http://www.goodcharacter.com/YCC/BeingResponsible.

html

BEING RESPONSIBLE

for grades K-5

HOW TO BE
A RESPONSIBLE PERSON
(AND FEEL GREAT!)

When you agree to do something, do it. If you let people down, they'll stop
believing you. When you follow through on your commitments, people take you
seriously.

Answer for your own actions. Don't make excuses or blame others for what you
do. When you take responsibility for your actions you are saying "I am the one who's in
charge of my life."

Take care of your own matters. Don't rely on adults to remind you when you're
supposed to be somewhere or what you're supposed to bring. You take the
responsibility.

Be trustworthy. If somebody trusts you to borrow or take care of something, take

care of it. If somebody tells you something in confidence, keep it to yourself. It's
important for people to know they can count on you.

Always use your head. Think things through and use good judgment. When you
use your head you make better choices. That shows your parents they can trust you.

Don't put things off. When you have a job to do, do it. Doing things on time
helps you take control of your life and shows that you can manage your own
affairs.
 DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Dear Teacher or Discussion Leader: In discussing responsibility with your

kids, we suggest that you try to steer the conversation away from the issue of
"chores." While chores may be important (to parents, anyway), they are rather
trivial compared with higher order aspects of responsibility that have to do with
character and integrity. We urge you to frame the conversation in this broader
light.

If you are using the video, ask the first three questions before viewing.

1. What does it mean when someone is described as a "responsible" person?

2. What are some of the responsibilities kids your age have?

3. Are there some reasons why you might want to be considered a "responsible"
person?

4. Why did Rhonda beg her friends to let her work on the science project?

5. Why did Rhonda's friends hesitate to give her an important responsibility?

6. Rhonda's friends took a chance when they trusted her. Would you have done the
same? Why, or why not?

7. Why do you think Rhonda decided to stay home and do her work instead of going to
Disneyland?

8. How would the play have ended if Rhonda had decided to go to Disneyland?

9. What are the rewards for being a responsible person?

10. In what ways can being responsible or irresponsible affect a person's self-esteem?

11. Did the kids in the discussion part of the program say anything that you strongly
agree with or disagree with?

12. What did you learn from this video program?

STUDENT ACTIVITIES

1. Write the six responsible behaviors (see "How To Be A Responsible Person" at

the top of this column) on the board, or make copies and hand them out. Have
the children think of a few examples for each behavior. Then, for each
example, have them brainstorm ways of handling irresponsible people. List the
best ideas on the board.

2. Take the examples from activity #1, above, and turn them into role-playing
situations using two kids at a time. First, have them role-play the irresponsible
behavior, and then, the responsible behavior. Have the group critique each of the role-
plays.

3. Design a "Being Responsible" poster illustrating the six responsible behaviors. Put
it up on your classroom wall.

4. Have a discussion about classroom responsibility. What are the kids'

responsibilities, and what are the teacher's responsibilities? Make a chart of these
responsibilities on the board. What are the consequences of being irresponsible? What
are the rewards of being responsible?

WRITING ASSIGNMENTS

1. How responsible are you? For each of the six responsible behaviors listed at the
top of this column, rate yourself on a scale of one to five (1=awful, and 5=terrific).
For each of these behaviors give an example of how you are either responsible or
irresponsible, and what you could do to improve.

2. Write about a time when you did something really responsible. Describe it.
What was the outcome? How did it make you feel about yourself? Describe a
 time you did something really irresponsible. What was the outcome? How did
it make you feel about yourself?

3. This assignment will encourage young people to play a responsible role in society.
Have everybody in the class write a letter to the President or to your senator or
congressman about an environmental issue that is currently in the news. Let the kids
know that you are going to put all their letters into a large envelope and mail it. Then,
do it. Share any response with the kids.

