Page 1 is the deck of 24 value cards. Print it on card stock, cut on the lines, and clip each deck. Page 2 is the sort sheet each student writes on.
Page 1: The 24 value cards
Each card is one value and one plain definition. Cut into 24 cards.
| Kindness Being gentle and helpful to people, even when nobody makes you. | Honesty Telling the truth and not tricking people, even when it costs you. |
| Creativity Making new things and having ideas nobody else had. | Loyalty Sticking with your people when it is hard, not just when it is easy. |
| Courage Doing the scary thing when it is the right thing. | Learning Wanting to know more, and liking the feeling of figuring things out. |
| Fun Playing, laughing, and enjoying yourself, and making sure there is time for it. | Success Reaching big goals and being known for doing well. |
| Independence Deciding things for yourself and taking care of yourself. | Family Putting the people you live with and grew up with first. |
| Health Taking care of your body: sleep, food, moving, and staying safe. | Fairness Everyone gets treated the same and gets what they earned. |
| Respect Treating people, places, and things with care, and expecting it back. | Growth Getting better at something over time, even slowly. |
| Hard work Putting in real effort and finishing what you start. | Peace Staying calm, avoiding fights, and wanting things quiet and settled. |
| Helping others Spending your time and energy on people who need it. | Adventure Trying new places, new foods, and new things, and taking some risk. |
| Achievement Winning, earning awards, and hitting the number you set. | Friendship Having people you can count on, and being one of those people. |
| Trust Being someone people can count on, and having people you can count on. | Being real Acting the same on the outside as you are on the inside. |
| Leadership Being the one who steps up, decides, and helps the group move. | Humor Making people laugh, and not taking everything so seriously. |
Page 2: The sort sheet
Name: ______________________________ Date: ______________ Period: ______
Directions: You have 24 cards. Every card goes into one of three piles on your table: Matters a lot, Matters some, Matters less. No card stays in your hand. No pile can be empty. The sort is about you, this year. There is no wrong answer, and nobody grades what you value. I grade whether you can explain it.
Word bank in other languages
[Check with a native speaker before printing.]
| English | Turkish | Portuguese | Spanish |
|---|---|---|---|
| value (what matters to you) | değer | valor | valor |
| standard (the rule you hold yourself to) | standart (kendine koyduğun kural) | padrão (a regra que você segue) | estándar (la regla que te pones) |
| choice | seçim | escolha | decisión (elección) |
| matters a lot | çok önemli | importa muito | importa mucho |
| matters some | biraz önemli | importa um pouco | importa algo |
| matters less | daha az önemli | importa menos | importa menos |
Part 1: What a value is
A value is: _______________________________________________________________
The test: If it changes how I spend my ______________, my ______________, or my ______________, it is a value.
Part 2: My top five, then my top three
From your "Matters a lot" pile, pick five. Write them here. Then cross off two. The three left are your core values.
| My top five | |
|---|---|
| 1. | |
| 2. | |
| 3. | |
| 4. | |
| 5. |
My top three (the ones not crossed off):
- _______________________ 2. _______________________ 3. _______________________
One I cut, and why I cut it: ______________________________________________________
Part 3: Where the value shows up
Pick one of your top three. Write it here: _______________________
Write one sentence in each box. Each sentence has to name something you actually do, not something you feel.
| Money: I spend my money on ___ | Time: I spend my time on ___ | Friends: My friends are people who ___ |
|---|---|---|
Part 4: Values and standards
A value is what matters (health). A standard is the rule you hold yourself to because of it (I go to bed by 10 on school nights).
My value: _______________________
My standard (a rule I hold myself to, with a number or a time in it if you can): ______________________________________________________
Honesty check (this stays private): Did one choice I made this week meet that standard? Circle: Yes / No
One sentence about it: ______________________________________________________
Grade 8 stretch: Which of your top three would be hardest to keep in a job you want, and why? Then rank your top three and defend the order in two sentences.
Part 5: Exit card
One of my top three values: _______________________
One standard that goes with it: ______________________________________________________
One question I still have about the difference between a value and a goal: ______________________________________________________
Keep this sheet in your FACS folder. You need your top three again in Lesson 2.3 and Lesson 2.5.
Teacher key
There are no right answers for the sort. Use this key to check that the parts are complete and that students are naming actions, not feelings.
Part 1. A value is something that matters to you so much that it changes what you do. The test blanks: money, time, attention (accept "friends" or "energy" for the third).
Part 2. Complete means five written, two crossed off, three left, and one sentence about the cut. The sentence about the cut is where the thinking shows; "I cut fun because I have plenty of it already" is a good answer.
Part 3. A "got it" row names an action. Compare:
- Feeling (needs more): "I love my family." "I care about health."
- Action (got it): "I spend my Saturday mornings at my grandmother's." "I buy cleats before video games." "My friends are people who do not laugh when I say no to something."
Part 4. A standard has to be a rule, and the best ones have a number or a time in them. Compare:
- Not a standard: "I try to be healthy."
- Standard: "I go to bed by 10 on school nights." "I do not lie to my mother even when I will get in trouble." "I finish homework before I open a game."
The honesty check is not scored. Do not read it aloud or comment on a "No." A "No" with an honest sentence is the point of the lesson.
Grade 6 deck (16 cards). Pull these eight for grade 6 and keep them for grade 8: Independence, Fairness, Growth, Peace, Achievement, Trust, Being real, Leadership. The 16 that stay are the concrete ones a sixth grader can picture.
Scoring for daily work. Complete: Parts 1 to 4 done with an action in Part 3 and a rule in Part 4. Partial: top three written but Part 3 or Part 4 is feelings only. Missing: fewer than three values written.