Curriculum Area: Creative and Language Arts

Topic: Virtues and My Life 

Grade: primarily students in grades 9-12 and college, but students in elementary and middle grades are also invited to participate 

Timeframe: academic quoter or semester (actual time to be determined by the teacher) 

 

Description: A project engaging students from around the world to highlight, investigate and write about virtues that make a difference in thier lives and in the world. Participants reflect on their own experiences and inspirations and present them in the form of stories, poems, articles, essays, narratives and  art work. 

The following standards and benchmarks are from Content Knowledge: A Compendium of Standards and Benchmarks for K-12 Education by McREL

 

Copyright 2004 McREL

Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning

4601 DTC Blvd., Suite 500

Denver, CO 80237

Telephone: 303/337-0990 

 

 

Behavioral Studies

 

Standard 1. Understands that group and cultural influences contribute to human development, identity, and behavior

Level IV [Grade 9-12]
1. Understands that cultural beliefs strongly influence the values and behavior of the people who grow up in the culture, often without their being fully aware of it, and that people have different responses to these influences.
2. Understands that punishment for "unacceptable" social behavior depends partly on beliefs about the purposes of punishment and about its effectiveness (which is difficult to test scientifically because circumstances vary greatly and because legal and ethical barriers interfere).
3. Understands that social distinctions are a part of every culture, but they take many different forms (e.g., rigid classes based solely on parentage, gradations based on the acquisition of skill, wealth, and/or education).
4. Understands that people often take differences (e.g., in speech, dress, behavior, physical features) to be signs of social class.
5. Understands that the difficulty of moving from one social class to another varies greatly with time, place, and economic circumstances.
6. Understands that heredity, culture, and personal experience interact in shaping human behavior, and that the relative importance of these influences is not clear in most circumstances.
7. Understands that family, gender, ethnicity, nationality, institutional affiliations, socioeconomic status, and other group and cultural influences contribute to the shaping of a person's identity.

Standard 2. Understands various meanings of social group, general implications of group membership, and different ways that groups function

Level IV [Grade: 9-12]
1. Understands that while a group may act, hold beliefs, and/or present itself as a cohesive whole, individual members may hold widely varying beliefs, so the behavior of a group may not be predictable from an understanding of each of its members.
3.  Understands how the diverse elements that contribute to the development and transmission of culture (e.g., language, literature, the arts, traditions, beliefs, values, behavior patterns) function as an integrated whole.
5.   Understands that social groups may have patterns of behavior, values, beliefs, and attitudes that can help or hinder cross-cultural understanding.

Standard 3. Understands that interactions among learning, inheritance, and physical development affect human behavior

Level IV [Grade: 9-12]
1. Understands that differences in the behavior of individuals arise from the interaction of heredity and experience.
2. Understands that even instinctive behavior may not develop well if a person is exposed to abnormal conditions.
3. Understands that expectations, moods, and prior experiences of human beings can affect how they interpret new perceptions or ideas.
4. Understands that people might ignore evidence that challenges their beliefs and more readily accept evidence that supports them.
5. Understands that the context in which something is learned may limit the contexts in which the learning can be used.
6. Knows that human thinking involves the interaction of ideas, and ideas about ideas.

Standard 4. Understands conflict, cooperation, and interdependence among individuals, groups, and institutions

Level IV [Grade: 9-12]
1. Understands that conflict between people or groups may arise from competition over ideas, resources, power, and/or status.
2. Understands that social change, or the prospect of it, promotes conflict because social, economic, and political changes usually benefit some groups more than others (which is also true of the status quo).
3. Understands that conflicts are especially difficult to resolve in situations in which there are few choices and little room for compromise.
4. Understands that some informal ways of responding to conflict (e.g., pamphlets, demonstrations, cartoons) may reduce tensions and lead to compromise but may be inflammatory and make agreement more difficult to reach.
5. Understands that conflict within a group may be reduced by conflict between it and other groups.
6. Understands that intergroup conflict does not necessarily end when one segment of society gets a decision in its favor because the "losers" then may work even harder to reverse, modify, or circumvent the change.
7. Understands that even when the majority of people in a society agree on a social decision, the minority who disagree must be protected from oppression, just as the majority may need protection against unfair retaliation from the minority.
8. Understands how various institutions (e.g., social, religious, political) develop and change over time (i.e., what is taught in school and school policies toward student behavior have changed over the years in response to family and community pressures), and how they further both continuity and change in societies.
9. Understands how changes in social and political institutions (e.g., church, school, political party) both reflect and affect individuals' career choices, values, and significant actions.
10. Understands that the decisions of one generation both provide and limit the range of possibilities open to the next generation.


