TEACHING CHARACTER — As part of a classroom character education lesson at Glade Creek School, Rosanna Rodriguez helps Elizabeth Osegueda formulate descriptions of honesty versus dishonesty.

Glade's peer mediators can help settle disputes,teach character

A specially trained, 10-member task force helps to resolve conflicts between pupils at Glade Creek School as well as visiting classrooms and teaching lessons in character education — in addition to their own studies, that is.

The 10 are pupils, seventh and eighth graders at Glade Creek known as peer mediators.

While serving the school and working with fellow pupils of all grade levels there, they are developing leadership and people skills that should serve them well later on. "I've seen real personal growth in the young people who are doing this," said Pamela Braley, the faculty advisor for the peer mediators program.

The program is in its fifth year at the school. It was only at the beginning of this school year, however, that the mediators also took on the responsibility for carrying out the character education program. As Braley explained, the state

Alyssa Mimbs offers a visual illustration for Christine Carter (seated, right) and other first graders. Honesty/integrity was the character trait of the month, and Mimbs placed a drop of food coloring in a container of water to demonstrate how lies and dishonesty can spread.

Also shown at left is Mimbs' fellow peer mediator Monica Miles, preparing to utilize the class board for the lesson.

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