cats do it. Dogs. Parrots, Roosters. Monkeys.
Exercise 27. Show how...
– Show how a grasshopper and a kangaroo walk. Sparrow. Crow. Bear, Elephant...
– Show what the stork does when he rests. How does a cat rest...
- Show how an eagle flies. (The child lies down on the seat of the chair on his stomach,
raises his arms and legs as high as possible and flies in this position - whoever has the strongest abs
will last longer.)
Exercise 28. Circus act “Mirror”
Children face each other. One will show the movements, and the other will imitate, copying her exactly. Conditions: don’t go astray. You can turn on fun music. The order of movements: sit down, make a funny face, puff out your cheeks, smile, quickly begin to rub your ears, then your nose from the sides - 10 times. Pat yourself on the cheeks, letting out air noisily, rotate your head 5-6 times, jump in place 3-4 times, sit down, make a funny face. Rub your stomach clockwise, placing one hand on top of the other. Lie on your back, raise your arms and legs up, twitch them, making some funny sounds. Raise your arms up and jump, shouting in victory. Thus, massage is done, attention and observation are developed. Whoever portrays a mirror copies everything exactly.
Exercise 29. Fun zoo and skillful transformation
Ask the children if they have been to the zoo. Let them now try to portray the animals they like. When starting to show, make it as funny as possible and ask the child, when he guesses, to portray the animal himself.
Choose the most characteristic animal movements. For example:
– the mouse runs on its toes in small steps;
– the hare jumps with its paws tucked in and looks around;
– the fox walks smoothly, stroking its tail;
– the elephant noisily steps from foot to foot and slowly swings its head from side to side;
– the turtle moves slowly, stretching and sharply retracting its neck;
– the tiger tenses its front paws, releases its “claws” and prepares to jump, etc.
There should be no limit to your imagination and the imagination of your children!
Exercise 30. Playful monkeys
Imagine that two curious monkeys who have stained their hands with glue have their palms glued together. Show what figures the monkeys could perform in an attempt to separate
Exercise 31. Agile cat
A chair is placed, and the children take turns crawling under it on all fours - the one who crawls faster and cannot avoid touching the chair wins.
Then the exercise becomes more difficult. Crawl under the chair without touching the floor with your knees, leaning only on your arms and legs, and then back with your feet forward. You cannot touch the chair. The exercise develops strength, flexibility, plasticity and dexterity.
Exercise 32. Astronaut
– Imagine yourself in a spaceship flying to Mars. You are an astronaut. How will you move in zero gravity? Move from chair to chair, squat, lie down, stand up, pour water into a glass. Wear a jacket, a shirt... Watch carefully so that the children perform everything smoothly and slowly.
Exercise 33. Sadko
According to the fairy tale, Sadko ends up with the king of the sea. Show how Sadko walked and moved underwater. How he picked up shells with pearls. He caught the fish that swam around him.
This exercise allows the child to feel his body in space. Develops imagination and plasticity.
In the absence of a real animal, the presenter shows everything using a soft cat toy. Then the children are asked to imagine themselves as a cat who has come to someone else's house and is looking around. Those who want to show how it's done.
The children are divided into pairs, one is blindfolded, and he gently and carefully touches the other child and gets to know him. Then the pairs change roles.
Exercise 34 “Sharpening our claws”
The presenter invites the children to imagine themselves as kittens, sit down, stretch out their arms and legs, and, at the command “Sharpen our claws,” tense their fingers, hands, and feet. At the command “Soft pads”, the arms and legs relax. Repeat three times.
Outdoor game 35 “Mouse, mouse... cat”
Children stand in a circle. One, “mouse,” remains behind the circle, he walks and says: “Mouse, mouse... cat.”
The one he stops at becomes a cat, and the children scatter in different directions in a circle. Their task is to quickly take the vacant seat, but at the moment of meeting the competitors must definitely hold hands, curtsey, smile and say in unison: “Hello, mouse! Hello, cat!”, and then run again to the free place.
