MAXIMize the Moment Junior Volume 1, Issue 4

Story

I am so tired! We had a late soccer game and, when I got home, my mom made me do my piano practice. I only had a little time to relax and watch TV before it was time for bed. I know I have studied for my Social Studies test, but I just didn't have time. That's OK, I'll just study during lunch.

I forgot. We have a special schedule today. Because the other class has a guest speaker, we have our afternoon classes this morning and our morning classes this afternoon. That means that we have Social Studies first. Oh no! I didn't study at all, so I'm going to do really badly. My parents are going to be so mad.

What should I do? I notice that Mrs. Methia is helping Ted, whose desk is on the other side of the room. If I take a quick peak at Kelly's paper, Mrs. Methia will never see. It's not a big deal if I do it-just this once. I promise I'll never do it again. Then I realize that I said the same thing last time. I swore I'd never cheat again, but now I'm about to.

My dad always says that "Honesty is the best policy." Deep, down inside, I know he's right. I hope he remembers that tonight. I'm going to have to explain to him that I messed up this test. Hopefully, he'll appreciate my honesty. By choosing not to study, I did make the wrong choice. Now, I need to make the right choice which means being honest-even if it isn't easy.

This week's maxim is "Honesty is the best policy."  

Homeroom Discussion Information

• What do you think constitutes cheating?
• What do you think your teachers consider cheating?
• Why do students at this school cheat?
• What sorts of excuses do you hear for cheating? How could some of those issues (pressure, not feeling prepared, differences between what you learned and what you are being tested on, test anxiety, etc.) be combated in more honest and productive ways?
• Even if you know you are not going to get caught, how can cheating have negative consequences?
• What does it mean to be an honest person?
• What are the benefits of being a truthful person?
• What makes it hard to always be honest and to tell the truth?
• How important is it to you that your friends, teachers, parents, etc. are honest with you?
• How important is it that they are trustworthy?
• Are honesty and trustworthiness the same thing? How are they similar? What makes them different?

Home-Use Information

Five tips for maxim-izing your family time

• Use concrete, real-life examples in your discussions to make your point.
• Be real with your child; let him/her know that you, too, face ethical dilemmas and that you recognize that doing the right thing can be hard.
• Let your child talk. Although it's important that he/she knows what you believe, it's also important that you are aware of how your child is feeling and that you get a sense of what he/she is going through.
• Try to understand the pressures in your child's life. Recognize that even things that seem trivial to adults can be of critical importance to children. Childhood is a very self-centered time of life-be aware that children often feel the weight of the world on their shoulders. Help them by respecting the depth of their feelings while encouraging them to see beyond themselves.
• Discuss how you'd react if your child came home and told you that he/she didn't study and did poorly on a test. How would you react to his/her honest admission? How would you help him/her to be more organized so that cheating wouldn't even be a temptation?

Maxim

• "Honesty is the best policy."
  Miguel de Cervantes

Character points

• Honesty-I am a truthful person, in both my words and actions. I know that honesty requires telling the truth, not just avoiding telling lies.
• Truthfulness-I am honest in my words and actions. I know that real honesty is not just about not lying, but also requires that I live in an honest way.
• Trustworthiness-I live in an honest way so people can believe in my word my promises.
• Integrity-I live out my values in a genuine way, so others can trust me and my promises.

Discussion starters

• What did you think of the maxim read at school today?
• Who is an example of a really honest person?
• What sorts of struggles with honesty are common in your life today? How do you deal with them? (It may be helpful at this point to address some of the ethical dilemmas that adults face at work and in relationships). Is it more difficult to be honest with yourself or others?
• Why is it so important to be honest with yourself?
• How does lack of honesty affect your relationships with others? Your respect for yourself?
• Which is more important-to be honest in your words or to honest in your actions?
• Is it possible to be one but not the other?
• What is a good way to deal with a situation when being honest may hurt another person's feelings?
• What is more important to relationships-honesty or wanting to make the other person happy?
• How important is honesty in relationships?
• If you can be dishonest and not get caught, is any harm done?
• It may also be helpful for you to address: times you have been tempted to cheat or be dishonest at school or work; the positive and negative consequences that resulted from your decision to cheat or not to cheat; and, how your decision to cheat or not to cheat affected your sense of self as well as your relationships with others.

Related Links

• The Center for Academic Integrity
  http://www.academicintegrity.org/
• Introduction-Teaching Honesty
  http://www.sathyasaiehv.org.uk/Newsletters/Dec01/intro.htm
• Teaching Honesty
  http://www.sfasu.edu/aas/socwk/reach/honesty.htm

Be sure to acknowledge the courage your children show in talking with you about these issues.