Empathy
What is empathy?
Understanding how someone else is feeling.
"Walking in someone else's shoes."
When Riley Facetimes with Meg, Meg tells her about an awesome new girl on the hockey team.
What emotion is Riley experiencing as she listens to Meg talk about the new girl?
Jealous, lonely or left out.
At the end of the movie, we see that Riley's new core memories are multi-colored.
What does that mean?
It means she is experiencing mixed emotions which is feeling 2 different emotions at the same time.
What does it mean to "cope" with a difficult emotion?
To get through or deal with.
What color is joy's dress?
Green
Throughout the movie, Riley's parents do not recognize the emotional struggles that Riley is facing.
Why didn't Riley's parents recognize that Riley was sad and lonely?
Riley's parents had their own struggles that they were dealing with. Her dad had some things come up with work and her mom was having a hard time with the moving van.
In an effort to keep Riley happy, joy draws around sadness and tells sadness to stay in the circle or sadness.
What other emotions are generally thought of as "negative?"
worry, fear, etc.
What was an example of one of Riley's core memories?
1. Playing with her friend Meg
2. Being silly with her family
3. Playing hockey with friends and family
Riley faces a number of difficult situations where she is required to cope.
What does she do to cope with her father's tense work situation?
Riley uses distraction by playing hockey with them in their new house. She also puts on a "brave face" for her dad.
What was the commercial that kept popping into Riley's headquarters?
The Triple Dent gum commercial.
Just before sadness, joy and Bing bong go into abstract thinking, we see Riley alone during lunch ay school. As this is happening, a mind worker says that Riley is processing loneliness, implying that loneliness is difficult to understand.
What other feelings are difficult to process and understand?
guilt, jealousy, worry, pride etc.
Disgust is an elemental emotion in Riley's head.
How can you tell when someone else is disgusted?
They may have their arms crossed or on their belly like they feel sick. They may furrow their brows or stick out their tongue like they are saying "yuck!"
Riley's core memories shape who she is by forming her islands of personality: hockey island, friendship island etc.
Do you think you are able to change your core personality and islands? Why or Why not?
Yes, as you grow up your interests change and you have more experiences which lead you to new emotions and ways to deal with those emotions.
In an effort to relieve tense moments, Riley and her parents act silly to make each other laugh. For example, after sending Riley to her room, Riley's dad tries to make her feel better by being goofy.
Is humor a healthy or unhealthy way to cope with a difficult situation? Why or why not?
Healthy- It can help distract a person to help them get through a tough time.
Unhealthy- It can make the person feel like you are not taking what's going on seriously.
Bing Bong's body is mainly made of cotton candy. Shape-wise, he said he was made of 3 different animals.
What were those 3 animals?
He was part cat for the tail and whiskers, part elephant for his trunk and ears, and part dolphin.
This movie give us insight into the mind of girl, mom and a dad.
How does being able to look into someone's mind help you have more empathy for those around you?
By being able to understand how someone might be feeling, it helps you get along with that person and shows respect.
What is the purpose of sadness?
Sadness helps us release uncomfortable feelings and helps us be able to move on and recognize the positive things that can happen easier.
When Riley creates a blue (sadness) core memory and joy does everything she can to stop the memory from being stored in headquarters.
How can an unpleasant core memory impact your personality in a positive way?
Ms. Rountree decides acceptable answers.
When Riley first steps into her new room, it is bare. In an effort to keep Riley happy, joy begins to imagine what the room would look like with all of Riley's belongings.
Have you ever used your imagination to cope or "deal with" a difficult situation? Give an appropriate example.
How did joy, sadness and Bing bong wake up Riley?
They scared her awake by waking up Jingles the clown.
On the first day of school, Riley is happy as she shares about her life in Minnesota. However, as she is talking her happiness quickly turns into sadness.
Give an example of a time when your emotions unexpectedly changed.
Ms. Rountree decides acceptable answers.
We are introduced to fear at the beginning of the movie. We see Riley running around her house. As she is running around and gets too close to the lamp cord, fear takes control.
When fear is in charge of your "headquarters," how do you know if it is a healthy fear that you should listen to because something is dangerous, versus something new that could be good to try?
A healthy fear keeps you safe in the face of danger. When you try something new it may feel scary but you are not in any danger.
Most of Riley's memories go into long term memory. However, a few are stored as core memories, shaping Riley's personality.
Why do you think some memories become core memories?
Ms. Rountree decides acceptable answers.
Bing Bong: (Seeing a memory image of 11- year-old Riley) "Whoa. Is this Riley? She's so big now. She wont fit in my rocket. How are we gonna get to the moon?"
As we grow up, we have to accept the fact that sometimes we grow out of things.
Is it easy to let go of things you've out grown? Why or why not?
Ms. Rountree decides acceptable answers.
Which one of Riley's islands was the FIRST to break down?
Goofball island.