This Month's Best Practice
Each Month the Maryland Center for Character Education (MCCE) picks one of the Best Practices from a Character Education award winning school to share with you.
JUNE
This month's Best Practices is from an award winning school from 2004-2005.
BEST CHARACTER EDUCATION PRACTICES
School: Friends Meeting School
Address: 3232 Green Valley Road, Ijamsville, MD 21754
Contact: Annette Breiling, Head of School
Phone: 301-798-0288
E-Mail: abreiling@friendsmeetingschool.org
Title of Best Practice: Nurturing Human Excellence
Primary Character Trait(s) Emphasized: To Seek and Speak Truth and Love
Objective(s): To create a learning community in which students and adults strive not only to reach their academic best but also their human best.
Brief Description (including such items as materials needed, persons responsible, sequence of activities, observable results, references, etc.)
Description:
Criterion 1: Systematic School-Wide Approach: Our motto and monthly spiritual themes are well publicized. They are included in the school brochure, the Parent and Student Handbook, the school’s website, and our handbook of Employee Guidelines. Everyone who visits the school is welcomed by our motto, “Seek and Speak Truth and Love,” on our school sign, and everyone who inquires about the school is given a copy of our brochure. Every school tour includes an overview of the school’s philosophy as well as copies of our brochure. An important part of every teacher interview includes a discussion of our school philosophy and how it is incorporated into our teaching methods and social curriculum. Our back-to-school night include an overview of the school’s guiding tenets.
This year we have held monthly Spirit Assemblies to further honor students and teachers who exemplify our school’s character values. At these assemblies each class states something they are proud of and one or two “Students of the Month” are given a certificate.
Criterion 2: Curriculum Integration: A daily dedicated period called “Centering” is scheduled in each classroom to focus on these monthly themes and how we can make them come alive. The term “Centering” refers to reflecting inwardly to that inner light that is at the center of each of us. We schedule an extra half hour into our school day to focus on our values without detracting from academic instruction. Students are asked to examine, reflect upon, and write about the monthly spiritual themes and queries. They also create art, sign songs, and perform skits and plays reflecting the themes. When possible, our themes are integrated with units in language arts, social studies, and science. While the focus each month is on that month’s theme, the other themes continue to be incorporated into the curriculum throughout the year. Peace skills, in particular, are taught as part of the instructional program throughout the year.
Criterion 3: Parent/Guardian Involvement: In addition to strong communications about the school’s values to parents in its introductory publications and meetings (noted in Criterion 1), we begin each month’s “Parent Bulletin” with a reminder of the monthly theme and some related reflections.
Criterion 4: Student Service Learning: Our students carry on a variety of service learning projects throughout the year. In November we conducted a school-wide collection of winter garments and Beanie Babies to send as a Christmas gift to a Ukrainian orphanage. Our collection brought Christmas to 1500 orphans living in dire poverty.
Our older students spend time each week as reading buddies for younger students. Students clean their classrooms daily and take care of the school grounds during Stewardship Days. In spring our middle school students volunteered time at the Frederick Non-Profit Building Supply Inc. sorting paint that can now be used rather than discarded in a landfill.
Our students also helped brighten the spirits of senior citizens struggling with loneliness and dementia.
Criterion 5: Student Achievement: This year, our teachers and staff read Ruth Charney’s book, Teaching Children to Care. We had a one-day workshop in October based on the principles in this book to help further implement a caring approach to both academic and human excellence. Our students’ academic success has been affirmed by their overall consistent improvement annually in standardized test scores. When our character values become a way of life, it spills into the attitude that our students take into their academic learning.
The Maryland Center for Character Education
29 West Susquehanna Ave., Suite 300, Baltimore, MD 21204Phone: 410-823-4902
Fax: 410-828-9661
E-Mail: MCCEcharacter@aol.com
