Postponed because of the first snowstorm of the winter, students at JFK Middle School got to experience what itÂ’s like in school after hours at the character education lock-in event.
Kristine Schuh, co-advisor of the character council, the event organizers, along with Jeff Clarke, made it clear that the lock-in - for which kids pay $20 to have fun into the wee hours of the night and sleep over in the schoolÂ’s gym - was equivalent to the hottest contest coming to HSBC Arena. Students stand in line a half hour prior to ticket sales a month before the event to attend the lock-in. A line usually forms, twisting and turning throughout the halls of JFK Middle School.
There were 100 kids that attended the event, ranging from sixth to eighth graders. A total of 20 students were representing the character council. Eight teachers manned the event, with five of them staying over. The teachers werenÂ’t sleeping, though; they stayed up the entire time.
Students that attended the event were treated to a dance, all the favorite sleepover foods, video and board games, including the new X-Box Kinect and the Nintendo Wii, a screening of The SorcererÂ’s Apprentice and breakfast in the morning.
To come up with new event ideas and what to bring to the character council, Schuh and Clark talked about their past experiences and what stood out in their lives. Their goal was to create memories for the kids while conveying the proper messages. One of SchuhÂ’s fondest memories was taking part in a lock-in at her school and church on separate occasions.
“Mr. Clark and I wanted to create a significant experience for the kids and, although it may sound silly, what middle school student wouldn’t want to stay overnight in the place that they call ‘jail for kids?’” commented Schuh. “Sometimes it’s hard to motivate the eighth graders, but they still enjoy this event.”
Character council is a branch off of the districtÂ’s character education program. The councilÂ’s goal is to reinforce the ideas of character education. The group models the curriculum through behavior and character.
Character council is only offered to seventh and eighth grade students. Those students interested in joining the council are required to fill out an application and write an essay. Students are then chosen to be part of the council based on their essays, faculty opinions, their own experiences with the students, and whether or not they exemplify what a good role model is throughout their school career. Reliability is also a deciding factor.
The council enriches their lives through community service. In the past, the council has gone to the V.A. Hospital on VeteranÂ’s Day to volunteer their services, and when Theodore Roosevelt Elementary School was fundraising for a new playground, the character council was there, along side them, helping them succeed in their goals.
This year, there is talk of the council making up a bucket list, in which the students would brainstorm ideas and put them into action.
“We have discussed the bucket list idea and the kids seem really excited about coming up with multiple ideas to try to support the community, both our school community and the communities of Cheektowaga and Sloan,” said Schuh.
Not only does the character council host the character ed lock-in event, they also hold a ValentineÂ’s Day dance in February and a battle of the air bands contest in April, that provides a chance for kids to get up on stage and lip-synch their favorite song in costumes. It is one of the better-attended events at the school. The events run by character council serves as a way to collect money to purchase game systems, games and technological endeavors that the district budget doesnÂ’t allow for.
The lock-in is the biggest fundraiser for the character council. A few years ago, the character council raised enough money to purchase a sound system for the entire school to use. The school has eighth or more dances a year, as pretty much every club has one as a fundraiser. Before acquiring the sound system, each club was doling out $250 for a disc jockey. Now, someone volunteers to be the DJ and itÂ’s pure profit, minus supplies, for those clubs using a dance as method of fundraising. Besides club dances, the school does use the sound system during school hours. Just recently the school held a turkey bowl before Thanksgiving in which there was a football game and a dance that followed to get kids in the festive spirit.
“The entire middle school can use the systems,” said Schuh. “We use a lot of the technology based things we buy with the money raised for rewards for the kids, like if their homework is completed, character reward activities, reward for good academics, behavior, etc. The game systems, like Wii and X-Box, serves as a great motivator for our students. It keeps things current and it keeps the kids interested.”
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