Visual Arts

Standard 1. Understands and applies media, techniques, and processes related to the visual arts

 

Level IV [Grade: 9-12]

1. Applies media, techniques, and processes with sufficient skill, confidence, and sensitivity that oneís intentions are carried out in artworks.
2. Understands how the communication of ideas relates to the media, techniques, and processes one uses.

Standard 3. Knows a range of subject matter, symbols, and potential ideas in the visual arts

 

Level IV [Grade: 9-12]
1. Understands how visual, spatial, temporal, and functional values of artworks are tempered by culture and history.
2. Applies various subjects, symbols, and ideas in one's artworks.


Life Skills Working With Others

 

Standard 1. Contributes to the overall effort of a group

 

Level IV [Grade: K-12]
1. Knows the behaviors and skills that contribute to team effectiveness
2. Works cooperatively within a group to complete tasks, achieve goals, and solve problems
3. Challenges practices in a group that are not working and proposes measures to enhance team effectiveness
4. Demonstrates respect for othersí rights, feelings, and points of view in a group
5. Identifies and uses the individual strengths and interests of others to accomplish team goals
6. Identifies causes of conflict in a group and works cooperatively with others to deal with conflict though negotiation, compromise, and consensus
7. Helps the group establish goals, taking personal responsibility for accomplishing such goals
8. Evaluates the overall progress of a group toward a goal
9. Contributes to the development of a supportive climate in groups
10. Actively listens to the ideas of others and asks clarifying questions
11. Takes the initiative in interacting with others
12. Uses appropriate strategies when making requests of other people

Standard 4. Displays effective interpersonal communication skills

Level IV [Grade: K-12]
1. Demonstrates appropriate behaviors for relating well with others (e.g., empathy, caring, respect, helping, friendliness, politeness)
2. Exhibits positive character traits towards others, including honesty, fairness, dependability, and integrity
3. Knows strategies to effectively communicate in a variety of settings (e.g., selects appropriate strategy for audience and situation)
4. Provides feedback in a constructive manner, and recognizes the importance of seeking and receiving constructive feedback in a nondefensive manner
5. Uses nonverbal communication such as eye contact, body position, and gestures effectively
6. Demonstrates attentive listening by clarifying messages received (e.g., paraphrasing, questioning)
7. Responds to speaker appropriately (e.g., does not react to a speakerís inflammatory deliverance, maintains objectivity, reacts to ideas rather than to the person presenting the ideas)
8. Adjusts tone, content, and delivery of information to accommodate the likes of others
9. Attends to both verbal and nonverbal messages
10. Uses emotions appropriately in personal dialogues
12.  Demonstrates sensitivity to cultural diversity (e.g., personal space, use of eye contact,     gestures, bias-free language)
13. Acknowledges the strengths and achievements of others


Language Arts

Standard 1. Uses the general skills and strategies of the writing process

Level IV [Grade: 9-12]

