A jar of assorted-colored gummy candy served as last month's brain teaser at Garrison Middle School, with students competing to guess how many of each color of candy fit in the jar. But not just any student could take a guess. Students who had been recognized for positive behavior, picking up litter, or talking with a new student, for example, could have received a special ticket for the chance.
Examples of students showing positive behavior far outweigh the times students act up, school administrators say. Yet the chance to recognize students for good character was not part of the academic routine, until now.
Through a $10,000 grant, the school has been following a national ethics program that teaches six core values. The Character Counts! program is part of the Josephson Institute of Ethics., a nonprofit, nonsectarian and nonpartisan organization.
Each month is a new focus. On Thursday, students started the day by learning about fairness.
``It's really just about being good people,'' said Gina Yonts, assistant principal.
The program reinforces the school's code of conduct among students and is meant to support and, in some cases, reward positive behavior.
The winners of the jar-guessing, for example, won lunch with Principal Jim Sporleder. A class with a winning billboard highlighting the core values won a breakfast of cinnamon rolls, muffins and juice.
School officials hope the lessons transcend the classroom and can be applied throughout the day.
``This is something we do day in and day out,'' said Chris Blackman, a special education teacher at Garrison who is heading the program.
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