How it all began
More than 25 years ago, when Yu. Kuklachev performed in Paris, he was asked a question about his dream. To which he replied that he would like to teach kindness lessons. This was heard at the French Ministry of Education. The very next day they called the circus and asked what he meant by “lessons of kindness”? Kuklachev replied that through his love for animals he finds a way to the heart of a child. French officials liked this idea and asked Yuri Dmitrievich to conduct this lesson with them.
The artist was discouraged. He said something, but had no idea what it would look like. I sat down and started writing. I decided to tell the children how he found a common language with cats. Before him, the circus couldn’t work with cats, because everyone was trying to train them, but he did the opposite. I found a little kitten and brought it home. After some time I noticed that the animal was a capable creature. He began to talk to him, but not with words. It turned out that cats understand everything at the level of feelings and thoughts. This is what he decided to tell French children about. 7,000 people gathered for this lesson. It was a huge success. At that time, Jacques Chirac was the mayor of Paris, and for five years in a row he invited Yuri Dmitrievich to teach this lesson in Paris.
After such success in France, Kuklachev went with the idea of conducting kindness lessons to the USSR Ministry of Education. To which they answered: “What kindness, Yuri Dmitrievich, what are you talking about? We have fundamental sciences, space! What are you doing? This is all for kindergarten.” He came to terms with the fact that this was not necessary in Russia.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, society in Russia changed. The changes affected both adults and children. Drug addiction has penetrated into schools, which was not the case before. The last straw came when Kuklachev received a call from his friend and asked him to come because his son was dying of a drug overdose. The boy was the same age as the artist’s son. Yuri turned to the Lord with the question of what he could do to save the children.
Suddenly a thought came to him. He asked himself the question, why didn’t he himself become a drunkard and drug addict? And he remembered his childhood and Uncle Vasya, who, when Yuri was eight years old, once had a fateful conversation with him. The first question that his uncle asked Yuri was why he came into this world. The boy replied that he didn’t know yet. When he was getting ready to go to bed, Uncle Vasya told him not to sleep, but to think about why he came into this world and who he wanted to become. These were difficult questions for an eight year old. But from that day on, Yuri began to think about it and mentally go through all the professions in order to understand his purpose. One day my father brought home a TV. Little Yura saw Charlie Chaplin perform and decided once and for all to become a clown. There were many obstacles along this path: he was not accepted into the circus school seven times; upon admission every year they wanted to fail him. They twisted their finger at his temple when he said that he would win the Monte Carlo competition, where he won five years later. It was very difficult, but the dream and desire to overcome everything turned out to be stronger.
Working with children, Yuri asks them the same question that Uncle Vasya asked him at the age of eight: “Why did you come into this world?” Many answer: “To live.” To which he asks them: “That’s right. What is it to live?” They say: “Rejoice, have fun, obey, eat, play, study, work.” “Oh, closer. Work!" - he tells them and brings them to the main question - “What do you want to become in life?”
What is important to teach children
Yuri reflected on the topics of his lessons on kindness. One day Kuklachev saw a program where adults discussed for two hours that love is sex and sex is love. This amazed him so much that he ran to the car and drove into gear. When he arrived, the program had already ended. Yuri said: “It’s a pity that I’m late. Look, you brought such horror to an audience of millions.” He called a child who was in the studio and asked how old he was. It turned out that seven. Yuri continued: “Can you love?” The child replied: “I can.” Yuri: “Think about it, don’t rush. Who do you love most?” Child: “Mom.” Yuri turned to the presenters and said: “Do you hear? You are discussing two different concepts here. Why are you forcing this on a child? He has a completely different opinion. For him, his mother is a miracle. This is Love. Love is a feeling. And sex is an instinct. I'm not against him, I have three children. But there is no need to mix love and instinct.”
AND first lesson he decided to carry out LOVE. Not only to mom, not only to the flower, to the dog, but to everything around. It is a feeling of love and joy. Through delight. As an example, Yuri gives the children his observations about what animals feel and experience.
