Of all the complex emotions…pride, perhaps, is the most plainly expressed.
-Charles Darwin
The Expression of the Emotions of Man and Animals
Introduction
Stand up for yourself. How many times have you heard this? My students hear this often. I teach a special education class at Lipman Middle School, located just south of San Francisco in Brisbane, California. Our school is a diverse group of two hundred students from two suburban communities and my current caseload totals ten. In my classroom, there is a spectrum of aptitudes, both academic and social.
At Lipman Middle School, we've adopted two models by which we structure our education. In brief, both the Highly Effective Teaching (HET) model and Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP) provide our students with a strong sense of character and social awareness. In recent years, the social climate of our campus has dramatically improved. Though my students have a good knowledge of character and social awareness, they continue to lack social competence for a variety of reasons.
Of the fourteen special education eligibility criteria, Speech or Language Impairment (SLI) is the most prevalent affecting my students. The United States Federal Government defines the category of SLI as "a communication disorder, stuttering, impaired articulation, language impairment, or a voice impairment, that adversely affects a child's educational performance. 1" Within my current caseload, SLI represents itself most as a communication disorder, in which my students lack the appropriate skills to have positive social interactions. Through my unit, Taking Pride in Our Character, my students will gain social competence by acquiring social skills and techniques through an in-depth analysis of proud characters in literature.
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