Brewbaker First Character@Heart School of the Month
Congratulations to Brewbaker Intermediate School, our October 2010 School of the Month! The first school to receive recognition in Character@Heart’s new program, Brewbaker was honored by Character@Heart with a $500.00 check for their achievement in applying character education throughout the school. Principal Jessietta Thomas and Guidance Counselor Serena Grant accepted the award on behalf of Brewbaker. Brewbaker has taken the time to teach character education in some very creative ways each day. The school begins its day with character education taught during morning announcements. The school continues to remind its students of ways to show good character during P.E., Technology, Special Education classes, and library visits. In addition, the school involves students to help resolve disputes that arise by appointing responsible students as peer mediators. Brewbaker also features other efforts to recognize good character through student involvement and membership in their Gentlemen’s Club, Spirit Team, Student Council, and/or Junior Traffic Patrol. Positive behavior among the students is also rewarded by a trip to the Brewbaker Intermediate store where students can spend their Brewbaker Bucks. Students are also given an opportunity for “shout outs” throughout each school day. With these very creative and exciting ways of teaching character traits to its students, Brewbaker Intermediate is named Character@Heart’s first school of the month and our School of the Month for October 2010! Congratulations Brewbaker Intermediate and thank you for working towards building character today for a better tomorrow!
GARRETT ELEMENTARY WINS NOVEMBER 2010 SCHOOL OF THE MONTH
It’s November, which means fall break is around the corner! We take a moment to look up from our busy schedules and see that the leaves have already changed colors and the air has turned to a blissful chill. Excitement fills the hallways as teachers and students anticipate the much awaited break. This year, the holiday break is more than a short vacation from school, but a chance for students to practice their character lessons at home over the holiday season, exhibiting good table manners as they enjoy their Thanksgiving dinner. Students certain to maintain their good character traits learned thus far are those at Garrett Elementary. As you know, Character@Heart awards one school each month that demonstrates excellence in character education. We are thrilled to name Garrett Elementary as our November Character Education School of the Month! Garrett was presented with their $500.00 check for going above and beyond to teach both the Manners of the Heart curriculum to their K through 3rd grade and Building Strong Character for a Lifetime curriculum to their 4th through 6th grade students. As students are sure to enjoy the points scored in the football games over Thanksgiving break, they are familiar with scoring their own points for good character! Applying a sports theme across the school, Garrett has presented each student with a score card at the beginning of each grading period. Each day, students who exhibit good behavior and strong character are awarded a sticker. As the days pass and the score cards fill, the month ends with a special treat for those who have high sticker points. A final tally of score cards is completed at the end of each month, with a reward of a school-wide social event for those with full cards. This month, the reward is a pep rally at ASU! In addition, Garrett hands out Gotcha tickets and continues to teach their students about self-respect and respect for others with a daily character trait of the week shared during morning announcements. As the school prepares to break, Garrett can be proud of their accomplishments and hard work as they anticipate sharing their new manners with family and friends this Thanksgiving and every Thanksgiving yet to come. Congratulations Garrett students, teachers and administration for your well-deserved recognition!
The word of the day is strength, and MacMillan International Academy has been strengthening their character education program by implementing some very creative and technological methods for promoting self-respect among its students. MacMillan students are given a new word to explore each day, with character representatives chosen to explore definitions and create corresponding activities for those words. The students share these words, their meanings, and chosen activities during morning announcements. In addition, MacMillan has created their very own news team, WBKF, where students report and expand on these character lessons each morning. Students even go as far as writing songs about their character traits. Utilizing and promoting technology throughout the school, MacMillan students use MPS sponsored Gaggle email to maintain a Character Blog where they post and share comments with one another about the word of the day and the day’s activities. Students are on board with the concept of blogging, not only learning about today’s technology, but also learning to show good character by making good decisions and being both smart and safe with their technology use. The fifth grade students at MacMillan stand out as mentors for the younger students in the school, as well. MacMillan fifth graders are further taking initiative to provide good examples of character and leadership, paving the way for future students to build upon the new tradition at MacMillan of maintaining strength school-wide by respecting one another. “We believe that using the oldest students of the school as models sets the tone for good character and is most effective,” says MacMillan teacher, Bryan Raye. MacMillan has also implemented a program called Rules for Success, in addition to their students participating in community service projects throughout the year. The school’s dedication to providing character education to their students in both consistent and creative ways has earned them well deserved recognition. Because of its dedication and evidence of school-wide character, MacMillan takes the prize and is named Character Education School of the Month for December! Congratulations to MacMillan for sharing their vision for building strong character for a better tomorrow!
