Web Resources

Authentic Happiness

Tags: grit, perseverance, open-mindedness, happiness, empathy, kindness Audience: teacher

Different categories for users to choose to explore and learn about. Focus is on creating resilient learners, as well as finding ways to make people happy. Great resource for questionnaires to share with students and allow them to learn more about themselves.

American Educational Research Association, Moral Development and Education Special Interest Group

Tags: open-mindedness, empathy, kindness, character developmentAudience: teachers

Group interested in assisting in moral development among educators to enhance the learning environment as well as the future prospects for students.

ASCD

Tags: team building, leadership skills, self-awareness, compassionAudience: teachers

This website provides a wide variety of learning tools to help teachers develop their skills. They provide skill building to lead, connect, and nurture the students .

Association for Moral Education

Tags: communication, team building, integrityAudience: teachers, researchers

An association built upon communication among scholars who look to learn and develop standards of moral education.

The Beacon Project- Wake Forest University

Tags: development, kindness, empathy, perseveranceAudience: teachers, researchers

A group seeking to connect several studies to morality and use that understanding to develop exceptional morality to share in future development.

The Behavior Code

Tags: self-awareness, excellence, open-mindedness, intellectual courage, perseveranceAudience: teachers

The Behavior Code by Angela Watson encourages teachers to look past the behaviors their students are exhibiting to the heart of what they are trying to communicate with those behaviors. This website provides supplementary material from the author, including free Teachers Pay Teachers resources, the Truth for Teachers podcast, and the Cornerstone for Teachers blog.

Bonner Center for Character Education

Tags: honesty, empathy, kindness, open-mindedness, respectAudience: teachers

Website has a list of ideas to try with different age levels of students to promote students practicing virtues. List of books for different virtues to give ideas to readers to help them better understand virtues.

Center for Character and Citizenship

Tags: character educationAudience: researchers, parents, teachers

Resource for character education. Lots of different types of materials to help teachers, parents and others find ways and opportunities to use curriculum in the classroom to teacher intellectual and as well as civic virtues.

Center for Character and Social Responsibility

Tags: awareness, character developmentAudience: teachers

Looks to support professional individuals and institutions in character development and social responsibility.

Center for Healthy Minds

Tags: compassion, empathy, self-regulation, curiosity, perseverance, love of learning, kindnessAudience: parents, teachers, counselors, health and mental health professionals

The goal of the Center for Healthy Minds is to cultivate well being and relieve suffering through a scientific understanding of the mind. The website includes information about brain science, about ways to have a healthy mind, and about innovations developed using research done at the center.

Character Education Partnership

Tags: virtue, ethics, community, developmentAudience: everyone

A group that looks to assist communities through several gateways in order to better their overall all character. With good character developed among community members they can then help share that character with those around them.

Character Framework

Tags: kindess, empathy, compassion, honesty, Audience: teachers

Resources for teachers to access to find ideas about teaching character virtue. Slightly challenging to navigate. Lots of broad ideas, but limited specific examples or lesson plans that were easy to find or understand.

The Character Portal- Wake Forest University

Tags: compassion, forgiveness, leadership, gratitude, honesty, civility, respect, responsibility, courage, wisdom, generosityAudience: teacher, parents, counselors, administrators, students (even elementary age)

The Character Portal is an online platform for sponsored by The Character Project and focused on providing resources for teachers, parents, and administrators interested in Character Education and Character Development. The website includes lists of books on character, classical texts available online, and a section designed specifically for children to explore/learn from.

Character Strong

Tags: growth, well-being Audience: teachers, parents

CharacterStrong is an organization that provides curricula and trainings for schools internationally. Trainings help educators infuse character and social-emotional learning into the daily fabric of any classroom or campus. Curricula focus on character development in order to help students cultivate social-emotional skills, their emotional intelligence, and help them develop a stronger identity and purpose in school and in the world.

Committee for Children

Tags: growth, well-being Audience: teachers, parents

Educational programs for the well-being and development of children.

Core Virtues

Tags: Virtue, learningAudience: Teachers, students

Teaches virtue through story telling and literature based on character building stories.

Critical Thinking, Moral Integrity, and Citizenship

Tags: love of learning, perseverance, open-mindedness, intellectual humility, curiosityAudience: k-12 and higher education professionals, parents and students

The aim of The Foundation for Critical Thinking is to improve education in colleges, universities, and primary through secondary schools through the cultivation of fair minded critical thinking.

