Character Day (and Beyond) Resources

Created Feb. 5, 2024 by Melissa Lander

Character Day (& Beyond) Resources

Sun West is committed to creating exceptional, personalized learning opportunities for every one of our students; opportunities that recognize the individual strengths and challenge the weaknesses of each learner in a way that allows them to realize his/her greatest potential.  For effective personalized learning to take place, we believe our learners also require heightened levels of self-awareness and a shared vocabulary around the concept of character.  

Please find resources to help you plan Character Day.  These resources will also support developing Character all year long.

To register and being visit:  http://www.letitripple.org/character-day/


LINKS

Growth Mind Set Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zrtHt3bBmQ&t=12s

A Framework to Self Regulate: Zones of Regulation http://www.zonesofregulation.com/index.html

Social Thinking https://www.socialthinking.com/

The Science of Character Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0fK4837Bgg

How to Help Every Child Reach Their Potential https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl9TVbAal5s

Dave Matthews & Grover Sing About Feelings https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Po5lHYJJQfw

We are ALL Leaders: The Leader in Me https://www.theleaderinme.org/

The Seven Habits of Happy Kids https://www.theleaderinme.org/information/what-is-the-leader-in-me/the-7-habits-for-kids/

SECRET Skills (21st Century Framework) https://learningbyladders.wordpress.com/secret/

Personalization by Pieces (Related to SECRET) https://learningbyladders.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/pbyp-secret-skill-ladders-with-one-per-page.pdf

Rubrics for SECRET 21st Century Skills https://learningbyladders.wordpress.com/downloads/

Conflict Resolution for Kids! https://kelsoschoice.com/

Growth Mind Set Star Wars Extension Activity http://crabtreecounseling.blogspot.com/2015/03/growth-mindset-extension-activity.html

Free Content for Good Character (K-12) http://www.goodcharacter.com/

GRIT Lesson https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/40880/a-simple-exercise-to-strengthen-emotional-intelligence-in-teams

GRIT Lessons https://www.edutopia.org/blog/grit-help-students-overcome-inner-obstacles-vicki-zakrzewski?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=endslate&utm_content=video&utm_campaign=grit

Teaching Kids to Struggle (GRIT) https://blog.classcreator.io/teaching-kids-to-struggle-growthmindset/

Introducing the Student Led Classroom - Cup Activityhttp://www.rundesroom.com/2015/06/introducing-student-led-classroom.html

Star Wars Growth Mindset Activity http://crabtreecounseling.blogspot.com/2015/03/growth-mindset-extension-activity.html


ATTACHMENTS

Growth Mind Set PD PowerPoint (How to use PeBL!)

Download: Grit_Growth_Goal_Setting_PD.pptx

Self Regulation Rubric Template 

Download: Self_Regulation_Rubric_Template.docx

Self Regulating Note Home (explains it clearly) 

Download: Self-regulating_note_for_home.docx



EXAMPLES OF PAST SCHOOL IDEAS


WAS

Create a character rock garden n front of the school—each student will paint a rock and label it with one character trait that they hold near and dear to their heart.

Character Rock Garden

rock_char.jpgCharacter Rock Garden

Character Rock Garden


NWCS

(8:57-9:53) Period 1: Teachers will introduce Character in their classrooms (sharing videos and using discussion cards from letitripple.org). Grades 6-12 teachers will take time to introduce Joe Beckman (Global Q&A Speaker).

 (9:57-10:53) Period 2: 6-12 students will watch and ask questions to Joe Beckman.

K-5 students will learn about Kid President and watch a couple of his videos. Teachers and students will have discussion around Kid President and his character traits. 

 (10:57-11:53) Period 3: Regular classes (if teachers decide to continue with character activities in their classrooms they will).

 Lunch!

 (12:35-2:15) Periods 4 and 5: Teachers 6-12 will introduce Angela Lee Duckworth (share TED talk) and then take part in her Global Q&A. This will continue into period 5. Students will end this period with discussion around GRIT.

 (2:15-2:30) In Motion walk around town!

 (2:30-3:20) Period 6 all teachers, students, and staff will go to an assembly in the gym. In the gym, teachers will present a Character Day parody (YMCA!) and our school's plan to implement character throughout our school year (each month we will have a team of students K-12 and teacher present a character trait and lead character activities in the gym connected to that trait). Teachers/student teams will have some time to meet during this period to do an icebreaker, and then get ready for home time at 3:05pm! 



OHS

The staff and students will be helping to create an “I Am” bulletin board outside of the office, that will be full of the characteristics that make us who we are!  Kind of like what is pictured here:

I AM Character Display
iam.jpgI AM Character Display

I AM Character Display

Students will be broken up into the following groups (Grade 6 - 8, Grade 9 & 10, Grade 11 & 12).  During period 5, these groups will take turns coming down to the gym to take part in the following activities:

  1. Watch the Character Day 2017 Trailer (to help introduce character day)
  2. Watch "The Science of Character" with the students.  At the end of the video, a polaroid camera sends out a snapshot with the words "I want to be"… we are going to go with this idea, and each student will go back to their classrooms with a piece of paper that says "I want to be known for…" and they will complete the sentence.  (They can use the periodic table of characteristics to help guide them).  We will take a picture of them holding their paper, and then will be printing off each students picture and creating a character trait wall in the school.


DINSMORE

Our staff wanted to do family pictures for everyone in the school. With siblings and parents (if they are in the school) all in one photo to be displayed in the school.

We are going to have individual classroom discussions surrounding what a character strength is and how come they are important.

 Students are going to bring an item or something that displays a character trait for our school family picture day. They will pose with their family in this school along with the item they have chosen to show a character trait or "What they are good at," for the younger students.

 We will post under each picture a short blurb or the answers to questions for each picture for the younger students.

