Principal's Quest

Adding to our Weblog Community

What a great community of webloggers we are becoming! I am so excited that each of our 3rd grade teachers has established a class weblog. See Rikard's Weblog, Lane's Weblog, McCullers' Weblog, and Babin's Weblog. I know it takes time to develop something like this, but it is so worth it. When I was in third grade, I could never have imagined being able to communicate with others like this. WOW!! We have really come a long way!

Self Control

Self Control: exercising authority over one’s emotions and actions

Self-Control is the ability to make a choice about how you behave instead of just acting on an impulse. You have self-control when you think about a situation and what might happen if you behave a certain way. If you show self-control, you make appropriate decisions and choose behaviors that will have good outcomes.

Self-control is very important for getting along with other people. It is thinking before acting.

You show self-control when you…….

• close a door quietly instead of slamming it
• wait patiently to talk instead of interrupting someone who is talking
• look both ways before crossing the street
• take turns with your friends
• follow your teacher’s instructions
• talk softly instead of shouting
• go to bed on time so you get a good night’s sleep
• sit quietly on the school bus so you stay safe
• start homework without being told
• come to dinner on time
• follow the school rules so you can learn
• you stop and think before you act when you feel angry about something

When visitors come to our school we always gets compliments on how well behaved you are. That means you show self-control and that makes me very proud of you! Let’s share techniques for how we work at learning self-control like…..

· If I start to feel angry I make a picture of a red light in my head and then I stop and think.

· I count silently 1, 2, 3 when I feel that I might lose my temper.

· I take a deep breath before I react to someone who yells at me.

What techniques do you use to show self-control? Sharing our techniques shows how we work as a team at J. H. House Elementary School! I can’t wait to hear from you!

Initiative

Initiative: Seeing what needs to be done and doing it without someone telling you to.

Are you the kind of person who sees what needs to be done and just does it? That makes you a student with initiative.

It takes practice though to look at what is going on and deciding what is needed. You have to be a good thinker and willing to work. Initiative begins with understanding and insight. You see a need, an opportunity or an obligation as a beginning point. It means you think of others outside of yourself. Many times this is a trait that needs to be developed. You have to believe that work is good and then work at it and help others work at it.

Your parents have probably helped you learn by teaching you that there are consequences if you do not do what needs to be done. Some examples at home could be your chores around the house or doing your homework without being told. Your parents let you know what was expected and then followed through to help you learn how to make good decisions and wise choices. They were laying a foundation to teach you initiative.

Then at school your teachers and other educators continue to help you grow by encouraging you to help in the classroom so it is a clean, orderly place that promotes learning. They have rules so that everyone is respected and work gets done and teamwork is fostered. Teachers join with your parents to help you learn the importance of following through on what should be done.

Look around! Think about others! Are they showing initiative? Share your thinking in this area. Notice if your friends are showing initiative. Praise them on a post! Write about something you may try to do in the near future to show initiative. Explain why that would be showing initiative. Let’s help each other understand the importance of having initiative.

Respect for Others

Respect for Others: altruism: concern for and motivation to act for the welfare of others

Respect for others is based on self-respect. It really is following the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. It is the value that makes the world a more decent and civilized place.

You can show respect in many ways. You speak politely and don’t hurt people’s feelings by saying unkind things or making fun of them. You show good manners and care about other people. You treat others fairly and you think it is good to share.

You know how to show tolerance to people who share different beliefs.

As a respectful person, you see everyone as a person with rights, regardless of their race, sex, age or ethnic group.

What does respect mean to you? I'm going to adapt Aretha Franklin's song about respect. Remember, she sang.......

R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Find out what it means to me
R-E-S-P-E-C-T

You might want to begin your comments with:

Respect means..................