Dr. Dan Siegel

Tags: development, well-beingAudience: researchers

Studies on the human mind in order to help in character development.

Ellen Langer: Mindfulness

Tags: MindfullnessAudience: Researchers, parents, teachers

Focuses on the study of mindfulness and its effect on health, business, and development.

Every Person Influences Children

Tags: Community, developmentAudience: Everyone

Works on learning as a community in ways to protect and help develop the minds of children.

Family Engagement

Tags: responsibility, cooperation, collaboration, love of learningAudience: teachers and counselors

In this free course you will learn about what family engagement is and how successful collaborations between families and educators lead to improved outcomes for students and schools.

Giraffe Heroes Project

Tags: bravery, integrity, courage, civic engagement,, compassionAudience: parents, teachers, counselors, students

This nonprofit website honors everyday heroes who have the compassion and courage to stick their necks out for the common good. You can search database of heroes or nominate one. Teaching Materials and resources available.

Good Character

Tags: trustworthiness, respect, responsible, fair, caring, honesty, citizenship, courage, perseverance and integrity, self-regulationAudience: teachers and counselors

Character education, lesson plans, activities, program and resources.

The Good Project

Tags: civic engagement, integrity, attentiveness, compassion, development, growth, community, civilityAudience: education professionals of all levels

The Good Project provides a variety of toolkits and resources on producing quality work, engagement, collaboration and citizenship.

GoZen

Tags: Resilience, developmentAudience: Parents, children

Programs for children and parents to help kids develop and learn to deal with situations such as anxiety, OCD, and have overall better well-being.

Greater Good

Tags: altruism, compassion, diversity, gratitude, mindfulness, happiness, forgiveness, empathyAudience: parents, teachers and counselors

Greater Good magazine turns scientific research into stories, tips, and tools for a happier life and a more compassionate society. Magazine includes articles, videos, quizzes, and podcasts.

Intellectual and Character Virtues

Tags: confidence, open-mindedness, autonomy, love of learning, integrityAudience: prospective parents and students

Montrose School in Medfield, Massachusetts, is an independent school for girls in grades six through twelve, inspired by the teachings of the Catholic Church. Montrose has been names a National School of Character for their focus on personal character formation and liberal arts curriculum. Their mission is to educate young girls to pursue truth in all they do. The website includes information about the school and the virtues they pursue, what makes Montrose unique, and links to their school blog and podcast.

Intellectual Virtues Academy

Tags: love of learning, open-mindedness, curiosity, autonomy, intellectual humilityAudience: education professionals of all levels, students, parents, researchers

This is the website for the Intellectual Virtues Academy of Long Beach, California. The mission of IVA is to foster meaningful growth with students, faculty, and staff in the intellectual character virtues in a thoughtful, challenging, and supportive academic environment. The website includes information such as the academy's vision, values, and signature practices.

Intellectual Virtues

Tags: curiosity, attentiveness, open-mindedness, intellectual humility, intellectual autonomy, intellectual courage, and intellectual tenacityAudience: parents, teachers, counselors, students

An online resource for teachers, scholars, students and others interested in learning about or practicing an intellectual virtues approach to education.

The Journal of Character Education

Tags: fairness, honesty, compassion, responsibility, respect,Audience: researchers, education professionals of all levels

An open-access journal for researchers and education professionals that includes articles discussing the character development of young people.

The Journal of Moral Education

Tags: open-mindedness, civility, self-regulation, empathy, resilienceAudience: researchers, education professionals of all levels, parents

An open-access journal for researchers and education professionals that includes articles discussing the motivations behind moral action and the roles that others (educators, family, friends, etc) play in these motivations.

Jubilee Center for Character and Virtues- University of Birmingham

Tags:Audience: researchers, education professionals of all levels, parents

A collection of resources over character education including books, reports, scholarly articles, and videos.

Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development

Tags: development, outreachAudience: researchers, parents k-12 educators

Primarily a source for the research of the rehabilitation of children suffering from early childhood trauma, abuse, or neglect.

KIND Schools Challenge

Tags: Kindness, communityAudience: Students, teachers

Project for the unification of schools with the common interest of going against bullying and harassment. The projects goal is to make schools an overall safer and kinder place for students.

Klingenstein Center

Tags: Development, leadershipAudience: Teachers

E-newsletters provided primarily with school educators in mind.

