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Monday, July 21, 2014

How Do YOU Teach Character Ed?

Do you have a program that your school or district uses for Character Education?
Do you follow Character Ed standards your state has developed?

I would have to answer "yes'' to both questions.
And one thing I would like to do better than I have done the past three years is help my students fully understand EMPATHY.

Is that a word you use much in your primary classroom?
Honestly, I don't think I taught it as much as I used it!
Silly mistake, huh?

We elementary teachers should know almost better than anyone that you have to explicitly teach, give examples/non-examples, model-Model-MODEL, and practice in whole group & small groups any new idea/concept.

You would think I would have done that with the word 'empathy'.
It's not even a word that many adults fully understand, I think:)

I believe that explicitly teaching the concept of empathy will better help the development of my classroom community, and be preventative for any bullying behaviors that might otherwise arise.

With that in mind, I would like to introduce y'all to a couple of key Kid-Lit books I will be using to help illustrate the concept.
You've probably read posts about both these books already here on my blog...
... but there is something in it for you if you will humor me and continue to read on to the end!
 (wink, smile)
This story is a cute, rhyming biography of a little girl named Alex Scott.
Alex became the original "founder" of the Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation.
If you would like to read about how my class helped this organization, click here.

This year, I will once again be hosting a Lemonade Stand Fundraiser for childhood cancer, and sharing this amazing little book with my new group of firsties.
I can't wait until May:)
I know, that's like a year away...let's focus on the now.

I usually do a fairy tale unit in the fall.
Cinderella kinda ties into our pumpkin unit, I guess.
Well, this year, I will be adding this new, princessy read to my repertoire:
I'm a little biased about this book for 2 reasons:
   1)The story is based on the true-life story of my little cousin, Baylee. If you follow Nikki, from Melonheadz (and who doesn't?), you may have heard about Baylee.
But if not, you can click here and read all about how Nikki blessed our family with her talent!
   2) It is written by my cousin (Baylee's mom), and Baylee helped her come up with many story components, as well as influenced many of the illustrations!

I used both these stories as the backbone for my new packets.
When finished, both packets will have book studies on 6 different children's literature selections (6 stories per packet, totaling 12 different books) as well as lessons/activities for socio-emotional development for adversity, bullying, empathy, and inner beauty.
Check out the covers:


I absolutely ADORE Nikki's bald kidlettes:)
Such a talented, generous lady!!

I plan on finishing both packets and uploading them to my store by the end of the week.
Although they will each have a cost attached, I will be donating monies made from the Inner Beauty packet to my cousin's foundation: Brave, Bald, and Beautfiul LLC, and funds from the Anti-Bullying packet will go to ALSF.
I just simply have to pay it forward to both of these incredible organizations!

Like what you've seen so far?
Did you stay with me all the way to the end??

If so, you can enter the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win a paperback copy of BOTH books + BOTH packets shown above....+ a $25 GC to TpT OR Amazon (your choice)!!!
That's a $50.00 prize packet that should start your school year off right:)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck, and feel free to pin any images above:)

And don't forget to link up to the oh-so-fabulous Deanna Jump with some of your favorite books!

18 comments:

  1. great job creating units my friend

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    1. Thanks, dear friend! Good luck tomorrow! I'll be praying for ya!

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  2. At our school we have advocacy every Monday and Wednesday. During this time we break the class in half and talk about different subjects that are put together by our counselors :-)

    Heather
    The Land of I Can

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    1. That would be nice to have your counselor put together things for you! We used to have a notebook with ideas and "plans" we could use for Character Ed "Pillars", but with the change in standards, I'm not really sure whether or not to use those:) Guess I'll just plan on my own & be covered! Thanks for stopping by, and good luck to you!

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  3. I absolutely LOVE The Beautiful Bald Princess!! It is SUCH an endearing book! Crossing my fingers for a big win on this win, but will definitely consider buying if I don't make it! :)

    Thanks again for the advice on my TpT Store! I'll definitely keep you in the loop with updates!!


    All my best,
    Tiffany

    <a href="http://shoelacesand.blogspot.com/>Shoe Laces & Sweet Faces</a>

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    1. I wishing you good luck for a "big win" as well, dear virtual "friend". Thanks again for the sweet words on your blog post, and please do consider purchasing if someone else happens to win:) You'll be glad you own it! It's just the sweetest story!!

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  4. We have a counselor that talks to our students once a week.

    imgoingfirst@gmail.com

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  5. Thank you so much for taking the time to look me up and comment on my blog. Things have been CRAZY busy this summer and I haven't had much time to keep up with it. :( I'm your newest follower!

    My school doesn't really have a certain curriculum or program. We usually take care of it on our own. I read lots of character books and have lots of discussion.
    Karen Rowland
    Adventures With Firsties

    karenrowland112677@yahoo.com

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  6. We have a special curriculum that we have to teach, called Second Step, to help our students with character development. Teaching at a private school we are also able to talk A LOT about what it says in the bible about our actions. I love it!

    Mrs. 3rd Grade 

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  7. At my school, we have a character education activity that the whole school participates in every quarter. We also have class meetings and discuss character education on Fridays in each classroom.

    Sue

    A Rainbow of Teaching

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  8. Our school counselor does a lot with the American Girl dolls. She chooses a different doll each year to use for her character education. It has been successful, even with the boys.

    Andrea
    Reading Toward the Stars

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  9. One thing our school does is have daily virtues readers. Other than that it's left up to individual teachers.
    Ruby Slippers Blog Designs
    Grade ONEderful

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  10. Thanks for doing this giveaway. Our school does character development through our guidance program. I can't remember the name of the program, but it comes with lesson cards and puppets.

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  11. We include it in our morning announcements =)
    Jennifer
    First Grade Blue SKies

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  12. I would love this for our school.

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  13. How sweet of Nikki to do that for your family! Isn't she wonderful? And what an uplifting testimony your family has! Thanks for sharing it with us.
    :) Sarah
    Mrs. Jones Teaches :o)

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  14. I think that modern teachers never feel bored, certainly if they do love their job. There are so many fantastic things that can be used in the classroom. Probably they are not so new but as I am only going to start my career, I find some interesting resources both as case study professional assistance or for my future job. I am so eager to try all this in the classroom. It is also so interesting to know about some problems you have using such method and of course the way out.

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