4. Write about the kinds of responsibilities you feel for (or to):

a) yourself

b) your family

c) your friends

d) your community

e) the whole country

f) all people throughout the world

g) our planet and our environment

5. Write about the differences between adult responsibilities and children's

responsibilities. What does responsibility have to do with growing up? What
responsibilities do you look forward to?

HOME ASSIGNMENTS

To enlist the involvement of parents, make copies of the "For Parents" block (see
below) and send them home with the children. Tell the children to discuss the video
with their parents, and to perform the following activities.
 1. Have a discussion about responsibility in the family. What are your
responsibilities (other than chores), and what are your parents' responsibilities?
Make a chart of these responsibilities and put it up on your bedroom wall (or,
perhaps, the refrigerator door). What happens if you are irresponsible? What if
your parents are irresponsible? What are the rewards for being responsible?

2. Ask your parents or another adult in your family to tell you about some of the
things you do (other than chores) that demonstrate responsibility. What does it mean
to them when you show that you are responsible? In what ways would they like you to
take more responsibility?

3. Talk with your family about what things you can do together to take responsibility
for the environment (recycling, using less water and energy, buying non-polluting
products, etc.). Make a plan and do it. Report on your plan in class.

4. For one week keep a daily record of all your responsibilities. Include social
commitments, homework, household chores, everything. At the end of the week give
yourself a grade on how well you did in carrying out your responsibilities.

Note to the teacher or group leader: It might be a good idea to think of some way for
the children to share the outcomes of these activities with each other. Perhaps they
could give written or oral reports or discuss their experiences in small groups.

FOR PARENTS

Dear Parent,
Your child is involved in learning-activities designed to develop good character and
empower young people to make good choices for themselves. He or she may be asked
to complete several tasks at home. Your cooperation with these activities will support
our overall program.

The current lesson is about responsibility. We have shown a video entitled "Being
Responsible," which presents a skit and discussion about the personal benefits of
making responsible choices. Please ask your child to tell you about this video program
and what he or she learned from it.

Here are some things you can do to support the idea that being a responsible
person makes us feel good about ourselves and makes other people respect and
appreciate us.

Talk with your children about responsibility. Tell them that responsibility isn't just
doing chores, it's following through on commitments, answering for their own actions,
being reliable and trustworthy, using good judgment, taking care of their own affairs,
and not procrastinating. Let them know that these are signs they are growing up and
can be trusted with greater freedom.

"Catch" your children making a responsible choice or behaving in a responsible

manner. Tell them how much that means to you.

Try to "forget" past failures at being responsible.

HOW TO BE

A RESPONSIBLE PERSON

Be reliable and dependable; when you agree to do something, do it.

Take care of your own business. Don't make others do what you are supposed to do.

Take responsibility for your actions; don't make excuses or blame others.

Use your head; think before you act; imagine the consequences.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

If you are using the video, ask the first question before viewing.

1. Have you ever let somebody else take the blame for something you did? What
happened? How did the other person feel about it?

Questions to ask after showing Act I

2. What happened in the video so far?

3. Who had the main responsibility for taking care of Renaldo the lizard? (Burna)
4. Why did Burna give Renaldo to Muggsy?

5. How did Burna get Muggsy to take Renaldo?

6. Do you think Muggsy wanted to take care of Renaldo for Burna? Why did he agree
to it?

7. Was that fair to Muggsy? Was it right for Burna to do that? Was she acting
responsibly? Was she being a good friend? Why not?

8. When Groark tells Muggsy that he didn't bring the bat, his excuse is "I forgot." Do
you think that forgetting something is always a good excuse. Is it irresponsible? Why,
or why not?

9. When Groark accidentally let Renaldo escape, he tried to cover it up by telling

Muggsy that Renaldo was hiding in the cage. Was that a responsible thing to do?
Why, or why not?

10. Why did Groark let Muggsy think he (Muggsy) was at fault, when it was actually
Groark's fault that the lizard escaped?

