Resources for Developing Caring Schools

Beyond Rhetoric and Rainbows

This educational tool can help you explore and celebrate what is truly valuable and effective in education. As you read, reflect on ways to apply the concepts, insights, and strategies. We hope that you will discover new ideas and rediscover how your role as a change agent can bring inspiration, genuine caring, and new levels of performance into the classroom.

Sample Activity from Beyond Rhetoric and Rainbows - Old Wisdom: New Learning

To order Beyond Rhetoric and Rainbows, go to www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/SchoolsOnline/rainbows.html

Leadership Development Through Community Action

Leadership Development Through Community ActionThe service learning curriculum, Leadership Development Through Community Action, is a multi-faceted resource for teachers to help youth learn life and academic skills through group activities and community-based experiences. Targeting middle school youth, it is based on a model that begins with understanding self and their group before moving on to explore their community and issues of concern. They then select an issue they want to address and plan a project(s) to impact the issue. After evaluating their "results" and "process", they decide on future individual or group action. The seven-module curriculum includes thirty lessons, each about one class period length, which have multiple experiential activities, ideas for reflection, handouts, visual masters and Illinois Learning Standards identified. Each module also gives ideas for student portfolios or basis for evaluation by the teacher. The complete curricula (Publication #CLV99-1) includes a teacher guide with all lessons and teaching background and a notebook of visual and handout masters. Additional teacher guides may be purchased separately.

Sample from Leadership Development Through Community Action – Lego Model

To order this curriculum, go to the Publications Plus website.

Polite Is Right

Polite Is Right is designed to teach children social skills and encourage the use of considerate behavior. The program focuses the attention of youth on social rules and customs, helps children understand why rules are important, and helps children develop skills and behaviors consistent with these social rules and customs. The lesson titles are: Rules Help Us, Respect, Sportsmanship, Mealtime Manners, Put Your Best Foot Forward, and Electronic Etiquette. Illinois Learning Standards are identified for each lesson. Support pieces include family pages and ideas to catch students being polite. Designed for elementary school children, the program is more successful when the whole school participates.

Sample from Polite is Right - Compliments Count

To order Polite Is Right, go to the Publications Plus website.

TeRRiFiCC Teachable Moments

TeRRiFiCC Teachable Moments is a character development resource for educators and caregivers of children from pre-kindergarten to second grade (Level I) and third to sixth grade (Level II). Each booklet is a set of 75 activities with short (about 10-minute) hands-on, minds-on activities or mini-lessons meant to reinforce and encourage children to make positive character choices. Illinois Learning Standards are identified for each lesson. The activities are categorized using the Six Pillars of Character—Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring, and Citizenship—identified by the Josephson Institute of Ethics and used in CHARACTER COUNTS! programming. Each activity presents the behaviors, objectives, materials, and procedure for completing the activity. Additional helpful hints are also included for many activities. Available as a stand-up “flip-book” or searchable CD.

Sample from Terrific Teachable Moments: PreK-2 grade - Magnets Draw Others
Sample from Terrificc Teachable Moments: 3-6 grades - Working to Stay Honest

To order Terrific Teachable Moments, go to the Publications Plus website.

Walk in My Shoes

Walk in My Shoes is a 4-H project that reaches across generations and teaches young people about growing older and the physical changes that occur with age. A 59-page member manual enables individual youth working with an older helper to distinguish between the realities of aging and the stereotypes or myths that exist about older adults. Youth learn to develop an awareness of the impact of physical and sensory changes on the lives of older people through "hands on" activities. Young and old are able to share, learn and understand one another. A 67-page Leader's Guide provides assistance to volunteers or teachers who are assisting a group with the project. In addition to background information on aging, life skills, developmental issues for 9-14 year olds and teaching experientially; the Guide includes 24 activity plans for which Illinois Learning Standards have been identified.

Sample from Walk in My Shoes -- Butterfingers

To order both the youth and leader's guide of Walk in My Shoes, go to the Publications Plus website.

Additional Resources [Downloadable PDF Files]:

100 Ways to Promote Character Education – A list of ideas for schools.

Ideas for Elementary Schools to Help Students Become People of Good Character – Ideas specifically for elementary schools and not found in the “100 Ways . . .”

Ideas for High Schools to Help Students Become People of Good Character – Ideas specifically for elementary schools and not found in the “100 Ways . . .”

Ideas for Schools to Help Students Become People of Good Character – Ideas for schools to promote character education, not found in the “100 Ways . . .”

Stages of Moral Reasoning – Fact sheet that helps us understand if a specific age child is capable of certain types of moral reasoning.

University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign College of Agricultural Consumer & Environmental Sciences University of Illinois Extension