Kindergarten – Students colored an Ansvar (Norwegian for “responsible”) the responsible elephant coloring page. We discussed that Ansvar is the elephant with colorful ribbons tied around his foot, trunk and tail to help him remember his responsibilities.

 First grade – Students were taught how to persevere and learn from their mistakes. Students were given a sheet of paper with a “mistake” line already drawn on it. Students were challenged to draw a picture to turn the mistake into something positive. Students were told that everyone makes mistakes, but responsible people admit when they make mistakes and then make the best of it.

 Second grade – Students discussed “What Would You Do?” scenarios. Groups of students were each given a different scenario card with a picture and description of an event. Students worked together to decide responsible actions to take in their specific situation. At the end of the lesson each group shared their scenario and decision with the rest of the class.

 Third grade – Students discussed the responsibilities of various people who work at Chapel Hill Academy. Students also discussed what the consequence would be if those jobs were not done. Each student chose a staff member and wrote a letter of gratitude for that person’s work and responsibilities. Some of the students’ letters were displayed in the hallway of CHA on the “Wall of Gratitude”. 

 Fourth grade – Students brainstormed their top five goals for the next five years. In five years, today’s fourth grade class will be starting their first year of high school. To help students understand how their choices effect their future students were asked to write down one choice they could make or are currently making that would help them accomplish their goal and one choice they could make that would distract them from reaching their goal. This lesson encouraged students to think about the positive and negative consequences their daily actions have on their future plans.

 Please talk with your students about what they learned and encourage them to practice showing responsibility. 

 Jennifer Carpenter, LCSW            Erica Robinson
School Social Worker                   Social Work Intern