11. Was Groark being fair? Was he being honest? Was he being responsible? Was he
doing the right thing? Was he being a good friend? Why, or why not?
12. Groark has two choices. He can speak up and take responsibility for losing
Renaldo, or he can keep quiet and let Muggsy take the blame. Do you think he knows
which is the right thing to do? If so, why doesn't he do it?

13. What do you think Groark will do? What do you think he should do? Why?

Questions to ask after showing Act III

General questions about responsibility:

21. How can acting irresponsibly hurt people's friendships? How can being
responsible make you a better friend?

22. What does it mean when someone is described as being a "responsible" person?

23. Do you consider yourself to be a responsible person? Why? In what ways?

24. Does it matter to you whether or not people think of you as responsible? Why, or
why not?

25. How do you feel about people who are irresponsible?

- How do you feel about people who are responsible?

- What difference does it make to you whether or not your friends are responsible
people?
26. What is good about being a responsible person?

STUDENT ACTIVITIES

1. At the top of this page are some behavioral guidelines for how to be a responsible
person. Write these guidelines on the board. Have the children think of as many
examples of each as they can, and write them on the board. Can they think of any
other responsible behaviors that should be added to the list? Have a class discussion
about these behaviors. Have the children make posters of these behaviors to put up
around the school.

2. Take the examples from activity #1, above, and turn them into role-playing
situations. The kids can act them out themselves or use puppets. First, have them role-
play the irresponsible behavior, and then, the responsible behavior. Have the group
critique each of the role-plays.

3. In the video, Socrates and Diotima put Groark through some imagination exercises
by setting up pretend situations in which Groark had to make choices. Try doing the
same with your students. Have them close their eyes while imagining themselves in a
situation you describe. Make sure it requires them to make choices that are either
responsible or irresponsible. Have them test different choices and describe in detail
the consequences of those choices. The more detailed their descriptions, the more real
the experience will feel to them, and the more they will understand the consequences
of their imagined actions. (Afterwards you might tell them how Albert Einstein used
this technique to create all kinds of theories in math and physics.)

4. For the upper grades: Have your students look for magazine or newspaper articles
in which responsibility is an issue. Discuss these issues in the context of responsible
and irresponsible actions. What are the stakes? What are the consequences?

WRITING ASSIGNMENTS

1. How responsible are you? For each of the responsible behaviors listed at the top of
this page, rate yourself on a scale of one to five (1=awful, and 5=terrific). For each of
these behaviors give an example of how you are either responsible or not, and what
you could do to improve.

2. Can you think of a time you did something really irresponsible? Describe it in
detail. Why did it happen? How did you feel about it at the time? Did it affect
anybody else? Did it cause any problems for you? How do you feel about it
now? What did you learn from it? Or, perhaps you would prefer to write about
something you did that was very responsible.

3. If your students are old enough to write book reports, have them write about how
the characters in the book behaved in either a responsible or irresponsible way. Do the
same with movies or television programs they have seen. If your children are too
young to write book reports, do this as a class discussion about the books they are
reading or that you are reading to them.

4. Write about someone you think is very responsible. What do you like about that
person?

5. Write about how it makes you feel when somebody lets you down.

See the other guides in this series for writing assignments you can adapt to this topic.
 Are You a Responsible Person?
(Take this self-evaluation and decide for yourself.)

Personal Responsibility:
True False
I do what needs to be done.

I am reliable and dependable.

I never make excuses or blame others for my actions.

I always follow through on my commitments.

Social Responsibility:
True False
I do my part for the common good.

I volunteer in my school or community.

I participate in community service.

I do what I can to help take care of the environment.

I think I am/am not a responsible person because: ___________________

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

If you are using the video, ask the first two questions before viewing.
What do parents mean when they say you should "take responsibility?"

Do you consider yourself to be a responsible person? In what ways?

What does "taking responsibility" mean?

How does behaving responsibly affect our relationships with our friends? How
important is that?

How does behaving responsibly affect your relationship with your parents? How
important is that?

