Understanding Values

Sometimes referred to as morals, values help shape a person's character from childhood.Values are picked up everywhere � from home, school, church, even the park. It normally refers to a person's perception of right and wrong. It defines the things that are most important to a person and thus shaping what is the norm in every society. (http://definevalues.com/)

What are some examples of values?          

Achievement                     Adventure                  Affection                    Arts

Change and variety          Close relationships    Community              Courage

Compassion                       Competition               Cooperation              Country

Creativity                            Democracy                 Effectiveness             Ethical practice         

Excellence                           Fame                          Friendships                Having a family        

Helping other people        Honesty                      Independence            Influencing others    

Inner harmony                   Integrity                    Intellectual status      Knowledge

Leadership                          Loyalty                        Merit                            Money

Nature                                  Order                         Physical challenge     Power

Privacy                                  Purity                          Recognition               Religion

Responsibility                      Self-respect                Truth                          Wisdom

In your assigned groups of four, determine the following roles:

• Discussion Leader
• Recorder
• Vocabulary Expert
• Example Seeker

Using the values in the list above, chose four values that you would like to explore. The Vocabulary Expert will define these values. The Example Seeker will bring up examples of this value in life: If this value were important to someone, how do you think they would live their life? How would you know that this value was important to that person? As a group during discussion, you will pick one example for each of the four values you chose to share with the class. The Recorder will record these values and examples on the worksheet. The Discussion Leader will lead and moderate the discussion and project.

Individual Work: Determining values in literature and poetry

Read the following poems and passages and determine which values you believe are present. You can use the list above or use your own words, provided you explain why you believe this value is present in the piece. Use your worksheet to answer the following questions for each story or poem.

1. What value is present here?
2. What clues you in to this value?
3. How can this poem/story or value relate to your life?

 #1      If I can stop one heart from breaking,Emily Dickinson

#2     Letter from Birmingham City Jail, Martin Luther King, Jr.

#3     A Time to Talk, Robert Frost

#4     A Psalm of Life, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

#5     The Thousandth Man, Rudyard Kipling

Go back to the list of values above and chose the ten that are most important to you. Rank them according to their importance to you. Use your worksheet for this exercise. Now select a value that you find least appealing. Here are some guidelines for identifying what you value.

• Is this something that's important to you?
• Do you feel good about this being important to you?
• Would you feel good if people you respect knew that this was important to you?
• Have you ever done anything that indicates that this is important to you?
• Is this something you would stand by even if others made fun of you for it?
• Does this fit in with your vision of who you are?

You will use Glogster to create a physical representation of the values that you have chosen. There are five things that must be present in the poster:

• Your name
• Your ten values
• A three sentence paragraph explaining your most important value (#1 on your list)(In this paragraph you can include an example of how you practice this value, a story from your life that shows this value, or explain why you picked this value)
• Pictures/graphics that represent you or your values
• The value that you found least appealing with two sentences explaining why you find this value least appealing.

Go to: www.glogster.com

Break into your assigned groups of four.

Use www.wordle.net to input all forty of your combined values as a group. Decide as a group how you would like to present your values to the class. Save and print five copies of your Wordles (one for each member of your group and one for the wall). Turn in your Wordles with your Personal Values Poster and Worksheet for grading.

Go to: www.wordle.net