Building children's character

[Excerpts from How to have 'Amazing Kids' by Barbara Joy Clarke]

It is very important to build character in children as then only they will know the difference between right and wrong.Children who have been taught character will also practise the right thing.This will make a better society and hence a better nation to live.Here's an A to Z guidelines for character building.

CHARACTER is a belief in an absolute system of right and wrong, combined with the will to do what is right regardless of the cost.  Therefore, a person with character will say, "What's the right thing
to do?" and a person with NO character will say, "What's in it for me?".  You automatically have respect for a person with 'character'.
Character deals with the matters of the heart--the inner you, not the outer you.  The foundation of a person is the character.  When you are an adult, you should proudly be able to say…I'm a person of character, I don't do what's wrong".
 

Character building for children isn't a course offered in school, but it should be. Here are suggestions for character building ideas.

Character-building themes for kids and others: it sounds simple. Schools should teach character-building. Unfortunately many school districts do not consider this an important subject. However, the trend is changing. Parent and civic groups have urged school groups to include character-building in the curriculum.

Parents and teachers need to take time to build character in kids, and in themselves. Here are eight character building ideas to discuss at home, at school, at community groups, and churches, to build better character for a better America.

CHARACTER BUILDING FOR CHILDREN

By Leah Davies, M.Ed.

The following quotes may be used in a variety of ways by both teachers and counselors. One idea is for a thought to be posted, read, and discussed at the beginning of each week. It could then be read daily with the students. At the end of the week ask them what they learned or how the thought applied to their lives or activities during the week. Have the children give written or oral examples, or have them draw a picture to illustrate their ideas.

PENDIDIKAN KARAKTER

Pencetus pendidikan karakter yang menekankan dimensi etis-spiritual dalam proses pembentukan pribadi ialah pedagog Jerman FW Foerster (1869-1966). Pendidikan karakter merupakan reaksi atas kejumudan pedagogi natural Rousseauian dan instrumentalisme pedagogis Deweyan.

Lebih dari itu, pedagogi puerocentris lewat perayaan atas spontanitas anak-anak (Edouard Claparède, Ovide Decroly, Maria Montessori) yang mewarnai Eropa dan Amerika Serikat awal abad ke-19 kian dianggap tak mencukupi lagi bagi formasi intelektual dan kultural seorang pribadi.

Polemik anti-positivis dan anti-naturalis di Eropa awal abad ke-19 merupakan gerakan pembebasan dari determinisme natural menuju dimensi spiritual, bergerak dari formasi personal dengan pendekatan psiko-sosial menuju cita-cita humanisme yang lebih integral. Pendidikan karakter merupakan sebuah usaha untuk menghidupkan kembali pedagogi ideal-spiritual yang sempat hilang diterjang gelombang positivisme ala Comte.

Tujuan pendidikan adalah untuk pembentukan karakter yang terwujud dalam kesatuan esensial si subyek dengan perilaku dan sikap hidup yang dimilikinya. Bagi Foerster, karakter merupakan sesuatu yang mengualifikasi seorang pribadi. Karakter menjadi identitas yang mengatasi pengalaman kontingen yang selalu berubah. Dari kematangan karakter inilah, kualitas seorang pribadi diukur.

caracter education

I grew up in Indonesia and went to college in the United States to become an expert in food and nutrition to help people at home in Indonesia.  But when I came home in 1993, I started to think that many of the social problems in my country related back to the first years of school: kindergarten.  I realized that kindergarten is not only a place to learn reading, writing, or math, but also a place to make friends and learn how to become a good, honest person that wants to help your community.