Have you ever caused problems for somebody else by being irresponsible? What
happened? Would you do things differently if you had another chance?

Has anybody ever caused problems for you by being irresponsible? What happened?
What do you wish that person understood about what happened?

How does it make you feel when somebody lets you down?

How does it make you feel when you have let somebody else down?

Do you think there is any connection between being responsible and being trusted?
Between being responsible and being respected?
Are you responsible? In what ways are you, and in what ways are you not?

Successful people get that way by being lucky. Agree, or disagree? Explain.

If I try hard and don't succeed it's not my fault. Agree, or disagree? Explain.

How might taking responsibility give you power over your life?

How did taking responsibility help Veronica change the course her life was taking?
Do you know anyone who's done something like that?

In the Veronica story, we are told that Veronica decided to "reinvent herself." What
does that mean? How did she do it?

How did Alex's story (e-waste) make you feel? What did you learn from it? What
motivated Alex and his friends to do what they did? Do you think that most kids could
do something like that, or are Alex and his friends just a special case?

Alex closes his story about the "Win Team" by suggesting that people find a cause
and do what's right. What does this idea have to do with responsibility?

What responsibilities do you feel you personally have for: 1) yourself, 2) your family,
3) your community?
WRITING ASSIGNMENTS

Write about a time you were let down by someone's irresponsible actions. If you could
say anything to this person now, what would it be?

How responsible are you? Take the quiz above. For each question, rate yourself on a
scale of one to five (1=awful, and 5=terrific). For each of these behaviors give an
example of how you are either responsible or not, and what you could do to improve.

Can you think of a time you did something really irresponsible? Describe it in detail.
Why did it happen? How did you feel about it at the time? Did it affect anybody else?
Did it cause any problems for you? How do you feel about it now? What did you learn
from it? Or, perhaps you would prefer to write about something you did that was very
responsible.

Book Report: Write about how the characters in a book behaved in either a
responsible or irresponsible way, and how their behavior affected other characters and
the story. Do the same with a movie or television program.

Imagine waking up one morning and deciding to "reinvent" yourself. What changes
would you make? How would you go about it?

STUDENT ACTIVITIES

Have students break into groups and share a time when they acted irresponsibly and a
time when they took responsibility. In a large group, have them share one of their
stories and the impact that person's behavior had on those around them.
Have your students visit this page to find opportunities to become involved in
activities and issues relating to personal and social responsibility.

The quiz above contains some behavioral guidelines for how to be a responsible
person. Write these guidelines on the board. Have your students think of as many
examples of each as they can, and write them on the board. Can they think of any
other responsible behaviors that should be added to the list? Have a class discussion
about these behaviors.

Have everybody in the class declare two short term goals that can be accomplished
during the semester. Have them present their goals to the class, including their plans,
their deadlines, and why these goals are important to them. Then, have them track
their progress, giving periodic reports to the whole class. Set up some kind of a
reward for people who achieve their goals.

As a group, identify some problems in your school or community. Come up with a

plan for attacking one specific problem. Organize a community service project around
it.
 Objective

Students will understand the following:

What responsibility and self-control are.
Why its important to think before you act or speak.
How acting with self-control helps you keep having fun without hurting yourself or hurting
others.

Grade Level
Grades Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th grade
Standards
Supports learning standards in social studies and health.
Students understand the individual responsibilities of citizenship and promoting a civil
society.
Students demonstrate the ability to use decision-making skills to enhance health and to
create positive personal relationships.

Materials
What If?, Book 3 Talking with Trees Series (print or ebook)
Make a "What if? Seed Activity/Worksheet

Definitions
Responsibility- Taking responsibility or being responsible is about doing what
you are supposed to do, and doing your best job.

There are things you are supposed to do, and being responsible for your
actions means that you get either the praise/reward for a job well done, or
the blame for a job done poorly or not at all.

