Cool Muhl
We wanted to incorporate character education into our already rigorous academic curriculum in a consistent way across grade levels. We also wanted it to be short, concise, informative, and tie it into reinforcing the positive traits and behaviors that students display. At the beginning of the 2010-2011 school year, we had a schoolwide assembly about Cool Muhls. Our assistant principal introduced the Cool Muhl Rule (treat others the way you want to be treated), defined character traits, and each of the six traits we had selected to focus on at MEC. Next, we had a short skit using faculty and selected 4th grade students to showcase one of the traits: responsibility. This vignette was first done showing a student giving excuses to the teacher about why his homework wasn’t done. Other students proclaimed, “That’s not responsible." Immediately after that, the same situation was replayed with the student taking responsibility for getting his homework done and handing it in. The chorus then announced “Now, that’s responsible!” The assembly ended with a song that our music teacher wrote called “Be a Cool Muhl.” We had a staff band singing the song to the student audience.