We talk a lot about Lyme School Values during Stanton Time. One that many students have heard before but aren’t entirely sure what it means is, “Integrity”. In our values exploration in 3rd grade, we do activities, read stories, and discuss situations where integrity comes into play. We watched a video and I paused it right before the person reaches up to the truck. I ask the students what do they think will happen. 99% of the time, students say they are going to steal the soda. When we finish the clip, the students are amazed at what actually happens. We introduce the value with this so we can break it down. Students eventually come up with a definition that resembles “doing the right thing, even when no one is watching”.
We role played some scenarios with students using this checklist to help us decide, “What is the right thing to do..?”
Then we read the story of Ping and the Empty Pot - one of my favorite books! Students discussed when in the story were characters showing integrity and when they were not. We talked about how sometimes in sporting events, when we are so focused on winning, it can be hard to show integrity. We talked about how that impacts our team, how parents and coaches feel about us, and how we might feel about ourselves when we do/do not show integrity.
Finally, students filled their own “Empty Pots” with ways they will show integrity and do the right thing, even when no one is watching.
It has been very fun exploring school values with this group and seeing the in action!
With Gusto,
Mrs. Stanton