Responsibility is about how your actions cause positive or negative results

(consequences.) Responsibility includes:
- A responsibility is something you are supposed to do. It can be a task, like
feeding the dog. Or it can be a way of behaving, like raising your hand and
waiting your turn to speak. We would say, "Its your responsibility to behave
in class and to feed the dog.
- Being responsible (or acting responsibly) means you do the things you are
supposed to do, which leads to positive results. Being irresponsible, means
you dont do what you are supposed to do, which leads to negative results
(consequences.)

Respect- Respect means you treat people in a way that shows you care about
their feelings and well-being.

Self-Control- Self control means you are aware of how you are behaving /
what you are doing, and you change your actions to fit what you know is the
right way to behave.

Also see "What is Respect" definition and "What is Responsibility" definition with
examples.
Procedures
With the class read "What if?, Talking with Trees Book 3, (read paper book or
project the iPad ebook on a whiteboard).

Discussion points:

Be aware of your actions

We see several situations where children were caught up in what they were
doing and didnt think about how their actions would have an impact on
themselves or other people.

1. Ask the children for examples from the book in which a child didnt think
before he/she acted or spoke.
- The boy was ready to jump from a branch that was too high and he could
have been seriously hurt.
- The boy thought he was being funny when he criticized his friends haircut,
but the friends feelings were hurt. (To encourage empathy, show children
the facial expressions on the boy and his friend and ask how each is
feeling.)
- The sister teased her brother about losing his friend. (Compare the picture
of how the boy felt when he was teasing his friend with how he felt when his
sister was teasing him. Use this to demonstrate empathy and how the boy
could think of his own experience being teased to help him remember not to
tease others.)
- The mother was so happy and excited about her berries that she didnt
think of how her mom would not be happy about the mess on the floor.
Changing your behavior
1. Ask the children why its helpful to ask "What if? before they act
- It helps you pause before you act or speak so you can consider the
consequences.
- It gives you the time to adjust your actions and make a better choice.

2. Tie "What if? to responsibility and self-control

-Asking "What if? helps you remember to be responsible for your actions.
Responsibility is about doing what you need to do for a positive outcome,
even when there is an easier or more fun option. "What if? helps you
remember that your actions have consequences.
-Being aware of how your actions have an impact, and changing your
behavior is also called having self-control. When you can use self-control in
lots of situations, then parents and teachers know they can trust you to
make good choices.
-Asking "What if? can help with impulse control ("But I really want to right
now!) because you think about consequences and whether its worth the
trouble that could come if you give in to the temptation.

3. What are some guidelines that tell you that you should change your
actions?
- You can seriously hurt yourself
- You can hurt someone else
- Your mom/dad/teacher will be upset

4. Does asking "What if? mean you cant do anything fun?

-Thinking before you act or speak helps you see more optionsdifferent
ways of acting that lead to a better outcome.

Examples:
- The tree said she was great for climbing, so she was encouraging the boy
to climb. Asking "What if? helped the boy realize he should climb a little
lower before he jumped. The change of action kept him from getting hurt so
he could climb again another day.
- The boy didnt like his friends haircut and said something so insulting, his
friend stopped speaking to him. "What if? could have helped him tell his
friend in a more polite way that he didnt like the haircut. Treating others
with respect means you care enough to think about their feelings and well-
being before you act. Asking "What if? would have helped the boy to be
more respectful.
- The sister teased her brother right after criticizing her brother for the same
behavior. Had she asked "What if? she could have made her point in a
kinder, more respectful way.
- The mother was very happy and excited, but that changed quickly when
her mother was upset and had her help clean the floor. "What if? could
have shown the girl to wipe her feet and clean her clothes so she could have
remained happy and could have enjoyed her berries with her mom.

Practice with some examples

Use the "What would you do page near the end of the book to talk through
some more examples. Ask the children how they could change their behavior
to keep having fun, without the trouble.