1. Prewriting: Uses a variety of prewriting strategies (e.g., develops a focus, plans a sequence of ideas, uses structured overviews, uses speed writing, creates diagrams)
2. Drafting and Revising: Uses a variety of strategies to draft and revise written work (e.g., highlights individual voice; rethinks content, organization, and style; checks accuracy and depth of information; redrafts for readability and needs of readers; reviews writing to ensure that content and linguistic structures are consistent with purpose)
3. Editing and Publishing: Uses a variety of strategies to edit and publish written work (e.g., uses a checklist to guide proofreading; edits for grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling at a developmentally appropriate level; refines selected pieces to publish for general and specific audiences; uses available technology, such as publishing software or graphics programs, to publish written work)
4. Evaluates own and others'
5. Uses strategies to address writing to different audiences (e.g., includes explanations and definitions according to the audience's background, age, or knowledge of the topic, adjusts formality of style, considers interests of potential readers)
6. Uses strategies to adapt writing for different purposes (e.g., to explain, inform, analyze, entertain, reflect, persuade)
7. Writes expository compositions (e.g., synthesizes and organizes information from first- and second-hand sources, including books, magazines, computer data banks, and the community; uses a variety of techniques to develop the main idea [names, describes, or differentiates parts; compares or contrasts; examines the history of a subject; cites an anecdote to provide an example; illustrates through a scenario; provides interesting facts about the subject]; distinguishes relative importance of facts, data, and ideas; uses appropriate technical terms and notations)
8. Writes fictional, biographical, autobiographical, and observational narrative compositions (e.g., narrates a sequence of events; evaluates the significance of the incident; provides a specific setting for scenes and incidents; provides supporting descriptive detail [specific names for people, objects, and places; visual details of scenes, objects, and places; descriptions of sounds, smells, specific actions, movements, and gestures; the interior monologue or feelings of the characters]; paces the actions to accommodate time or mood changes; creates a unifying theme or tone; uses literary devices to enhance style and tone)
9. Writes persuasive compositions that address problems/solutions or causes/effects (e.g., articulates a position through a thesis statement; anticipates and addresses counter arguments; backs up assertions using specific rhetorical devices [appeals to logic, appeals to emotion, uses personal anecdotes]; develops arguments using a variety of methods such as examples and details, commonly accepted beliefs, expert opinion, cause-and-effect reasoning, comparison-contrast reasoning)
10. Writes descriptive compositions (e.g., uses concrete details to provide a perspective on the subject being described; uses supporting detail [concrete images, shifting perspectives and vantage points, sensory detail, and factual descriptions of appearance])
11. Writes reflective compositions (e.g., uses personal experience as a basis for reflection on some aspect of life, draws abstract comparisons between specific incidents and abstract concepts, maintains a balance between describing incidents and relating them to more general abstract ideas that illustrate personal beliefs, moves from specific examples to generalizations about life)

Standard 2. Uses the stylistic and rhetorical aspects of writing

Level IV [Grade: 9-12]
1. Uses precise and descriptive language that clarifies and enhances ideas and supports different purposes (e.g., to stimulate the imagination of the reader, to translate concepts into simpler or more easily understood terms, to achieve a specific tone, to explain concepts in literature)
2. Uses paragraph form in writing (e.g., arranges paragraphs into a logical progression, uses clincher or closing sentences)
3. Uses a variety of sentence structures and lengths (e.g., complex and compound-complex sentences; parallel or repetitive sentence structure)
4. Uses a variety of transitional devices (e.g., phrases, sentences, paragraphs)
5. Uses a variety of techniques to provide supporting detail (e.g., analogies; anecdotes; restatements; paraphrases; examples; comparisons; visual aids, such as tables, graphs, and pictures)
6. Organizes ideas to achieve cohesion in writing


World History Standards

Standard 44. Understands the search for community, stability, and peace in an interdependent world

 

Level IV [Grade: 9-12]
3. Understands major reasons for the great disparities between industrialized and developing nations (e.g., disparities in resources, production, capital investment, labor, or trade; possible programs and measures to help equalize these disparities).
4. Understands the role of political ideology, religion, and ethnicity in shaping modern governments.
6.   Understands the role of ethnicity, cultural identity, and religious beliefs in shaping economic and political conflicts across the globe.
7. Understands the impact of population pressure, poverty and environmental degradation on the breakdown of state authority in various countries in the 1980s and 1990s, and international reaction to the deterioration of these states.
11. Understands common arguments of opposition groups in various countries around the world, common solutions they offer, and the position of these ideas with regard to Western economic and strategic interests.
12. Understands gender roles across the globe (e.g., conflicts in the perception of gender roles in various religions, especially the role of women; how the legal status of women varies around the world in Muslim societies, and how the status of women from different classes has changed in the past century)

The overall goals of this project are to:

• Help the students grow in self-knowledge.
• Help the students learn about the values, which are held by people around the world.
• Foster understanding and appreciation of the values of other cultures.
• Provide opportunities for the students to communicate with students from other countries who are involved in the Virtues project.