  • What are you good at?
  • What character strength does it show?  


LOREBURN

Middle Years & High School Teachers are doing some prep work leading up to character day showing the video "The Science of Character" and discussing the periodic table of character traits.  Students will begin to think about what are their strengths.

 Elementary teachers are using books and videos to talk about good character traits/super hero traits, etc leading up to the 13th.

 1. Create a school wide bulletin board that has "We are a leader in.."and a large version of the character trait periodic table. Brenna is going to get all students to put their names/photos beside the strengths.

2.  Brenna is breaking up with each of the classes from K-12 to watch growth mindset videos, activity and discussion(K-4) and then grade 5-12 will take part in a variety of online Let it Ripple presentations and Q&A's.

3. End the day off with an school wide building activity in the gym          

      

LUCKY LAKE

Morning Assembly: Short presentation on What Character Day is, then introduce the character of Kindness specifically. After Assembly we will split off into groups to put kindness into practise.

K-2: Will be going door to door handing out messages of kindness with a treat.

3-6: Will be downtown handing out free lemonade, holding doors open at local businesses, and carry peoples groceries

7-8: Will be at the health centre playing bingo

9-12: Will be offering car washes for a kind word (kind words as payment)


EATON

Pre-Work

Growth Mindset TED Talks and Angela  Duckworth videos have been implemented discussed and put into practice into classrooms. (5-12)

Forms and Authentic Happiness quizzes have been implemented (5-12) to assess strengths of character

Grades 8-12 have created character bit moji's to be also included in virtual profiles

Grades 5/6 have created peer evaluated character locker name tags. That assess and describe each child's strength of character.

Grades k-4 have implemented zones of Regulation, Dojo Mindfulness Video, and mindfulness body breaks

School Wide mentorship programs have been implemented and timetabled

Programs to teach character include dojo, classcraft and Microsoft forms

 What our character day will look like:

  1. We are having a student led assembly where the kids introduce the science of Character video (12:45) We will watch this video on the ceiling. Danielle and Amber will play a clap for Character game!
  2. Each staff member has taken on a section of the periodic table and has created an activity that embodies those characteristics.

Wisdom-

The students research and pick an experiment that interested them to perform on character day.  I then hope to video them and have them explain what the science behind their experiment as they perform it/work on it.  So far I have four groups - one group is making a volcano that will be powered by ammonium dichromate, one group will be trying to turn milk into a plastic using vinegar, one group will be accelerating the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide by making a colourful mess, and one group will be performing a controlled experiment (still working on deciding their test variable) through baking.  My goal was to get the students working on curiosity and/or creativity with their projects.

Courage-

1. Video: Angela Duckworth 

 2. Character Cards Game 

            3. Marble Maze maker space     

          4. Engineering challenge: How many textbooks can you make 4 piece of paper hold?

 

Humanity- a kindness project (passing on the message)

Justice- a phys.ed activity based on collaboration

Temperance- an elementary activity based on self regulation.

Transcendence-Shelley is doing spirituality and I believe her class will instruct a yoga lesson with the grade 9/10s for about 25 minutes. Then, we will switch and I will direct the next activity that pairs with transcendence - appreciation of beauty for the remainder of the class. I was thinking of doing a photography scavenger hunt. Shelley and I can pair off the grade 9/10 and 1/2 together and they could compete in a scavenger hunt using the ipads to take pictures

  1. A collaborative dance presentation from our students about how you can affect others
  2. Our Src will be our Media managers and capture all of the moments

 All pictures will be placed on our life size periodic table of "Spartan Strength of Character". Pictures will be continued to be added every time we as staff see an element of that character trait occurring.

All character/ mentorship  programs will continue to occur throughout the year.


WESTBERRY

  • Students have been learning about Character through the lens of practicing Kelso's Choices and how that helps us to be better school community members.
  • We have also been viewing Character videos at appropriate grade levels to teach about the specific character traits that we are going to work on at our school ie) kindness, respect, caring, friendship, grit.
  • Then all the students in the school have made a Kelso frog that describes what character is. The gr. K-2s are drawing  a picture and writing one word or one sentence while the grade 3-4s are  writing several sentences.
  • All of the Kelso posters explaining character will be hung around the gym in their grade alike groups.
  • Then we will be having a school wide assembly to celebrate character day. Some of the events are:
  •      -Refresher on Kelso's  Choices

      -Singing the Kelso song and Kelso rap.

     -Singing our Westberry School song to build school community and character.

     -Informing the students of our sister school in Tanzania and how helping them ties into character building.

     -Having Super Happy Fun Time -which are silly dances led by cartoon characters.

     - All students and staff are wearing green to represent Kelso's Choices and how Kelso helps us build good character.

 

KENASTON

Character trait survey (5-12) to identify character strengths. I do believe it was the survey from this site:  HYPERLINK "https://www.viacharacter.org/www/"https://www.viacharacter.org/www/. K-4 can do other activities around character strengths.

-Character Day with random acts of kindness throughout the day. We will have a bulletin board created at the front of the school where students can post about the random acts of kindness.

 Character day will be a kickoff to our Character Day Year Plan.

Character Year Plan:

Sept: Kindness/Hope/Forgiveness

Oct: Creativity/Humour

Nov: Bravery/Leadership

Dec: Love/Gratitude

Jan: Fairness/Honesty

Feb: Curiosity/Zest/Optimism

March: Love of Learning/Grit/Growth Mindset

April: Perspective/Judgement/Social Intelligence

May: Humility/Teamwork

June: Prudence/Perseverance 


ESTON

  • Rock Painting
  • Make large wings - each student contributes a "character feather" (ideas from Let it Ripple)


Character Wings
wings.jpgCharacter Wings

Character Wings



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