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This week we start exploring stories from Peru! We start with the story of the Thunder God and his son, Acuri. Together they try to work with a selfish rich man and his family. Everyone learns some valuable lessons. In the lesson this week you will discuss the story and learn a fun new game that explores some important symbols in Peruvian culture.
⏱ Time: 20–30 minutes
🎯 Objective: Students will learn about Peruvian culture and experience a story that teaches about honesty, hard work, and generosity.
🧰 Materials: None!
▶️ Enjoy the Story
Introduce your Class to Peru with a Story about Generosity! (The Thunder God's Son) on YouTube
Introduce your Class to Peru with a Story about Generosity! (The Thunder God's Son) on Spotify
💬 Discussion (pick 1-2 questions)
- Why did Rupay want to beat Acuri?
- If the family was rich, why did the mother steal rings?
- What do we sometimes do when are trying to impress someone?
- How could the family have behaved differently with the people in town?
- What would you do with rainbow colored llamas?
✍️ Activity: Condor, Puma, Snake
The Condor, Puma, and Snake are three powerful symbols in Peruvian culture. If you like, you can watch this short video (under three minutes) that explains why these are three important symbols in Peru. Heads up! I would suggest stopping the video at 2:07. For some reason it has a picture of two people kissing at the end of the video when it talks about "connection." It is totally appropriate, but we all know what happens when kids see people kissing. Goodbye focus!
Explain you are going to play a game with these three symbols. It is similar to "Rock, Paper, Scissors."
Step 1: Teach the Motions
Give each animal a movement: (Feel free to adapt for your students for age and how much you want them to move!)
- Condor – flap arms like big wings
- Puma – crouch and “prowl”
- Snake – slither arms side to side
Let them practice once—keep it quick.
Step 2: Explain the Rules (Rock–Paper–Scissors Style)
- Condor 🐦 beats Snake 🐍 (flies above it)
- Snake 🐍 beats Puma 🐆 (strikes from below)
- Puma 🐆 beats Condor 🐦 (can catch it on land)
Step 3: Play
Option A (Pairs):
- Students pair up
- Count “1–2–3!”
- Show their animal with movement
- Winner gets a point
Option B (Whole Group Chaos—more fun):
- Everyone walks around
- On signal, find a partner and play
- Switch partners each round
Enjoy playing the game and maybe it can be a game you revisit through the month of May as a part of a review activity!
🎭 Story Play Options
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Change the Ending: Brainstorm different endings to the story. Put them in groups and have them act out the ending of the new ending to the story
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Story Charades: Have kids act out their favorite scenes from the story and see if the class can guess what they are acting out
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Creature Swap: There are lots of animals in this story. Put your class in groups and have them talk about how the story would change if it were different animals. What other animal could Acuri overhear gossiping in the woods? What is a different animal besides the llama? What about the snakes in the window? How would those changes affect the rest of the story?
If you try it, I’d love to hear how it goes. Your feedback helps me make these lessons as useful as possible for you and your students.
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