Objectives:

In this project, students will:

• Communicate what they have learned about virtues and values in life.
• Ask themselves: What kind of person do I want to become?
• Identify and articulate the values that, if they incorporate into their lives, will help them to be the type of person that they want to be.
• Share what they personally believe about virtues and values in life with other students around the world.
• Produce a booklet that contains the activities that they have completed in this project.

 
Print Resources
 
Books for Children:
 
Hans Christian Anderson. THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL.

Benrei Huang. HEY THAT'S MINE!, A CHILD'S BOOK ABOUT SHARING.
Vanessa J. James, Jan Strock. KOALA KAN LEARNS ABOUT RESPECT.
Barbara Lewis. KIDS WITH COURAGE: TRUE STORIES ABOUT YOUNG PEOPLE MAKING A DIFFERENCE.
Nancy Loewen. I CAN DO IT: KIDS TALK ABOUT COURAGE.
Jessel Miller (Illustrator), Carolynne Gamble. MUSTARD: A STORY ABOUT SOFT LOVE AND STRONG VALUES.
Lorayne Mitchell, Jeff Lee. SHADOW IN THE WINDOW: A BOOK ABOUT CARING.
Jeanne Strazzabosco. LEARNING ABOUT FORGIVENESS FROM THE LIFE OF NELSON MANDELA.
Antoine St. Exupery. THE LITTLE PRINCE.
Sheila Walsh. GNOO ZOO: MISS MARBLE'S MARVELOUS MAKEOVER: A STORY ABOUT RESPECTING OTHERS.
Matt Whitlock. THE GIGANTIC LITTLE HERO: A STORY ABOUT PERSEVERANCE.
 
Books for adults:  
 


• Michele Borba. BUILDING MORAL INTELLIGENCE: THE SEVEN ESSENTIAL VIRTUES THAT TEACH KIDS TO DO THE RIGHT THING. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2001.
• Ruth Charney. HABITS OF GOODNESS. Greenfield, MA: Northeast Foundation for Children, 1997. (Case studies of how 6 elementary school teachers solved problems related to character development.)
• Sean Covey. THE 7 HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE TEENS. Fireside Books: Simon & Schuster, 1998.
• Harriet Heath. USING YOUR VALUES TO RAISE YOUR CHILD TO BE AN ADULT YOU ADMIRE. Seattle, WA: Parenting Press, 2000.
  
• Thomas Lickona. EDUCATING FOR CHARACTER: HOW OUR SCHOOLS CAN TEACH RESPECT AND RESPONSIBILITY. New York: Bantam Books, 1991
  
• Thomas Lickona. RAISING GOOD CHILDREN. New York: Bantam Books, 1983.
  
• Kevin Ryan. ã100 WAYS TO PROMOTE CHARACTER EDUCATIONí (Center for the Advancement of Ethics and Character, Boston University School of Education, 605 Commonwealth Ave., Room 356, Boston, MA. 02215 USA)
  
• Cynthia Ulrich Tobias. DO YOU KNOW WHAT I LIKE ABOUT YOU?: JUMP-STARTINGVIRTUES AND VALUES IN YOUR CHILD.

Procedures:

• Introduce the project to the students and invite them to participate in it.
• Share with the students the objectives, desired outcomes, and timeline for the project.
• Provide students with copies of what has been posted to date on the Virtues project interactive forum.
• Respond to their questions and concerns.
• Ask for their input.
• Support and encourage them in their endeavors.
• Provide students with the requirements of the project.
• Work with students as they complete their booklet and post their replies on the interactive forum.

Project Plan and Activities:

1. Review what you have learned about virtues and values in life.

2. Think about what values are most valued and promoted in our culture (for example, What kind of people do television shows, music, movies, magazines, advertisements, books, plays, our peers, etc. ãsay we should be?) Use one of the following formats to show what these values are: (Use 8x11 inch size paper) : Poem, essay, drawing, cartoon, story, poster, pictures with captions, chart, diagram.

