What's More Important-A Heart or a Brain?

It's not hard to get little ones to give their opinion on something, the hard part is getting them to qualify it with the why. We took a little poll the other day for our morning tally graph. I asked one of the students what they had for dinner the previous night. The answer was pasta. So we made a very simple t-chart-do you like pasta? Yes or No. We took the votes and I asked some of the kids who said yes to tell me why-2 of them voted for it and didn't even know what pasta was! I often ask my kiddos to get past those one word answers and back it up with why they feel that way.

In the novel of the Wizard of Oz, Scarecrow and the Tin Woodsman have a conversation about what is more important--having a heart or having a brain. I asked the kids to choose one and back it up with why they believe that way. Here's what they came up with:

Because it gives you life.