5 Favorite Character Education Activities for Kids

Let’s take a moment to talk about character education activities for kids. I am a big believer that kids need a good understanding of what good character traits are to show them in our classrooms.

Just like teaching reading and math, we should all take the time to teach positive character traits to our students. Here is a list of 5 of my favorite character education activities for kids.

1. Read Good Books

Pick books that focus on people and traits that you want your class to foster and emulate throughout the year. Since I teach in Texas, the TEKS lists out what traits we should focus on; truthfulness, justice, equality, respect, responsibility, and participation.

Once you have a list of books that you want to read, spend each morning or each week reading one of the books out loud to your class. As we listen to the stories, I like to have my class make a list of the actions the characters did. We use this worksheet from my character education pack, and the students record the events and then check if the character’s actions were a good or bad decision.

This is a fun activity that offers a lot of chances to discuss examples of positive character traits with the kids.

2. Talk About Good Decisions

Throughout the year, your students will be making all kinds of decisions. They will need your guidance along the way. Sometimes making decisions can be very difficult for students because they react to impulse and tend to “follow” the crowd.

One way to help students make better decisions is by coming up with a set of scenarios and talking about the consequence of each action. In my back to school activity pack for character education, I made a simple list of scenarios and have the students mark off if its a good decision or a bad one.

A fun way to modify this activity is by having your students come up with a list on their own. Then have a classmate decide what kind of decision the scenario is.

3. Interview a Family Member

Getting parents involved in your student’s learning has so many benefits. Your students’ parents will appreciate this activity and the opportunity to reinforce these character traits at home.

I like to have my students interview a family member at home. I have them talk about responsibilities and what it means to each person. It is a great way to learn about different perspectives. It will also give you a great idea of what life is like at home.

I send home this simple interview sheet for homework and have the students’ parent or family member fill out and return the next day/week. Once all of the students have completed the interview, I have students share the different responses their parents had and all the different jobs that take place at home.

After we have all shared what are parents’ responsibilities are, we come up with a class list of responsibilities at school and at home. We talk about the importance of them and what happens if we forget to take care of one. This activity is an easy one to accomplish but still holds a great number of opportunities to discuss positive character traits.

4. Promote Kindness

picture of a fun kindness activity for Character Education Activities for Kids

Another one of my favorite character education activities for kids is to have them focus on kindness. One easy way to do this is by having students write a kind letter to a classmate.

It can be a simple thank you note or a nice compliment. One fun way to make this activity digital is by having students write an email or fill out a fun digital postcard to a friend, parent, or family member.

5. Make it your Morning Routine

picture of a fun good citizenship activity

Adding resources that focus on character education activities for kids into your morning routine is also an easy way to foster good citizenship and positive behavior in your classroom.

I love using flipbooks in my morning routine because they make great independent activities. It is also an easy way to review the content you have already taught. A bonus is that they are low prep and require no cutting or gluing.

More Character Education Activities for Kids

Teaching your class about good citizenship and focusing on character education at the beginning of the year will help you promote positive behavior all year long.

The resources in this post are from my Good Citizenship Activities and Worksheet pack. I also have a digital version and a low prep flipbook that are perfect for student centers or a distance learning situation.

Click HERE for the printable unit and HERE for the digital version. OR save money by purchasing the paper and digital bundle HERE.

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