Students look inward ... and outward

On Character Education Day at Lynbrook South Middle School, students looked inward and outward to examine their own behavior and build new bonds of friendship and understanding.

After viewing two videos about bullying called “Odd Girl Out” and “School Ties,” students completed three different activities designed to encourage empathy.

In the first activity, called “I know how it feels” students learned to understand the impact of their actions on others. The next activity called “Find Someone Who…” was done in complete silence. Students were given a piece of paper listing 30 particular traits. They were then asked to go around the room finding students who exemplified each of those traits. The final activity of the day, called “The Straw Tower,” focused on teamwork and cooperation. Each group was given 80 straws and a role of masking tape and asked to work together to build a three-foot high freestanding straw tower.

At the end of the day, students were given a choice of nine character-related novels to read.They will be working with their English teachers over the next two months to study the books. As the culminating activity for the program, students will gather in literature circles to discuss the significance of each book.