Conversations with Our Kids
Barry Lewis Green
Educator, Speaker, Coach, Writer, Creator ... advancing Character Leadership and Education ... to move forward together, stronger ... engaging change.
In the April 2020 issue of The Leaducator, I offered up on Candor as strength. This month, and given the focus of The Leaducator on great education... I first note that, on this 51st day of my own self isolation, great educators are out there killing it. Just today, I saw this on a local teacher creatively reaching out.
Wonderful.
I am an educator, and have been for 25+ years. I teach College. I am not a parent. But, I have been a kid. Some might say I still am.
My point is this. The 5 Strategies of The Virtues Project can power our conversations and connection with children, kids and youth in these days.
We can be reading amazing bedtime stories and focusing on the strengths in our children. We can be sharing music that inspires and unites. In Speaking the Language (the first strategy), we can name the strengths we see in our children and youth. Naming strengths helps us and them to claim them. With the second strategy (Recognizing Teachable Moments... around virtue), we can seize the opportunity to share with our kids not only what strengths we see in them, but examples of where we have seen them. And, we can have cool conversations about strengths needed in these times.
Our Heroic Movie
I found myself in a conversation recently where we were discussing how this all seems like "a movie". You may have had similar conversations. If that is so, we can have conversations about the qualities that would be heroic to practice in these times?
These could be moments of speaking the language, recognizing the opportunity to learn and teach, and honoring our spirits. Imagine the virtues. Imagine them as gems within our kids, to be found and celebrated. This is not about simply acknowledging good behaviour. Behaviour is but a manifestation of character. Behaviour is the branch. Character is the root. Imagine conversations seeing and celebrating strength of character.
Imagine cool conversations with kids about their strengths of character as we have seen them. Imagine going beyond saying how "good" they are, how proud we are of them and how much we love and believe in them. Imagine conversations where we use the language of virtue to talk about what we truly see in them, and remind them of their strengths in these times. Imagine seeing them heroic.
Still
Still, this is not to deny the necessity to recognize the grief and loss in these times. Such in itself requires Courage and Honesty.
Still, it is to say that these days are an opportunity to help shape our kids perception of what heroic times might look like. Epic stories to read together can help. Harry Potter, Marvel and more. These are stories of epic times with lessons of character afoot.
And, we can honor the heroes of the past. We can learn from them. I saw these words posted on Facebook but yesterday. We can learn about human strength indeed... and in deed; with our kids, together.
We can have conversations around their safety. We can have conversations about what being great in these times might look like. Noting the age of our children, kids and youth, we can adjust the content of that conversation while always helping to remind them of their inherent capacity.
The Work
The Virtues Project is doing incredible work worldwide. The strategies have universal application. Their greatest application, in my mind, is in how we engage one another... how we see in each other the true potential, how we learn of and from it, and how we Honor it.
With that in mind, I offer up...
- this conversation with Jon Butler and Trent Langdon
- and this video series I just resurrected ... on virtues, starting with Acceptance.
I also suggest that you get the cards on app. We have no vested interest other than the fact we use the app ourselves. A wonderful simple tool.
And you can read my own recent posts on Empathy ... the COST of doing business ... stand and deliver ... the E-String ... pivot or give it ... RAW power ... and/or character (why, what and how). All on character and virtue and how it impacts living in these days and beyond.
Either way, connect with kids on character. This is their time to see how amazing they are.
Peace, passion and prosperity...
Barry Lewis Green, aka The Unity Guy with Epic Engage
Educate, lead, unite and inspire. Move forward together, stronger. My work is about bringing campuses, companies and communities together, moving forward stronger. I work with educators, entrepreneurs and emerging leaders to do just that. My work is about character leadership and education and its role in helping individuals and organizations build a better world at school, work, business and community. I deliver on it through speaking, coaching and development in character leadership and education. My expertise is character leadership and education. I advance unity in diversity by moving the needle on leadership and education that is high character and results forging. I speak, teach, coach, facilitate, lead, write, sing, dance, cartoon and create on that. In 1980, Professor Rolf Hattenauer changed my life. A highly respected expert in Human Resource Management, he expected much of us and he believed much in us. He was an educator and leader of high character. He was extraordinary. To this day and beyond, I try my darnedest to honor his spirit with my own work. That is another story. But I hope I did him service here.
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