3. Using one of the following formats, show at least three of the most important virtues/values your parents have taught you. (Use 8x11 inch size paper): Poem, essay, drawing, cartoon, story, poster, pictures with captions, chart, diagram

4. Think about virtues and values are held as important by your religion? Use one of the following formats to illustrate these. (Use 8 x 11 inch paper): Poem, essay, drawing, cartoon, story, poster, pictures with captions, chart, diagram

5. Ask your parents, friends (at least 4), and teachers (at least 2) to tell you what they think are the virtues by which you live.

• Ask them to fill out the questionnaire and return it to you.
• You will also complete a gift sheet in class.
• Look over the questionnaire and gift sheet.
• Write down your thoughts in a journal type entry (e.g. What did people say about you? What did you learn about yourself? How do you feel about what you read? How can this help you to become the person you want to be? etc.).

6. Complete one of the following:

• Make a list of the things you would want people to remember about you when they think or talk about you.
• Write your own epitaph.
• Design your own tombstone.
• Write your own eulogy.

7. Read what students have posted on the interactive forum the Virtues site.

8. Respond to at least 3 students, share what you think, ask questions, etc.

9. Articulate the virtues that people of your age who participated in this Virtues project consider to be most important. Again, use one of the following to do this: (Use 8x11 inch paper): Poem, essay, drawing, cartoon, story, poster, pictures with captions, chart, diagram

10. Think of what kind of person you would like to become.

11. Articulate the kind of person you would like to become by means of one of the following: (Use 8x11 inch paper) : Poem, essay, drawing, cartoon, story, poster, pictures with captions, chart, diagram

12. Discuss your ideas about participating in this project:

• Did you like participating in it? Why?/Why not?
• Would you recommend doing such a project again?
• What would you do differently?
• What was your favorite part of the project?
• What was your least favorite part of the project?
• Do you have any suggestions or advice about doing such a project?
 

Questionnaire:

Dear ___________________________

This questionnaire is part of a project that I am doing. The questionnaire asks what people think about me.

You do not have to participate (it's voluntary) or put your name on it.

 

I would appreciate your feedback.

Thanks for your help.

_______________________________
(Sign your name here)

Please circle one: I am your friend classmate/ teacher / parent
1. When you think of me, what three words come to your mind?
2. What are three things you like about me?
3. If you could change anything about me, what would you change?
4. What do you think are three things that are important to me?
5. What three virtues/values do you think I live by?
6. What are my three best qualities?

7. What are three strengths that I have?

8. What kind of person do you think I am?

---

 

 

Gift sheet exercise:

 

Everyone has gifts that they give to those with whom they live and interact.

In this exercise, each student in the class is given a blank piece of paper and colored marker.

 

1. Each student is asked to write/print his or her name in the center of the paper.

2. These papers are exchanged with every student in the class.

3. When a student receives a paper with another studentÃs name on it, he or she will write a note to the student telling them what gift they have brought to them/the class.

4. When every student has written their messages on the papers, they are returned to the student whose name is on the paper.
 
IMPORTANT NOTE: I am giving the students choices (poem, essay, etc.) because I want them to feel free to be creative
and to use their own learning style to present the information.

 

Please use this checklist to insure that you have completed all aspects of the project. (Put a check mark next to each section AS you complete it.)

 

____ 1. Review of what you have learned about virtues and values in life.

____ 2. Show what values are promoted in our culture.

____ 3. Show at least three of the most important virtues/values your parents have taught you.

____ 4. What virtues and values are held as important by your religion?

____ 5. Ask your parents, friends, and teachers to tell you what they think about the virtues by which you live.

    ____ a. questionnaires distributed and returned.

    ____ b. ãgift sheet completed in class

    ____ c. looked over questionnaire and gift sheet

    ____ d. journal entry

____ 6. Complete one of the following:

    ____ a. List of things

    ____ b. epitaph

    ____ c. tombstone

    ____ d. eulogy

____ 7. Read what has been posted on the interactive forum Virtues site.

(Read the hand outs and view the site links and responses.)

____ 8. Respond to at least 3 students on the site.

____ 9. Articulate the virtues that people in the Virtues project consider to be most important.

____ 10. Think of what kind of person you would like to become.

____ 11. Articulate the kind of person you would like to become.

____ 12. Discuss your ideas about participating in this project.

• Virtues Project Webpage
  
• Virtues Project Forum (for registered users only)