Then Yuri realized that it was necessary and second lesson where children should be taught TALK TO YOUR HEART. For example, a child goes outside, and someone else’s heart calls him and offers him a cigarette. According to statistics, 70% of fifth grade children have already tried this type of addiction. 70%... Many have not started smoking, but most have already tried! And Kuklachev decided to start from the other side - to fight from the inside. He began to explain to the children: “You have your own heart. They come up to you, and you don’t talk to someone else, but to your own heart. It will tell you what to do right.”
Third lesson- very important. LEARN TO LISTEN TO SILENCE. Many people cannot stand silence. Coming home, they immediately turn on the TV or radio so that something sounds in the background. Young people walk with headphones. The crowds are running, they have no time to stop. Yuri asks the children to stop and listen to the silence.
Attitude towards children
One day Yuri came to school, where he was told that nothing could be done with the children. These are evil children. Their parents are drunkards, alcoholics, dead creatures. To which Yuri responded: “Stop, stop. You are already laying down aggression. Nothing has started yet. Calmly. Calm yourself down." After six lessons, the children opened up and began to tell amazing things. The teacher approached Yuri and asked how he achieved this. To which Yuri: “Nothing special, we love them and they feel it».
The whole principle of Yuri's work with cats is that he is behind them observes, finds their abilities and encourages. He used the same method in raising his children. Kuklachev did not impose anything on them. I just watched. His daughter Katya, at the age of three, drew a horse with her left hand. Then the girl went to school and the Soviet school knocked everything out of her. She drew with her left hand, but they forced her to use her right hand. She stopped drawing. Yuri thought: “She had a gift.” And he brought plasticine: “Katenka, let’s sculpt!” So the girl began to revive her creative talent. At the age of 14, she approached her dad and said that she wanted to become an artist. Her parents hired a teacher who began teaching her. Yuri called him after the first lesson to find out how his daughter was doing. To which the teacher replied that as long as the parents pay, then let him draw; he didn’t see anything special in the child. Two weeks later, Kuklachev called again. This time the teacher replied that the girl began to open up. A month later, the teacher himself called and said: “Listen, your daughter is talented! She drew something like this here, we are all shocked!” To which Yuri replied: “I know.” My daughter graduated from the academy with honors. Then I entered graduate school. She became the national artist of Japan.
The artist uses the same approach to children in his performances and lessons. WITH the most important thing is love. And spotting talent. All The principle of the school of kindness is to help see capabilities child. According to Kuklachev, children should not be forced. Every child is a genius. Every. Just when he was born, he opened his eyes and he is a genius!
Yuri Kuklachev’s dream is to start teaching kindness lessons throughout Russia. In these lessons, children from first grade will be taught about the soul. About the fact that there are two worlds: physical and spiritual, in which you need to understand and look for yourself. According to Yuri, the most important thing is the battle inside, in the heart. And the task of the school of kindness and the teachers conducting such lessons is to help children win. Don't force, but help. Children will find themselves. They only need to be given a little push. The adults will be just flashlights that will illuminate the path. With such upbringing, pure and honest people will grow up, who will become part of the new society and change their lives for the better. Agree that this is an amazing mission and we could teach our children the same things.
“Kindness is not just a feeling, but a state of mind that TRANSFORMES THE WORLD and obeys only the HIGHEST LAW OF MORALITY.”
Yu. Kuklachev
I would like to recommend to all parents, as well as educators and teachers, the wonderful books by Yuri Kuklachev, which our family really liked. We purchased one of his books, “Lessons of Kindness and Self-Knowledge,” at a performance in our city of Volzhsky, which, by the way, everyone who came to it really liked. Both children and parents were delighted!
I was able to talk with the artist himself at the moment when he was signing books for the guys. We sincerely thanked him for nurturing kindness and other good qualities in children in such an unusual way - through communication with animals, through books and performances. This is a very effective and visual method of awakening in children the best that nature has laid in them.
