Character Development Info

The Plano Family YMCA believes that values are important. We are trying to strongly emphasize character development within each program that we offer to help better the relationship with parents, children, and staff. What is character development? Character development is one of the principles that the YMCA was founded on in 1844. Character development is an initiative that the YMCA plugs in to all of its programs. The values that we teach are not religion specific, but rather values that can help anyone achieve the tools necessary to be successful in life. The YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas teaches six pillars of character, which are caring, citizenship, trustworthiness, respect, fairness, and responsibility. These pillars are taken from the Character Counts curriculum, that some of you may have seen in your schools or other social service organizations. Each pillar has a color associated with it, which will help in the teaching process for your young brave or princess. To help better understand these pillars, please refer to the listing below:

Caring: associated with the color red because it is from the heart.
Trustworthiness: associated with the color blue because it is “true blue”.
Respect: associated with the color yellow because of the “golden rule”.
Responsibility: associated with the color green because of the Earth – our young braves / princesses should be responsible when it comes to the environment.
Citizenship: associated with the color purple (think of the purple heart).
Fairness: associated with the color orange.

We have come up with several ways for you incorporate character development into your tribe such as: awarding beads or feathers based on values that young braves / princesses show, and character development bracelets that can be awarded to dads or kids if they display a certain value. Bracelets can be awarded from father to child or vice versa when a value is displayed.

This Months Activity:
Values: Caring, Honesty, Respect, Responsiblity
Equipment: Red, Blue, Green, and Yellow beads, brown pipe cleaners, 3/4" wooden beads with a hole in the middle, hole puncher, key ring, laminated card with the YMCA name and the four values listed in color. red=caring, blue= honesty, yellow= respect, responsibility= green.

1. Gather families around the table to make key chains, Discuss how when you reach a certain age and are responsible for coming home alone, you get a key to the house.  Say, Today we are going to make character key chains to put those house keys on.  Everyone in the family gets to make their own.

2. Give each person pipe cleaners, beads, a key ring, the laminated card, and a wooden bead.  Instruct them to draw a face on the wooden bead.  That will be the head. Use pipe cleaners, to create a stick figure,  Thread beads up the middle for the torso, down both legs, and across both arms.  Twist the ends of of the pipe cleaner to secure the beads.  Thread the pipe cleaner that extends up through the torso through the wooden bead, add another bead and twist the remaining pipe cleaner around a key ring.  Punch a hole through the laminated card with a hole puncher.  add the card and keys to the key ring.

The YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas has taken a strong stand on Character development that can be best explained by our Values Statement:

In keeping our mission, the Dallas YMCA will develop and implement through all our programs, and demonstrate through our actions, six core ethical values including trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship. We will operate in an environment where our values will guide both our behavior and our decisions; where all people are valued and treated with respect and dignity; and, where our morals, ethics and standards will provide a foundation for excellence.

This values initiative is just one of many components of the Adventure Guide / Adventure Princess program that can help build life skills for you and your child. If you find other ways to incorporate character development into your tribe, please let us know, so that we can pass it on to our entire nation.

Character Counts bracelets will be included in new participant packets this year. If you are a returning participant, and are in need of character counts bracelets for you or your tribe, please contact the Plano Family YMCA. Bracelets will be available for $5.00 per set of 6 bracelets.