Daria had a weight problem in her elementary school years and it soon grew into a social problem with the other girls in the class.  This started as the other girls in the class excluded her from activities.  But Daria was quite bright and soon learned that if she took the lead with bullying behaviors, she could avoid the pain of being bullied herself.  Girls who were new to the class or sensitive about some topic learned very quickly to avoid Daria.  In elementary school, her friendships were never well-formed and her grades were sporadic- at times, she would receive an A but then next marking period, she might receive a C.

Daria graduated from our school in 8th grade with a reputation for being smart but mean-spirited.  In high school, Daria found herself in a new group of girls, many of whom had enjoyed prior relationships at other grammar schools.  Daria soon found herself on the outside looking into these groups and by the start of tenth grade, spent many nights in tears at home.

Years later, when Daria returned to our school, she recounted many sessions working with a therapist and an eventual acceptance of her academic abilities that led her to a 3.5 GPA in college.  Kayleigh admitted to an inconsistent satisfaction with her life but also a growing acceptance of her professional success as a nurse.

She recalled our focus on Success Traits in elementary school and spoke with pride about her progress with positive mindset and generosity.  Indeed, it was clear that the imposing, self-conscious child was turning into a successful and generous adult.  She realized that she was not fully there yet, but her goals had been clarified for herself in elementary school many years ago.

We welcome you to the conversation.  Please let us know that you care by liking comments, forwarding posts, or joining in our dialogue at johnzurn.com.  We would love to hear your own “Stories From the Classroom….”.

Coming Next- The Story of Corey Weissman

From our first posting:

“As parents and teachers, we need to reclaim our traditional role as influencers of our children – not by shouting louder than the influencers our children discover online, but by stressing ideas that are more important than fancy shoes and snappy TikTok tunes. We need to emphasize traits that everyone agrees children will honor.  We need to convince our children that the people who are most important to them have a better understanding of what it takes to be successful in life.”

          #charactereducation #successtraits #parentingtips #homeschooling #teachertips