Making Caring Common

Tags: justice, compassion, kindness, respect, honesty, empathyAudience: teachers, parents, counselors (specifically of middle school and high school students)

This online platform for the Making Caring Common Project out of Harvard University gathers together research, articles, podcasts, and other resources for teachers, parents, and administrators interested in cultivating compassion and kindness among middle school and high school students. The website includes a lengthy section about reframing the college admissions process to be healthier and more caring.

Mindful Schools

Tags: mindfulness, self-awarenessAudience: Students, teachers

Resource collection pertaining to the development of students awareness of themselves and those around them.

Mindsight Institute

Tags: Research, well-being, mind sight Audience: Researchers

A combination of science and real world application for human flourishing.

The Mind Yeti- Mindfulness for Kids and Their Adults

Tags: Mindfulness, developmentAudience: Children

Phone app for helping children learn and develop new useful skills at a young age.

Moral Capital

Tags: Morality, learningAudience: All

A wide variety of resources pertaining to morality.

National School Climate Center

Tags: fairness, kindness, empathy, civility, compassion, integrity. Audience: teachers, administrators, counselors, community leaders

This is the website for the National School Climate Center. Their mission is to improve the climate for learning in schools to help children realize their fullest potential as individuals and engaged members of society. They do so through advocacy and policy work, measurement and research, and educational services. The website includes information about school climate and why it's important, as well as how to measure your school's climate. There is a resource library with limited free resources and links to publications that are free to access.

National Youth Leadership Council

Tags: Leadership, developmentAudience: Youth

Assisting in the development of civility and leadership skills in youth.

Option B

Tags: Resilience, support, communityAudience: All

Looks to help build communities into being healthier and more supportive of its members. Spreads across LGBTQ, parents and their children, and the youth of the community.

Project Zero

Tags: Development, expressionAudience: Students, teachers, researchers

Development and understanding of human expression through art.

Random Acts of Kindness Foundation

Tags: Kindness, developmentAudience: Parents, teachers, students

Helping members of the school community better in helping others as well as developing students morality.

Restorative Justice

Tags: justice, developmentAudience: justice professionals, educationists, social workers, community activists, conflict practitioners, policymakers

This is an introductory course to the theory and practice of restorative justice, widely regarded as one of the most important innovations in modern justice practice. Drawing particularly on the experience of New Zealand, it traces how restorative justice has grown from small beginnings into a wider social movement for change across all sectors of society, including schools, families, workplaces and community agencies.

Dr. Robert Brooks

Tags: resilience, motivation, Audience: parents, educators, mental health professionals, business people

Dr. Robert Brooks is one of today’s leading speakers and authors on the themes of resilience, motivation, school climate, a positive work environment, and family relationships. His talks are filled with practical, realistic suggestions and he is renowned for the warmth and humor he uses to bring his insights and anecdotes to life.

RULER: Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence

Tags: social learning, emotional learningAudience: parents

RULER is an evidence-based approach for integrating social and emotional learning into schools, developed at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. RULER applies “hard science” to the teaching of what have historically been called “soft skills.” RULER teaches the skills of emotional intelligence — those associated with recognizing, understanding, labeling, expressing, and regulating emotion.

Social Thinking

Tags: social thinking, social skillsAudience: parents

The mission of Social Thinking is to help people develop social competencies to better connect with others and live happier, more meaningful lives. They create unique frameworks and strategies to help individuals develop their social thinking and social skills to meet their personal social goals.

The Virtues Project

Tags: personal life, family & parenting, education, leadership, community development, communities of faith, kindness, justice, integrityAudience: parents, educators

The Virtues Project inspires the practice of virtues in everyday life. The purpose of the Virtues Project is to empower individuals to live more authentic meaningful lives.

Visible Thinking

Tags: understanding, truth, fairness, creativityAudience: teachers, school leaders, k-12 administrators

This website focuses on integrating student thinking with content learning through practices that help make thinking visible. There are routines associated with each of the four ideals (understanding, truth, fairness, and creativity) that help deepen the students' concepts.

What are Intellectual Virtues

Tags: intellectual courage, intellectual humility, perseverance, open-mindedness, civilityAudience: general public, parents, high school students

This article provides a brief, highly accessible introduction to the intellectual virtues and how they can be distinguished from the moral virtues. The website for Biola's Center for Christian Thought also contains numerous short articles on topics such as perseverance, intellectual humility, civility, and so on.