Grand Canyon University’s Canyon Center for Character Education has released a new book aimed at helping teachers integrate character education into their classrooms. The book, “Activities and Applications: Character Education,” was developed by Program Director Emily Farkas and Assistant Director Dr. Ashley Brandon.
Maryvale High School teacher Kristen Palamaruk plans to use the book in her earth science and biology classes. She described the approach as encouraging students to reflect on their own character and set virtue goals at the start of the school year. Palamaruk said, “We will discuss what character is and why virtues are important,” noting that she will use different activities from the book for each age group.
One activity involves students imagining what they would want a friend to say about them at a future birthday party, prompting them to consider how they wish to be perceived. Palamaruk shared that last year was her first time implementing character education in her classroom, which presented some challenges. This year, she feels better prepared with the new resource. “It’s been a life-changing tool,” she said. “I hope it inspires more people to utilize the tool and implement character education within their classroom.”
Farkas and Brandon designed the book after recognizing that teachers often seek practical guidance for introducing character education into their lessons. Farkas explained, “It’s ready-made, they don’t have to think about it.” She added that while K-12 educators are the primary audience, activities can also be adapted for higher education or used in professional development.
The book is available for free download on CCCE’s website, with printed copies offered upon request.
“It’s literally for anyone who wants to put character education activities in place — our main audience is the K-12 space — but these activities can absolutely be differentiated for higher education spaces,” Farkas said.
She noted that schools with established programs could use it as a supplemental resource, while those without such initiatives might find it useful as an introduction.
The publication aligns with CCCE’s mission to advance character education globally and is supported by an extension of a three-year grant from the Kern Family Foundation. Ten experts from across the country contributed activities for inclusion in the book.
Lance Forman, assistant dean at Lipscomb University College of Education and CCCE advisor, contributed content as well. He stated: “It is often easy to view character education as ‘something else to add to my plate’ among the mound of duties, reports and responsibilities that we have as classroom educators,” adding: “But what we need to understand is the character is not something else to add to the plate, it IS the plate. Character education and development is the foundation of exceptional teaching and leadership. The book is a great resource for educators because it provides concrete ways to integrate character education elements into the classroom.”
Each section outlines its intended audience, focus area, materials needed, and step-by-step instructions. Activities are supported by various resources such as literature excerpts, TEDx talk videos, Aesop’s Fables stories, and articles from Psychology Today.
For example, one activity focused on courage includes links to talks by researchers along with discussion questions; another section on gratitude refers readers to work by happiness expert Martin Seligman and prompts participants to list daily blessings. Other topics addressed include compassion, patience, integrity, empathy, personal growth—and how these qualities affect both individuals and those around them.
“There’s plenty of opportunities for reflection throughout the activities,” Farkas said. “There’s a lot of focus on different virtues, such as empathy, which I think is needed currently.”
Brandon highlighted that all activities center on personal growth: “It’s really thinking about how your character impacts not only yourself and your growth but how your character impacts those around you… That’s a pretty important lesson for little ones.”