- Your ball rolls into the street. You want to run out and grab it before it rolls
down the street. (What if I run in the street? Are there cars coming? Is it
safe? Id better stop and check before I go into the street, even if that
means the ball is harder to catch up with.)

- Your classmate makes a mistake writing on the whiteboard, and you think
of something really funny to say about it. (What if I say this now? Is it
funny-nice or funny-mean? Will it disrupt the class? Will my teacher be
upset? Maybe I should wait to say it to my friend in private later, or not say
it at all.)

- You are supposed to finish your homework before you go out and play. You
only have a few math problems left to do, but your friend is ready to play
now. (What if I stop doing my homework and play now? Maybe I should ask
my friend to wait a minute while I finish. Maybe I can ask my parent if I can
finish the last few problems later.)

- You are waiting in line at the grocery store with your parents and its so
boring. You look at your brother and think it would be fun to poke him in the
stomach. (What if I poke my brother? He might get upset, he might poke me
back, we might end up arguing Maybe I should find something else to do to
keep my busy, like play I Spy, or see how many different colored bubble
gums are on the rack, or)
Discuss why responsibility and self-control are important to society
Being responsible means you do the things you are supposed to do, both
actions and behaviors, so there is a positive outcome. In a classroom, in a
family, in a societyeveryone has responsibilities, or jobs to do, that keep
things running smoothly.

1. Discuss examples of responsibilities and how different people contribute

to society but being responsible.
- Parents provide a safe home, food, love
- Teachers teach critical skills you need when you grow up
- Children take care of their health, do their best in school, help around the
house
- Citizens vote, Congressmen make laws in the interest of the people,
Judges uphold the law
- Garbage men pick up the trash, policemen keep people safe, farmers grow
food

2. What would happen if people werent responsible? What if they didnt

think about the consequences of their actions? (e.g. your parents didnt feel
like working anymore; the garbage men stopped picking up the trash;
policemen didnt care about keeping people safe; you dont bother to study
in school or brush your teeth or feed the dog)

3. Optional activity: have children choose a role in society and make a

poster showing on one side what being responsible looks like and on the
other what being irresponsible looks like.

Supporting Activities
1. Make a "What if seed- print a "What if Seed free worksheet. Have children cut
out and color the seed. Hang from a backpack, make a poster, or paste to
cardboard and keep it in a pocket.

2. Print the free "What if poster.

3. Print the free printable coloring page of the "What if?" poster or seed..
http://talkingtreebooks.com/definition/what-is-responsibility.html

Trying to explain responsibility to kids? Try this simplified definition of

responsibility written in terms and with examples that kids will understand.

What is responsibility?
We have a few different ways that we talk about responsibility. Theres being
responsible, taking responsibility, acting responsibly, and having
responsibilities. They are all related to doing the things we are supposed to
do, and accepting the positive or negative outcome of our actions. A quick
definition for responsibility is:

Being responsible means you do the things you are expected to do and accept the
consequences (results) of your actions.

But lets break that down into some more pieces:

What is a responsibility?
A responsibility is something you are expected to do.

A responsibility might be a task you are expected to do. For example, your
parents expect you to brush your teeth. Brushing your teeth is a
responsibility and it is your responsibility to brush your teeth every day.
Another task example is that your teacher expects you to finish your
homework on time and to do your best job. So its your responsibility to do
your homework.

A responsibility might be a way you are expected to act. For example, your
parents expect that if you go to play at the park, you will play in a way that
wont seriously hurt yourself or someone else. Its your responsibility to have
fun in a safe and courteous way.

What is a consequence?
A consequence is the result or outcome of our actions. Consequences can be
positive (good) or negative (not good). For example, if you are supposed to
do your chores by Sunday at 5:00 and you get them done, the consequence
of your actions is that you get paid and your parents are happy with you. In
another example, if you leave your bike behind your dads car and he
doesnt see it and runs over it, the consequence of your action is that your
bike is ruined.