THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, June 6, 1996 TAG: 9606060355
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH SIMPSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 138 lines
The children came hand-in-hand, two-by-two, to learn about words that have been red-hot on the presidential campaign trail lately.
Values. Character. Morals.
All wrapped up in everyday mottos that pint-size citizens can understand: ``Fess up when you mess up. Fairness is playing by the rules. Respect means treating others like you want to be treated.''
The youngsters attended a screening Wednesday of a video called ``Kids for Character'' that is designed to teach children values.
The screening kicked off a new effort by the YMCA of South Hampton Roads to put a stronger emphasis on building character traits such as responsibility, fairness, respect, trustworthiness, citizenship and caring.
``You don't pick up values by accident,'' said YMCA president Chuck Harris, who watched the video along with 340 YMCA children ages 2 to 6. ``We've learned that we need to be more intentional and purposeful in character-building.''
It's an idea whose time seems to have come. The Norfolk school district has just adopted a character-education program. Values are the subject of several new books for children, including William Bennett's ``Children's Book of Virtues.'' And youth groups, long a leader in teaching right from wrong, are ratcheting up their value lessons.
``Do your own thing'' may have been the slogan of the '60s, but ``Do the right thing'' has become the '90s mantra.
While politicians often get mired in the rhetoric of values, children at Wednesday's screening in Virginia Beach put their opinions simply:
On trustworthiness: ``That means doing whatever your mother says,'' said 5-year-old Dustin Thomas, who attends Greenbrier North YMCA in Chesapeake.
On respect: ``It means helping each other and being honest,'' said 6-year-old Danielle Schmidt, who attends the same center.
On fairness: ``Don't do stuff behind people's back; that's mean,'' said Margaret Doyle, 6, of Virginia Beach's Mount Trashmore Family Y.
Perhaps it helped that the children's favorite characters - Barney, Lamb Chop, Babar the Elephant - were promoting the values during the hour-long video.
And that they talked about situations true to a kid's life: A girl named Julie takes someone's beaded pouch, then returns it. A boy named Arnold forgets to turn off the faucet. A polliwog gets his feelings hurt by a playmate.
The YMCA of South Hampton Roads is the latest to join the Character Counts! Coalition, a group of hundreds of youth groups and schools nationwide that have agreed to teach character to children ages 2 to 10, with a special curriculum.
The idea for Character Counts! was born in 1992 when the Josephson Institute of Ethics in California brought together a nonpartisan group of educators, youth leaders and ethicists to share ideas about character development.
Everyone agreed there had been a backlash against character building during the past few decades. Teachers and youth leaders feared being accused of imposing their values on youngsters. Children were spending less time with parents, more time on the streets. And social ills like substance abuse and juvenile crime were eroding a sense of right.
``There's obviously a hole in the moral zone,'' said Joyce Brubaker, Character Counts! associate with the Josephson Institute, a nonprofit organization that has worked to develop ethical stands for legislators, journalists and government agencies.
Out of that 1992 meeting came a list of traits everyone agreed were important. Then a curriculum was designed to teach the qualities. ``Some values transcend religion and culture,'' Brubaker said. ``These are universal traits that we all believe in.''
The coalition's advisory panel includes conservatives, such as former Secretary of Education Bennett, and liberals, such as Marian Wright Edelman, head of the Children's Defense Fund.
Hundreds of children across the country have watched the video and learned from Character Counts! classroom materials. Harris, the local Y's president, said the character lessons will be incorporated in child-care programs, swimming lessons and youth sports in YMCAs in the five South Hampton Roads cities.
Teachers and school administrators from throughout South Hampton Roads were also invited to a separate screening of the ``Kids for Character'' video on Tuesday.
``I think schools are realizing they need to renew their commitment to helping build character,'' said one viewer, Gloria Hagans, social studies coordinator for Norfolk Schools. ``Everyone has a role to play in this.''
While putting the lessons to work may prove hard for children, the learning part was easy for Wednesday's first group of video watchers.
``It was great!'' yelled the children as they filed from the screening room back to their buses. ``Can we watch it again?'' ILLUSTRATION: CANDICE C. CUSIC/The Virginian-Pilot
Four-year-olds Nathan Schuler, left, and Corey Dick of the
Chesapeake YMCA horse around during intermission of ``Kids for
Character,'' a video staring children's idols Barney, Lamb Chop and
Babar the Elephant.
Color photo by CANDICE C. CUSIC\The Virginian-Pilot
Kyle Delphy, 5, gives a honk to the nose of a clown played by Anita
Anderson, executive director of the Indian River YMCA. Delphy and
his friends from the Suffolk YMCA attended a special screening of a
video designed to teach morals.
Graphic
FOR THE VIDEO
To purchase a ``Kids for Character'' video:
Call 1-800-711-2670. The tape costs $14.95.
[Side Bars]
Character Counts! Teaches these Traits
Is It Needed?
Books for Teaching Values
``The Empty Pot,'' by Demi. A boy is named heir to a childless
Chinese emperor because of his honesty.
``The Berenstain Bears and the Truth,'' by Stan and Jan
Berenstain. Sometimes Brother and Sister Bear have a hard time
telling the truth.
``Ernie's Little Lie,'' by Dan Elliott. Ernie lies to win an art
contest but soon atones for his mistake.
FOR OLDER YOUTH:
``Liars,'' by P.J. Peterson. Life changes for 8th-grader Sam when
he discovers he can tell when people are lying.
``Jennifer-the-Jerk is Missing,'' by Carol Gorman. Can you
believe a child who makes up stories?
``Five Finger Discount,'' by Barthe DeClements. A 10-year-old
deals with peer pressure to steal.
FOR ADULTS:
``The Life-Smart Kid: Teaching Your Child to Use Good Judgment in
Every Situation,'' by Lawrence J. Greene. Parental guide to help
children develop.
``Let's Talk about Cheating,'' by Joy Wilt Berry. Spells out the
moral of honesty.
``Invisible Man,'' by Ralph Ellison. An African-American man
tries to come to grips with his identity and integrity.
KEYWORDS: YMCA PROGRAM by CNB