Students at Tucson charter school, La Paloma Academy, learn about and are encouraged to embody the Six Pillars of Character:
- Trustworthiness: able to be relied on as honest or truthful
- Respect: a feeling of deep admiration for someone or something elicited by their abilities, qualities, or achievements; due regard for the feelings, wishes, rights, or traditions of others
- Responsibility: the state or fact of being accountable or to blame for something; the opportunity or ability to act independently and make decisions without authorization; a thing that one is required to do as part of a job, role, or legal obligation; a moral obligation to behave correctly toward or in respect of
- Fairness: impartial and just treatment or behavior without favoritism or discrimination
- Caring: (adj.) displaying kindness and concern for others; (n.) the work or practice of looking after those unable to care for themselves, especially sick and elderly people
- Citizenship: the character of an individual viewed as a member of society; behavior in terms of the duties, obligations, and functions of a citizen*
Why not let these attributes inspire your, and your child’s, New Year’s resolutions?
Making & Achieving Resolutions
While not everyone participates in this annual activity, many do. Sadly, though, only a small percentage of these personal aspirations are successful.
Be specific
One common criticism of typical resolutions is the vagueness with which they are constructed (i.e., read more, exercise more, eat better). Their generality is their downfall. Just like with goal setting, resolution setting requires more specificity.
Treat resolutions like goals
One way to make 2016’s resolutions more possible is to formulate them like goals—specific, measurable, achievable (i.e., read 30 books by December, run 1 hour 3 times a week by April, restrict soda and sweets to one day per week). You can find more specifics of goal setting in our earlier article on the subject.
Don’t overdo it
Limiting the number of resolutions will also increase the chances for New Year’s success. Instead of a list, limit your 2016 goals to between 3 and 5. Also, remember to write them down, read them regularly, and share them with others.
Happy New Year! We wish a successful and joyous 2016 to each and every member of the La Paloma family.
Source: All definitions taken directly from and attributed to Oxford Dictionaries.
*Additional definitions from Dictionary.com.
