Honesty

Word of the Month

February
Definition and Color Telling the truth, admitting wrong doing and acting with integrity; being genuine, trustworthy, sincere and fair. Color: Red

Holiday: Valentine's Day, President's Day How is honesty an important part of being president? Why do we celebrate Washington and Lincoln as "good" examples of an American president?
Teaching Strategies from KDE While character education is not mandatory, this web site offers additional instructional tools for teachers which could be used with their existing curriculum. The purpose of this web site is for teachers to use it to blend Character Education related teaching strategies into their curriculum rather than creating a separate add-on curriculum. Decisions about how to incorporate character education into the daily classroom curriculum are local decisions best made by teachers, administrators, school board members and parents at the school site. The links below will help teachers find strategies on the word of the month on a level best suited to the class they teach.
Suggested Reading

The Ugly Duckling (Hans Christian Anderson)
The Empty Pot (Demi)
Honest Abe (Evaline Ness)

The Emperor's New Clothes

The Empty Pot by Demi

Even If I Did Something Awful by Barbara Shook Hazen

My Big Lie by Bill Cosby

Book of Greek Myths by Ingri and Edgar P. D'Aulaire

A Big Fat Enormous Lie by Margorie W. Shamat

Plato's Journey by Linda Talley

Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder

On My Honor by Marion Bauer

Notes from a Liar and Her Dog by Gennifer Choldenko

One-Eyed Cat by Paula Fox

Hot and Cold Winter by Johanne Hurwitz

McBroom Tells a Lie
Sam, Bangs and Moonshine (Evaline Ness)
The Adventures of Obadiah
I Know You Cheated
The Truthful Ham

A Penny's Worth of Character
On My Honor
Let’s Talk About Cheating
The Story of George Washington and the Cherry Tree
Cherry Tree
Family Activities

  • Talk to your children about why it is wrong to cheat on schoolwork. Set a good example for your children by taking responsibility for your own actions.

  • Talk to your children about taking responsibility for their own actions. When your child admits that they have done something bad, thank them for telling the truth. Tell them that while you are upset with them for what they did, you are proud of them for their honesty. After their punishment is over, thank them for telling the truth and reinforce how proud you are of them. 

  • Encourage your children to be honest with you about their opinions. They will say things that anger you, but do not punish them for being honest. If their opinions are inappropriate, talk to them about it and explain to them why they are mistaken. 

    Words of caution: There is a big difference between being dishonest—lying or cheating—and "making things up," as children often do in fantasy play. If children are taught that not telling the truth is "a bad thing," some young children might assume that it is also a bad thing to pretend to be a princess or an astronaut. Although you should discourage your child from deliberately lying and cheating, you should also let him know that it is fine to role play and pretend.

    What You Can Do

  • Be a model of honest relations with others.

  • Discuss with your child what honesty is and is not. Point out, for example, that being honest doesn't mean telling someone you think he looks ugly. Kindness goes along with honesty.
Suggested Movies

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Forrest Gump - PG-13

Liar, Liar - PG-13

October Sky - PG

The Miracle Worker

Stuart Little 2 - G

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