SETH JOHNSON KICKS OFF THE NEW YEAR AS SCHOOL OF THE MONTH
As of January 1, a new year began: the year 2011. We reflect upon the previous year, the good and the bad, and we turn to tomorrow, gazing into a new future, hoping for the very best in the New Year. As we gaze into the face of tomorrow, the tradition of making resolutions for the New Year are boldly proclaimed with every intention of seeing them through. The very word, resolution, is a noun. It is defined as an intention, the act of determining upon a course of action. What better way to kick off the New Year than by recognizing a very special elementary school for its dedication and resolution to provide a strong foundation of character building among its students. Character@Heart proudly reveals Seth Johnson Elementary School as January School of the Month, chosen for the creative manner in which the school is implementing character education and Manners of the Heart curriculum. Seth Johnson believes that consistency is the best method for impressing good habits and character traits within the hearts of its students. Character traits are introduced on a daily basis, beginning with daily announcements and continuing with whole and small group discussions. The school is determined to promote personal responsibility by implementing a program called Project Wisdom. A student ambassador is chosen to speak over the intercom, sharing an example of decision making and the effect of that decision. Seth Johnson emphasizes respect and teaches that “manners are an attitude of the heart that is self-giving, not self-serving, and that what we give to the world is more important than what the world gives us.” In addition to the school’s involvement in several community service projects, including “Change for Change” and “Help-Portrait Day,” Seth Johnson is bursting with on-going activities ranging from tutoring projects to a Good News Club to Family First Fridays, where parents are welcome to visit their child’s classroom for a firsthand look at their child’s progress. Seth Johnson is thinking big in terms of their potential for character growth! Fifth grade students are encouraged and challenged in a program called Think Big where students are engaged in recognizing the impact of their actions, learning to be ambitious, cautious, and putting their best foot forward. At Seth Johnson, both students and teachers are recognized by the Principal for exhibiting good character. As we move forward into the New Year, let us congratulate Seth Johnson for a job well done and resolve to follow in their footsteps. Let us remember the tenacity required to keep a resolution, and ourselves resolve to be astute in a journey of not only implementing character education throughout the school system, but in growing a future generation of leaders rich in a heritage built on the foundation of perseverance, determination, and fortitude!
A PLEDGE OF CHARACTER: FOREST AVENUE FEBRUARY SCHOOL OF THE MONTH
Attitude is a choice. Growing up I was preached to over and over by my father that the choices we make dictate the lives we lead. He consistently taught that attitude was a choice and everything else a response to the choices we make. Forest Avenue Magnet is making each day count, actively choosing to build their school on a foundation of character, beginning their day with their Good Character Pledge. Teachers and staff are working towards instilling a sense of virtue in their students, counseling on good choices and good decision making. As a result, Character@Heart is pleased to announce that Forest Avenue Magnet has been chosen as February’s School of the Month! Forest Avenue teaches character education, beginning with morning announcements and the character pledge, followed by lessons taught throughout the day. Students also rewarded when caught showing good character. In addition, Manners of the Heart curriculum is added to the school’s weekly focus. Community volunteers are invited to visit the school where they share with students about their community involvement, serving as inspiration to students, and providing an opportunity to share their personal experience with the children of Forest Avenue. Each grade level at Forest Avenue displays a different character focus, with decorated banners that remind the students of their chosen character trait. The students further participate in different activities supporting those character traits based on their grade level. Third graders work to keep and maintain the common grounds outside, while fifth graders work to raise money for other needy children. Students caught being good have names submitted for a weekly drawing, and those chosen each week receive school wide recognition and a small prize. As a result of implementing these creative methods for instilling character and manners in the hearts of their students, Forest Avenue has fewer disciplinarian problems and office referrals. Congratulations to Forest Avenue students, teachers, and administration for working today to build better character tomorrow!
Flowers Elementary School is filling buckets to the brim and great character and manners are spilling out of every student! Chosen as our Character Education School of the Month for March, the students and teachers of Flowers are working together to create an environment where everyone feels respected and behaves in a manner of courtesy. Principal Ethel Barnes and School Counselor Cindy Wood, along with the teaching staff at Flowers, are providing “Manners of the Heart” curriculum to K-3rd grade students, as well as “Building Strong Character for a Lifetime” to 4th-6th grade students. In addition, Flowers is promoting a program called “Bucket Fillers” based on the book “Have You Filled a Bucket Today: A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids.” With involvement in this program, children are learning that they have an ability to fill the buckets of their peers by encouragement and support; or, they can be dippers, taking from the buckets of their peers when disrespectful or unkind. Each week, teachers nominate a student to be the “Bucket Filler of the Week,” and that student is announced each Monday and rewarded for their behavior. Younger students receive encouragement and guidance from older students with the implementation of Flowers “Mustang Mentors” program. Students who act as mentors are required to maintain good grades and demonstrate good behavior. The 5th and 6th grade mentors are allowed to assist Ms. Wood in teaching her weekly guidance lessons and handout “Caught You being Good” tickets to younger students during counseling sessions. The character education being taught to students at Flowers goes above and beyond to share lessons of respect, personal responsibility, and good manners. These students are learning strong character traits that will last them a lifetime. In learning about the diverse programs leading these children in lessons of character, we should reflect upon our own daily habits, asking ourselves: are we bucket fillers or bucket dippers? We want to congratulate Flowers on their award and say thank you for setting a good example to us all and working hard to build character today for a better tomorrow!
