Definition:
Do what you are supposed to do • Persevere: keep on trying! • Always do your best • Use self-control • Be self-disciplined • Think before you act — consider the consequences • Be accountable for your choices
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Books about Responsibility:
You Can Count on Me: Learning About Responsibility (Character Education Readers) by Regina Burch
Do I Have To?: Kids Talk About Responsibilityby Loewen, Nancy, Wesley, and Omarr
Jason Takes Responsibility (The Way I Act)by Virginia Kroll and Nancy Cote
I DOUBLE Dare You! (Mom's Choice Awards Recipient)by Dana Lehman, Tina Hall, Imogene Zimmermann, and Judy Lehman
The Snooze Brothers: A Lesson in Responsibility (Big Idea Books® / VeggieTown Values) by Cindy Kenney, Doug Peterson, and Big Idea Design
Ma, You're Driving Me Crazy! (Life Skills & Responsibility)by Toni Goffe (Hardcover - Sept. 1993)
11 used from $0.76
Responsibility (Character Education) by Lucia Raatma (Paperback - Aug. 2001)
Resources on the Web:
http://www.brainpopjr.com/socialstudies/citizenship/rightsandresponsibilities/grownups.weml
http://www.lessonplanet.com/search?grade=All&keywords=responsibility&media=lesson&rating=3&search_type=related
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Ideas & Activities:
Personal Responsibility
Homework Honors
I've designed a "I Did My Homework!" page to be sent home with kids at the beginning of each month. Parents post the page on the refrigerator and students note each completed assignment. At the end of the month, students bring the page back to class for a special certificate.
Assignment Organizer
I have my students purchase spiral notebooks in which they record all of the assignments given in class and check off when each is completed. Anything unchecked becomes homework, and kids take their organizers home to let parents know exactly what's on tap. When homework is done, both child and parents initial the list in the organizer so that the next day I know at a glance that the work is complete.
Money Matters
To help students understand budgets, I give them a play money allowance and ask them to create a list of their needs and wants. I then provide a list of necessary expenses—rent, heat, food—on which they must spend part of their allowance. They can earn extra play money through classroom jobs, and must draw a weekly "wild card"--an unexpected expense, such as needing to buy a new bicycle tire, or windfall, such as a belated birthday check from a relative. At the end of the week, they determine how much money is left and whether to save it or spend it on one of their needs or wants. We talk about their decisions and the importance of setting aside a bit of savings no matter what.
At Home Responsibility
Helpful Hands
I like to have my students create coupons for special tasks they will to do at home to help their families. I emphasize that it's important for them to include tasks they don't do regularly (such as making their bed), make only promises they will be able to deliver, and do tasks willingly. Then students present their coupons to family members. Afterward, we talk about how their family reacted to these helpful gifts and how these positive reactions made students feel.
Clock Watch
I ask students to create paper clocks that show their scheduled times for getting-ready tasks, such as getting up, eating breakfast, dressing, and leaving for school. I encourage students to post these paper clocks next to their real clock at home, to remind themselves when to do things. This is especially helpful for kids who tend to be tardy.
Car Safety
To reinforce what we know about being safe in the car, my class makes paper safety belts. Students work together to measure their waists with string or a tape measure, adding a hand's width to the waist measurement for fastening. They cut a safety belt from colored paper and decorate it with car safety rules we've discussed. Kids wear their belts home with notes they've written to their parents about family car safety.
Community Responsibility
In Need
My students help the needy throughout the year with food and necessity drives. I bring in a wicker basket to hold collections; then, each month, we choose the items to collect and places to make donations. One month we might collect combs and toothbrushes for a homeless shelter; another, canned foods for the local food pantry; and the next, toys for a pediatric unit. I ask parent volunteers to help deliver the donated items.
Elderly Friends
I've discovered wonderful learning opportunities when students "adopt" elderly friends at nursing homes or retirement centers. My students really like reading to their adopted friends. Beforehand, they rehearse their book selections with one another—great reading practice! Students also make audiocassettes of their stories to loan to the homes or centers.
Trash Talk
To start students thinking about our global trash problem, I ask them to count the bags of trash their families discard during one week. We calculate a class average and use it to estimate how many bags of trash our school discards, as well as our town, county, and state. Students graph these estimations. Then I divide the class into groups and have kids develop creative ways to reduce trash. To launch a trash crusade in your classroom, use the Trash Talk Reproducible included with this unit.
Global Responsibilty
Rain-Forest Debate
I divide my class into two groups: one native to the rain forest and the other needing rain forest land to make a living. Groups debate the use of the forest, then discuss the wants and needs that affect people's decisions. Next, my students survey their parents and neighbors concerning local environmental issues; as a class, we discuss the range of opinions and how this affects the ability to resolve problems.
Our Responsibility: The Earth
NASA has a wonderful free resource you can use for teaching students about their global responsibilities. The package is called "Our Mission to Planet Earth: A Guide to Teaching Earth System Science for K-3," and it was written by John Aldridge. The Guide packet contains color lithographs, including a picture of Earth from Apollo 17. Some of the topics covered include "Forces of Change," "Global Environmental Impacts," and "Global Change." To order, contact the NASA Teacher Resource Education Center that serves your area, and ask for order # EP-292(6-94).
Excerpt taken from: http://content.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=11536
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