The Value of Self-Awareness

The Problemare different). They explore creativity and learn that
It is clear, listening to the evening news or reading theeveryone is creative. They take on the assignment of
paper, that aggression, violence and self-destruction"Creativity Detective" and interview ten people to
are growing throughout the United States and thediscover what is creative in each of them.
world. According to social workers, tobacco andThey then begin to distinguish their "self"-their body,
marijuana experimentation begins in the fourth grade,their personality, their abilities and those things that may
followed by inhalants, alcohol, and harder substancesextend beyond their body, like their clothes, family and
like cocaine and methamphetamine. In 2003, the USfootball team. They begin to observe themselves
Department of Education's Institute of Educationprotecting all parts of their self.
Sciences stated: "Most types of antisocial behaviorWholeschool provides all materials for children's
(e.g., aggression, bullying, violence) are already evidentactivities, a webcam for each group so children can be
by third grade. Because middle childhood is a timeseen and heard. Facilitators are trained and receive a
when children's beliefs about aggression and conflictnotebook containing a description of each day's
resolution skills are developing, researchers havelessons and activities.
suggested that interventions aimed at preventing youthImpact
violence ought to begin at this time".Self-awareness without judgment results in the "self"
showing up only when appropriate and moving to the
Many community agencies must focus on mitigatingbackground naturally during other times, such as during
conditions after the fact. Drug and alcohol treatmentplay, sports activities and creativity. This state of being,
centers attempt to rehabilitate individuals. Penalknown by athletes as the "zone", allows natural
institutions lock up offenders. A variety of patches andcapabilities to be expressed without the destructive
techniques are available to help stop smoking. Weightjudgmental comments often introduced by the self
loss clinics teach healthy eating habits.when it is present in the foreground.
More pro-active efforts are needed that positivelyWholeschool's self-awareness course encourages
impact the health and well being of children. Somechildren to adopt self-regulation, empathy, and caring
school-based programs are in effect and some arebehaviors thereby reducing the potential risk factors of
effective. However, most of these drug, tobacco andsubstance abuse, family conflict, and academic failure
health educational programs hold the information in ain late elementary school age children. Valuable insights
right-wrong, good-bad context. A child's role in his oroften come to children that reveal deeper
her future is often energized by threat and fear of theunderstanding of themselves and why they act and
end result. Wholeschool offers a new, uniquereact as they do.
pro-active solution to this growing problem.For example, a fifth grade teacher at Broadway
A Pro-Active SolutionElementary in Spokane shared his experience as a
Wholeschool, a nonprofit organization located infacilitator of a pilot YETI Club program. A problematic
Spokane, Washington, provides courses instudent in his class had a breakthrough during the
self-awareness to groups of children ages six tolessons on the body. The student shared with that he
eleven, moving them toward self-appreciation,had a hole in his kidney that lead to further dialog. After
empathy and empowerment of others.this concerned exchange, the teacher reported a
The program objectives are:complete positive shift in their relationship and later this
- Provide fun and engaging lesson for children as theystudent became a leader on his basketball team.
explore who they are as human beings with children inThe Director of School Indigo, a private elementary
four other locations via live web-conferencing.school in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho wrote, "The YETI Club
- Guide these children to appreciate their bodies, minds,was a great after school experience. I would highly
emotions and creative abilities.recommend this program to any facility with a group
- Create within these children an increased experienceof elementary school age children. The interaction with
of self-esteem and empathy and affection for othersother locations was very fun for our students. We
Program Descriptionused our computer skills and our geography to figure
Wholeschool has created, produced and tested aout where our friends were located. The materials
course in self-awareness for elementary school-ageprovided were very easy to use. The amount of
children. Contained within a context called "The YETIpreparation needed was minimal and the lessons were
Club", this 12-lesson, six-week program is now availableexcellent. The children were very engaged in the
to children throughout North America. The nextprocess. The Club provided an identity for the students
presentation will begin November 7 and end Decemberthat encouraged cooperation and sharing."
14. Another session will begin in January 2006 withThree Boys and Girls Clubs in Washington State have
new sessions following once a month. All that isparticipated in previous YETI Club programs, and all
needed to participate are 5 to 15 children who canhave enthusiastically approved the program. One
gather around one computer with high-speed Internetfacilitator said "The YETI Club 'IS' the mission of The
connection and one facilitator.Boys and Girls Clubs."
The YETI Club is webcast live for one hour, twice aOutcome Measurement
week. A Wholeschool Presenter presents materialWholeschool is presently developing a plan to measure
over the Internet to five groups of children in differentthe effectiveness of the program with the help of a
geographic locations. Presentations are in multimediaprofessional outside evaluator. Two sets of outcomes
format, with slideshows, videos, interactivewill be evaluated. The first set is knowledge based
presentations, animations, and stories with pictures.associated with the curriculum. These outcomes are:
After each lesson presentation, a facilitator in each- Knowledge and appreciation of the body, its organs
group helps children with an activity that allows childrenand their function.
to experience and explore what they have been- Knowledge and understanding of the emotions, their
seeing and hearing. These activities are designed to beeffect upon the body and their purpose.
fun, interesting and provide a kinesthetic method of- Knowledge and appreciation of the brain, its ability to
teaching the material.think, form beliefs and to create.
For example, children learn about their miraculous- A beginning sense of "the self" and how this might be
organs and how the lungs, liver, kidneys, stomach anddistinguished.
intestines work. They learn how they must take careThe second set of outcomes relate at attitude and
of these organs by choosing the right foods andbehavior. These outcomes are:
avoiding toxins. After learning about the complex- An improvement in physical well being, such as
function of the main organs of their body, children lieimproved eating habits, rejection of drugs, tobacco and
upon a large piece of paper and trace their bodyalcohol and increased physical activities.
outline. Then they locate where on their body they- An improvement in emotional well being, such as
learned that an organ is located, close their eyes, holdself-esteem, general happiness and outlook on the
their hands over that body organ and picture it doing itsfuture.
job for a few moments before drawing and coloring it- An improvement in interaction with others, including
on their "paper you".behavior in the classroom toward teachers, at home
Children also study their emotions and learn how theirwith family members and with friends during play.
emotions protect them from harm. They watch a fun- A shift in attention from individual self outward,
animated story about what goes on in a boy's headtoward others and their world.
when he hears a scary noise in his closet. Then theyThe first set of outcomes is measurable through
break into teams of two and paint an emotion on thesurveys and interviews. The second set is more
other's face while he or she tries to guess whichsubjective and relies upon the perceptions of others
emotion is being painted.and the perceptions of the child. However, certain
They learn of other cultures with their similarities (allaspects of these outcomes are measurable through
bodies are the same inside and all have very similarstatistics such as reduction in aggressive behavior, and
facial expression from emotions) yet there are veryimproved school attendance and school performance.
different ways of living (houses, food, customs and art