Skills for Life is bringing character education to life at the Brentwood Middle School in Pittsburgh, PA.  The program was started in 2000 on the initiative of Brentwood Principal, Dr. Lawrence G. Kushner and sixth grade teacher Edward Manfredi.  Although it was a new concept for Brentwood, these innovators realized “our children face many problems today such as poor self-esteem, peer pressure, stress, and undeveloped decision-making skills.  They have little or no instruction on the value of their own character” (Skills for Life handout).  The Skills for Life program was created to develop and maintain the character of the Brentwood students through knowledge, skills and experiences.  Each month, a character quality is highlighted and sixth, seventh and eighth grade teams can decide how they want to implement programs based on the character quality. 

Mr. Manfredi is currently bringing character lessons to his sixth grade students using materials from the Giraffe Project.  He hopes to receive a grant in the future to incorporate service projects into his character education lessons.  “Early on, the kids didn’t know what the different traits meant, now they have a big awareness of different traits,” said Manfredi.  “Their interactions with each other are much more civil.”  In addition, the whole building has improved since the kids keep it cleaner and have become more aware of the problems of vandalism.  

Skills for Life does not simply focus on students.  Teachers are encouraged to practice the traits and act as role models that students can respect.  Some advice given to teachers in the Skills for Life handout includes, “extend the character qualities beyond the restriction of your classroom.   Help students to see how character qualities are applicable in their daily lives.  Keep the character qualities fresh in your students’ minds by living them in your classroom.” Thoughtful advice from a thoughtful character education program!
 
Website Links:
Brentwood Middle School Home
http://brentwoodpgh.k12.pa.us/
 
The Giraffe Project
http://www.giraffe.org/