CHARACTER COUNTS! Kindness 101

Trustworthiness – Foster Child Gets His Fairytale Ending When Math Teacher Adopts Him

Trustworthiness takes time and commitment. Having someone trust you is always worth the effort.
Trustworthiness
Grade Level: K-12
 
Character Skills
  • Fairness
  • Good Citizenship
SEL Skills
  • Relationship Skills
  • Social Awareness
Academic Skills
  • Curiosity and Passion
  • Self-Direction and Engagement

Definitions

Caring
  • Be kind.
  • Be compassionate.
  • Express gratitude.
  • Forgive others.
  • Be considerate of others’ feelings.
Relationship Skills

Create positive relationships and meaningful connections with family members, classmates, and teachers.

Curiosity and Passion

Enthusiastic to understand more about themselves, others, and the world around them.

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The Ray Center at Drake University
CBS News
Through the story of Damien and his teacher, Mr. Lanning, students will explore the concept of trustworthiness and how trustworthiness affects relationships.
Download Google Slides
activiate prior knowledge

Activate Prior Knowledge

  • What does trustworthiness mean?
    • Trustworthiness means that we are able to be relied on as honest or truthful.
  • Who is someone you trust?
  • What makes them trustworthy?
Kindness 101

Kindness 101 Video

discussion

Discussion Prompts

  • What is challenging about learning to trust someone?
  • What are ways we can show we are trustworthy students?
  • In the video, we see what happens when Mr. Lanning and Damien share mutual trust. When have you experienced mutual trust with someone? How did that make you feel?
materials

Activity Materials

  • Blindfolds
  • Obstacle items (cones, classroom materials, chairs, etc.)
activity

Activity: Trust Walk

Damien learned he could trust Mr. Lanning. In the video, we hear that Damien has not always been able to trust others, but Mr. Lanning is different. Mr. Lanning supported Damien through hard times. A Trust Walk can help practice building trust.

  • Create an obstacle course.
  • Partner students up.
  • One partner is blindfolded and must help their partner walk through the obstacles and navigate safely across.
  • Consider giving your students parameters to make it more challenging. For example, they may guide their partner only by talking to them and are not allowed to touch them. Or, they may guide their partner only by using directional words such as left, right, straight, etc.
  • Follow-up questions:
    • What was challenging about the Trust Walk?
    • What happened over time during the Trust Walk? Did you trust your partner? Why or why not?
journal prompts

Journal Prompts

K-5

  • What are some things that make a person trustworthy?
  • How can you prove to others that they can trust you?
  • How does being trustworthy show you care about someone?

6-12

  • Why can it be difficult to trust people at times?
  • Describe a time when you had to trust someone even though it was tough. Include how you felt and how your relationship changed because of that experience.
  • How would you describe a relationship built on trust? What does it look and feel like?
family connection

Family Connection

Educators: Copy the Family Connection and email it to parents, or click here to download a PDF version to email or print.

Watch
Watch the video as a family: https://youtu.be/_uhHxe5r94A

Discuss
Use these questions to start meaningful conversations about trustworthiness.

  • How did Damien’s story make you feel?
  • How did Mr. Lanning show trustworthiness?
  • How could you tell Damien trusted Mr. Lanning?
  • Who do you trust outside of the family unit? How do you know you can trust them?

Activity

  • Make a list of ways that each household member can demonstrate trustworthiness (Use the Caught Being Trustworthy Chart).
  • When you see someone trustworthy, put a star or sticker next to their name.

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