I had never seen Kuklachev’s books in bookstores before, even in large ones. On my question "Why?" he answered sadly: “Unfortunately, goodness has no value these days”. Therefore, his books can only be purchased at performances or in online stores. There are also video discs. The age for which the materials are designed is from three years and up... adults will also be interested.
There is a series of books intended for schoolchildren. “School of Kindness” is a cultural and educational program proposed in 2003 by Yuri Kuklachev. To conduct lessons, he wrote a series of books “School of Kindness” and methodological recommendations for teachers and psychologists on conducting “Lessons of Kindness and Self-Knowledge” for primary school children. The books have passed an expert council, approved by the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation, and are included as a guide for extracurricular reading in the lesson “The World around us.”
Yuri Kuklachev is not a trainer (although he is often called that), he is a wonderful actor and teacher rolled into one, he is a man with a huge kind heart who gives his warmth and smile to everyone who sees and hears him. Being close to him, you literally “absorb” his sensitive and caring attitude towards the world, towards all creatures - both animals and people. He doesn't train animals, he plays with them! And this is the most reasonable form of raising both animals and children. We have a lot to learn from him. After all, children, like animals, learn and grow best through play.
“The spiritual and moral foundation is not given to a person by nature from birth, it is nurtured, therefore a targeted influence on the child is necessary. And the most convincing thing is personal example. Morality has always been and remains the basis of the spiritual revival of the nation.”
Books and videos explain in simple language, accessible even to a three-year-old, such important concepts as good, evil, friendship, envy, love, honesty, justice, feeling, mercy, politeness, responsiveness, hatred, conscience, happiness, dream, care, responsibility. , sympathy...
Interesting stories, sometimes funny, sometimes sad, record stories from Kuklachev’s life - from his childhood, youth, work in the theater. The questions that are raised in the books are questions of life itself.
“What is life”, “How to become strong”, “Love is the main energy of the universe”, “Faith is the main strength of man”, “Overcome resentment”, “What is fear”. There are questions and practical exercises, exercises and useful tips from which a child can understand who he wants to become, how to realize his dream, find friends, and understand himself.
If we don't talk to children about these topics, how will they understand them? How will they learn to distinguish their feelings and name them correctly? How will they find meaning in their life and how will they move through it? Each story is a reason to spend time with your children, talk to them about important things, teach them to think, take responsibility, and help others.
Yuri Kuklachev himself talks about his books like this:
“After reading these books, you will understand the language of feelings spoken by all living things in the universe, you will learn the main secrets of raising and caring for cats and dogs, because animals bring kindness into our home, soften the hearts of adults and make people happy. Books also teach you to talk to your heart... (So that your heart doesn’t fall asleep, try to notice the beautiful in everything). It is through individual stories – bright, expressive, funny, sad – that a person is brought up. The book contains useful tips on how to raise cats. So that the children get carried away, and at the same time teach their cat to live in such a way that the house is clean and calm. I will tell you all the secrets of my work, and you will understand how to teach your animals to become house performers. They, in turn, will teach you endurance and patience, and will even treat you.
From books, children learn about how aggression is born in a person’s heart and what ways there are to combat it. About how useful it is to restrain your feelings and desires in time. They will understand that it is always appropriate to first reflect before asserting. Instead of envy, they will learn to rejoice in the success of their neighbor. Through communication with pets, children will develop the ability to sympathize and understand the condition of others. By observing the behavior of animals, children will increase their baggage of positive emotions - joy and goodwill. We will teach children to listen to silence, see with their backs, and develop their ingenuity. Over time, they will understand: Kindness is energy. He who gives it to others does not lose, but gains.”
On my own behalf, I would like to add that these books are worthy of re-reading them every year, as the child grows up, observing his reactions and conclusions. There will definitely be a place for them in any home library, and they will be passed on from generation to generation. Such a gift will be remembered for a long time by both children and their parents.
In conclusion, here is a quote from the book:
“Education is not an action.
Therefore, all our activities are long, painstaking and purposeful work aimed at the morality of our youth.” Yu. Kuklachev
All the best to you, dear friends!
