Teaching Character Through Subjects

Funded by the Department for Education (DfE), the Teaching Character Through Subjects project worked across England with 29 teachers from 28 state funded schools to create an innovative resource for building character within 14 subjects across the school curriculum.   

The Teaching Character Through Subjects report is available to download below:

The materials were developed by teachers, for teachers, and trialled in schools, and are presented below as suites of resources for each subject. Each suite provides editable examples of ways character can be taught through secondary curriculum subjects. Each suite can be adapted to fit different contexts and serve as inspiration for the development of additional materials that further explore teaching character through subjects and the secondary school curriculum.

The key aims of the project are: 

  • to contribute to the development and expansion of effective approaches for building character, which have a positive impact on educational attainment, engagement, employability and well-being; 
  • to increase understanding of effective approaches that support other schools and colleges to develop and build character;
  • to encourage colleges and organisations to prioritise and implement their own initiatives.

The suites of resources produced for each of the 14 curriculum subjects are available below. Each suite is presented as two downloadable files; a Key Information file and the Resources themselves. The Key Information document provides an overview of the resources, ideas for differentiation and adaptability, and the character focus of each lesson. The Resources provide lesson plans and Power Points for each of the 5 lessons per suite.

The Resources have been produced by teachers, for teachers, and the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues takes no responsibility for the copyright of content.

The content is free to access, and we encourage you to provide us with feedback and comments on how and where the materials are being used. Please contact us at jubileecentre@contacts.bham.ac.uk 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Honesty and integrity are explored in advertising in KS3.

Author: Adam Goddard [Aldercar High School, Aldercar]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Confidence and optimism are explored through a study of fragility and distortion in KS4.

Author: Natalie Jennings [Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School, Ashbourne]

 

 

 

 

 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Respect and confidence in an exploration of the Police in KS3 Citizenship.

Author: Verity Currie [Enfield Grammar School, Enfield]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored:  through a project based around KS3/4 in-lesson PREVENT work suitable primarily to Citizenship delivery but also to a range of other subjects.

Author: Children’s Services/Workforce Development [Derbyshire County Council]

Suite Three

Virtues Explored:  Resilience and community spirit in a KS3 project on the development of democratic government in the UK

Author: Lorellie Canning [St Bede’s and St Joseph’s Catholic College, Bradford]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Tolerance, respect, neighbourliness, community spirit, and integrity are explored through a project including e-Safety in KS3

Author: Nigel Powell [Blue Coat Church of England School and Music College, Coventry]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Tolerance and neighbourliness are explored via problem solving in KS3.

Author:  Kathryn Austin-Bailey [Aylestone School, Hereford]

 

 

 

 

 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Motivation, drive, conscientiousness, and resilience are explored through designing and making at either KS3 or 4.

Author: Jyoti Brooks [John Henry Newman Catholic College, Birmingham]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Curiosity and tolerance are explored through looking at the evolution of product design and the use of customer profiles at KS3 & 3.

Author: Wendy Bullen [Holy Family Roman Catholic and Church of England College, Heywood]

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Community spirit, perseverance, respect, and dignity are explored through KS4 speaking & listening.

Author: Lucy McCance [South Dartmoor Community College, Ashburton]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Honesty, integrity, confidence, and optimism are explored through KS3 work on Poetry.

Author: Rebecca Tigue [University of Birmingham School, Birmingham]

 

 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Neighbourliness and integrity are explored through a study of conflict in the Peak District National Park.

Author: José Garcia [Penistone Grammar School, Penistone]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Honesty and integrity are explored in a KS3 project on settlements.

Author: Steph Stringer [Harris Academy, Battersea]

 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Resilience, respect and community spirit are explored when looking at the events of the First World War and the impact on soldiers.

Author: Lisa Cohen [Blue Coat Academy, Oldham]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Also focuses on the First World War, but much more on desertion, and explores integrity, respect, leadership, and courage.

Author:  Lauren Taylor [Swanshurst School, Birmingham]

 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Tolerance, respect, and curiosity are explored through a study of the French-speaking world appropriate to both KS2 & 3.

Author: Kathryn Crofts [Woodbridge High School, Woodford]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Courage, confidence, kindness and respect are explored in a topic on food in KS3 French; though this is very flexible.

Author: Julia Goode [Kings Leadership Academy, Warrington]

 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Perseverance, motivation, resilience, and confidence are explored by looking at indices and circle theorems at KS4. 

Author: Ruth Jennings [Kings Langley School, Kings Langley]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Neighbourliness, community spirit and focus are explored through Statistics in KS4.

Author: Hurpal Samra [Nishkam High School, Birmingham]

Suite Three

Virtues Explored: Tolerance and integrity are explored using statistics in KS3, though it is also relevant in KS4.

Author: Tanveer Sehejpal [Nishkam High School, Birmingham]

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Neighbourliness and Community Spirit are explored through a KS3 project on Stomp. 

Author: Chris Drake [The Winston Churchill School, Woking]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Respect, Perseverance, and Confidence are explored through KS3 learning on Jazz & Blues.

Author: Susanna Dyer [Woodrush High School, Wythall]

 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Confidence, tolerance, motivation, honesty, focus, and community spirit are explored in a teambuilding and leadership course in KS3.

Author: Liz Garrity [Stoke Cooperative Academy, Stoke-on-Trent]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Focus, tolerance, community spirit and perseverance are explored through KS3 Adventure Activities.

Author: Len Oakes [Redhill School, Stourbridge]

 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Neighbourliness, respect, and kindness are explored in the KS3 PSHE topic of Friendship.

Author: Ryan Hopton [The Wellington Academy, Tidworth]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Drive and community spirit are explored through a PSHE project on entrepreneurship.

Author: Michelle Philip [Aston Fields Middle School, Bromsgrove]

 

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Good Sense, compassion, justice, and good speech are explored in a KS4 unit on Wealth and Poverty.

Author: Sebastian Sagnia [Hastingbury Business and Enterprise College, Bedford]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Tolerance, honesty, and community spirit are explored in a KS3 study on the life of the Buddha.

Author: Caroline Thurgood [Edgbarrow School, Crowthorne]

Suite One

Virtues Explored: Respect, empathy, and honesty are explored in an introduction to Science in KS3, though it could be used in KS4 as well. It is relevant to any of the Sciences.

Author: Richard Farnan [Harrogate Grammar School, Harrogate]

Suite Two

Virtues Explored: Moral virtues of honesty and cooperation, along with intellectual virtues of curiosity and resilience, are explored and developed in this KS3 module of work.

Author: David Ashmore [University of Birmingham School]