The Power of Sorry: teacher key

Arguing and Making Up, grade 6 edition, written for 6th grade. A good apology does real work after a fight. Read what studies found about sorry, and when it helps most.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. What did children do after someone knocked over their tower and apologized?
   • Built a brand new tower alone
   • Kept every single sticker
   • Shared more stickers (answer)
2. How does a forced apology often feel?
   • Warm
   • Empty (answer)
   • Quick
3. How young can children be and still understand that an apology helps?
   • As young as four (answer)
   • Only after age ten
   • Not until middle school
4. Why might saying sorry too much cause a problem?
   • It makes every friend more angry
   • It stops all fights right away
   • It can make sorry mean less (answer)
5. When does a person not have to say sorry?
   • After every single little mistake
   • When refusing something unsafe (answer)
   • Whenever any friend is angry

Words

• empathy: understanding feelings
• apology: repairing connection
• responsibility: owning your actions
• unsafe: not safe