Character Development Lesson Plans
Honesty
Middle Grades

Developed by: W. Huitt
Last revised: May 2004

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Reading/Language Arts

Reading is the perfect subject in which to teach honesty. There are many literary books, short stories, and novels that may be used to address this attribute. One story found in an Eighth-grade textbook is a story titled Charles, by Shirley Jackson. It is a short story about a little boy that is dishonest with his parents. The little boy makes up an imaginary student and calls him Charles. The little boy comes home every day telling his parents about all the bad things Charles did. His parents were embarrassed when they asked about Charles being a bad influence on their son, and discovered there was no Charles in their son’s class. The teacher did in fact wish to discuss their son’s behavior. Charles would be a great story to start a unit about being honest. Other works of literature that could be used to teach honesty in eighth-grade reading are The Boy Who Cried Wolf, The Outsiders, The True Story of The Three Little Pigs, and use ads from newspapers, magazines, and television commercials.

• Learning Objectives: Eighth-grade QCC's linked to this lesson are LA 27, LA 33, LA LA 42, and LA 39.*

  • http://www.ncpublicschools.org/nccep/lp/lp17.html   “A Novel Approach to Character Education.” It is a four-week unit, and is designed for Eighth-grade Language Arts, as well as integrating other subjects. The lesson objectives for the students are to define admirable character traits, apply them to their personal lives, and recognize traits in literature, think critically about values and issues confronting society today, and determine how character traits are an integral part of vocations and daily living. 

• Learning Objectives: Eighth-grade QCC's linked to this lesson are LA 65, LA 66, LA 67, LA 74, LA 73, and LA 76.*

  • http://goodcharacter.com/ISOC/Honesty.html “Teaching Guide: Honesty for Grades 7-12.” This lesson includes a self-evaluation to find out if a person is honest. The lesson includes a videotape, “In Search of Honesty.” The lesson provides discussion questions, writing assignments, and student activities. It also tells where to purchase the video or request them from your local library.

• Eighth-grade Language Arts QCC's linked to this lesson are LA 66, LA 67, LA 68, LA 69, LA 71, LA 72, LA 73, LA 74, and LA 76.* 
  • http://education.boisestate.edu/interchange/lessons2000/honesty.htm “Teaching about Honesty with A Big Fat Enormous Lie” This lesson is designed for second grade, but can easily be upgraded and modified for all grades. Students may write an essay in the eighth grade instead of writing a paragraph in the second grade. A teacher could also add the book The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, to this lesson. Eighth-grade students could debate which book, The Three Little Pigs or The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, they supported and why. Evidence from the story they chose to support should be stated to back up their belief.
• http://www.goodcharacter.com/ISOC/Honesty.html Teaching guide for the video Honesty in the video series In Search of Character, produced in association with Character Counts!

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* Special thanks to T. Wood for these suggestions.