WRITING WITH CHARACTER

• Keep a "character journal" of the Six Pillar choices you have made.
• Write about a special event in your life. How did it affect your character?
• Make a personal time line showing significant events that have affected your character development.
• Write an acrostic using one of the Six Pillars.
• Write a poem using the pillar. Give guidelines for the type of poem (haiku, etc.).
• Students can be asked to divide one page in their journal into four boxes. In the first box they write,
  "Where am I?" In the next box, "Where am I going'?" In the third, "What obstacles do I face?" and in the
  fourth, "What pillar will I need to overcome these obstacles?" Students answer each questio

INTEGRATING CHARACTER WITH LANGUAGE ARTS

• Writing assignments - What did the main character do that showed respect, responsibility, etc.? Write an
  essay: "My hero is a person of good character."
• Social courtesies - Teach students to write thank-you notes, help them understand the etiquette of
  interview situation, etc.
• Discuss the actions of the characters in stories, e.g., "What would be the honest thing to do?"
• Act out stories where the characters demonstrate qualities such as the six pillars. Talk about what would
  happen if the character failed to do the right thing. How would the story change and how would their
  actions affect others in the story?
• Provide "what if..." scenarios for creative writing or discussion.
• Discuss the fairness or unfairness in the plot of a story.
• Write book reports on books depicting a character - outline the six pillars.
• Keep track of good and bad characters in the literature you read all week. Graph the results.
   

INTEGRATING CHARACTER WITH MATH

• Compose word problems in which the pillars are incorporated..
• Students can conduct surveys on moral issues and learn to record the results accurately. For example,
  "Would you cheat on a test if you knew you would not -get caught?" "Have you cheated within the past
  month?" Graph the results. Students can keep frequency counts of "good deeds" and do statistical
  analyses using graphs and tally sheets.
• Set up situations in which students can demonstrate honesty and responsibility with money: class store,
  a fund-raiser, or a class business.
• Talk about honesty and sharing when teaching concepts such as equal amounts, more or less, counting
  money, etc. Use word problems illustrating sharing when practicing concepts such as addition,
  subtraction, more, less, etc..
• Use word problems illustrating taking turns when practicing concepts such as sequencing.
• Measurements: Discuss the importance of measuring exactly - (volume - weight - etc.) in making
  purchases. Honesty is stressed "in accurate measurement.

INTEGRATING CHARACTER WITH SOCIAL STUDIES

• Study the founding documents of our country for pillar connections: the U.S. Constitution, the Mayflower
  Compact, the Bill of Rights. Visit the state legislature to see how the laws are made.
• Use holidays to study our cultural heritage and the pillars. Martin Luther King Day, President's Day,
  Veterans Day, Memorial Day, and Thanksgiving are each meant to celebrate specific pillars.
• Role play and dramatize periods of history, such as the pioneer days of life at a medieval castle. What
  character qualities did people of those times display? What pillars were most valued? How were they
  displayed? Compare life-styles then and now. What character traits did they have to show? Do we need
  the same traits? Do we show them differently?
• Study the interaction between people and geography. How do the environment and people sometimes
  come into conflict? How do they work together?
• Current events - analyze various political and social actions in relation to character issues. .
• Discuss ways students can help improve the school or community.
• Explore other cultures to help children learn to respect and appreciate differences.
• Allow older students to design and paint a mural of good character / or the pillars on a wall..
• Have students brainstorm with their classmates ten ways they are or can be better citizens.

INTEGRATING CHARACTER WITH SCIENCE

• Study famous scientists and "the story behind science." Many scientists, like Louis Pasteur, were great
  humanitarians.
• Take responsibility for a service project to beautify the environment.
• Celebrate Earth Day through projects, artwork, dramatization, decorations, and speeches.
• Build and protect habitats for birds and animals.
• Plant a tree on Arbor Day.
• Discuss moral implications of evaluating energy sources, disposing of waste, etc.
• Emphasize responsibility in caring for our bodies through good nutrition and health habits.
• Use classroom pets to demonstrate the importance of being trustworthy by helping students to realize
  that pets rely on us to take care of them. Give students responsibility for the care of pets, emphasizing
  that they must be trustworthy in taking good care of the pet or the pet will suffer.
• Use plants in a similar way as pets, giving students the responsibility to care for the plants..

INTEGRATING CHARACTER WITH MUSIC\

• Discuss how music fits the text of a song and emphasizes the pillars. Ask specific character- related
  questions about individual songs. What traits, for example, are embedded in our national anthem? How
  do the words and music work together to emphasize those traits? Ask students about their favorite
  (school appropriate) songs. What character traits do these songs reflect?
• Learn about composers and why their music came into being. Write a report on the character traits of a
  composer and how it affected his music.
• Study music as it relates to values in each period of history and culture.
• Watch movies such as Mr. Holland's Opus for their moral content.
• Plan the school musical around character themes.
• Fine arts or cultural: diversity days often integrate music, dance, visual arts, and other aspects of culture
  and can be easily extended to include character education.'

INTEGRATING CHARACTER WITH THE ARTS

• Writing words to songs gives students an opportunity to not only express what they have learned about
  CHARACTER COUNTS!, but can also be a learning tool for other students who are new to the
  program, when they hear the student crated songs.
• Student can write a play about the Six Pillars of Character. Six plays can be written in which each pillar
  is used as a theme. Students can create the set designs, costumes and programs.
• Rhythm instruments can be created from all shapes and sizes of containers and a variety of seeds,
  beans, etc. Students can play their rhythm instruments with CC! songs.
• Students can create faces with vivid face expressions from clay, showing feelings. The faces can be
  painted in colors that also express emotions.
• Dance movements can be created that express emotions in the way in which the students carry
  themselves and the type of music they dance to. Traditional and/or cultural dances can be performed to
  teach students about working together.

INTEGRATING CHARACTER WITH PHYSICAL EDUCATION

• Examine codes of ethics for sports. Discuss common situations and how to handle them ethically:
  ü The referee calls a bad play.
  ü An opposing ream member breaks a rule but is not caught.
  ü Your team is losing and you could bring your team's score up by hogging the ball.
  ü A fellow team member makes an error. What do you do?
  ü When your team wins, how do you treat the opposing players?
  ü When your team loses, how do you treat the opposing players?
  ü You could tell the coach about another team member who did something wrong.
• Discuss the ethical issues around competitiveness: "It's not whether you win or lose, its how you play
  the game," "Try you best," and the value of competing with oneself.
• Discuss "fair play." What is it? Why use it? What is "unfair play"?
• Play sports in which students must encourage each other in order to stay in the game. Players who are
  the most encouraging get to keep playing. If they stop encouraging others, they have to sit out. Students
  on the bench must encourage others in order to get back in the game.