A Lesson In Teaching Children About Character Building
Teaching children the elements of good character is an important part of their development. Among the complexities of this task is illustrating good character in a world where basic values are often challenged and disputed.
The following assignment was given to a group of 6th grade students. They were asked to read material from the lives of Abraham Lincoln, Albert Schweitzer, and Florence Nightingale and then write about how these famous people made decisions and how their decisions illustrated such characteristics as trustworthiness, responsibility, respect, fairness, and caring.
Using good judgment and making wise choices lay at the foundation of these heroes’ acts of good character, and this fact was a premise that these students agreed upon.
The exercise culminated in the following conclusions:
• All students agreed that each of these famous people displayed a great deal of empathy. Their genuine caring, compassion, and concern enabled them to give unconditionally to those whose lives they touched. They were able to do this without regard for what they might expect to receive in return.
• These same young people recognized that this group of famous people acted in an honest and above board fashion, not selectively, but as a matter of course. This reflexive, consistent, and predictable approach to life engendered trust in the lives of those they helped.
• Next, the students decided that acting fairly entailed making decisions and choices based upon objective evidence, logic, and reason, rather than prejudice, self-serving desires, or poorly thought out impulsive whims. These characteristics illustrated good examples of healthy role models to these young people.
• As a group, it was also decided that the leaders demonstrated varying types and degrees of courage, such as willingness to speak up for their beliefs, risk rejection, and endure hardships when necessary.
This set of principles was a good learning experience for these adolescents facing peer pressure.
• The ability to admit and learn from mistakes was found in these biographical sketches. Responsible people are not perfect, but are, instead, individuals who see less than perfect performance as an opportunity to grow and develop. They do not settle for mediocrity, but avoid constantly striving for perfection and control. Self-esteem building was given to the students with this part of the exercise.
This wise and creative teacher gave her students a great gift. Parents can utilize this technique in a variety of ways to help their children think and learn about character building.
