Testimonials

What Parents Are Saying

The confidence and self-esteem that students have acquired through the 7 Habits is phenomenal. ~Jennifer Wood, PTA, Chestnut Grove Elementary, Alabama

When our five-year-old son started coming home and using catchphrases like “win-win” and “begin with the end in mind,” it hit home with me. So I decided to take the training, and now we’re putting it into place 24/7 as a family. It seems to help in my son’s daily routines, my daily routines, my wife’s daily routines, our family’s daily routines. ~Dean Harrison, Parent, Crestwood Elementary, Alberta, Canada

Parent Letter

October 26, 2011

Dear Ms. Sanderson,

I would like to thank you for the time and genuine interest you and your colleagues showed this morning as the other parents and I bragged about our kids and our school. I spoke with two of them later that day and we agreed that we could have easily told stories for another hour or more....each. Per your request, I have attached the quick clip of my daughter demonstrating the unique way that she and her brother used two of the Habits to solve a problem.

I would also like to take this opportunity to express more fully my appreciation of the 7 Habits philosophy as adapted for kids through The Leader In Me, and in particular to highlight the work done by our principal, Matt Miller.

It is said that someone asked Michelangelo how he made his statues so beautiful and he said, "I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free." Matt and his team have encouraged the teachers and staff to see the leader that lies within every child.  Using the philosophy of the 7 Habits as the primary tool, they gently sculpt each child in a way that honors his or her individuality and emphasizes his or her unique strengths and gifts, thereby revealing layer after layer of potential until the child is confident and ready to break out him or herself, resulting in a gift to be shared with the rest of the world. What Matt has empowered his team to do with the Habits at Stanton is to teach our children that every one of them has something important to do in his or her life to change the world, and that they are entirely capable of doing just that.

Matt's imprint on Stanton is indelible; a unique environment of trust, respect, and gratitude.  I have witnessed how he inspires his teachers to be better, to stretch themselves, to give more than they thought they had in them. And they trust and dare because they know he believes in them and truly cares. And those teachers in turn encourage and inspire their students to be better, to stretch themselves, to give more than they thought they had in them. And the kids then trust and dare because they know they are truly loved and cared for as well. In this environment, The Leader In Me has blossomed, flourished and is spreading like dandelion seeds across a grassy meadow. I cannot wait to see what blooms.

I hope you enjoy the remainder of your stay, even if the Cardinals beat the Texans. If I can ever be of any assistance, please let me know.

Safe travels,
Niki Stilwell

What Teachers Are Saying

What I love about teaching the 7 Habits is that it is not something more on my plate. This is a method, a strategy. I have been teaching sixteen years, and since teaching the 7 Habits my students have the best test scores. And people ask, “How can the habits increase test scores?” Well, when children are in a risk-free environment because they are applying the habits, they feel good about themselves and are more prone to pay attention to what is being taught. ~Dana Farris, Kindergarten Teacher, Chestnut Grove Elementary, Alabama

I have children who are autistic, speech and language impaired, and physically impaired. They like being leaders and making good choices. The 7 Habits provide a language that I can use with them in making that happen. ~Winnifred Hunter, Pre-KVE teacher, English Estates Elementary, Florida

After just one year of implementation, we have seen leadership skills emerge in both students and teachers. It is refreshing to see students taking responsibility and ownership for their learning and self discipline, and it is a joy to see children attempting to create Win-Win situations as they seek to understand others and resolve their differences. ~Marian Holder, Third-grade Teacher, Nash Elementary, Texas

I see a very big difference in being a social worker at Dewey, where we have the 7 Habits, versus at other schools that do not have the habits. The biggest difference is found in the common 7 Habits language that is used throughout the school. I can use the same words whether I am working with a kindergartner or a third grader, because the kids all know the 7 Habits. Also, the students at Dewey tend to know how to solve many of their own problems. I might facilitate the process using the 7 Habits, but then I can step back as they take responsibility for solving many of their own situations. ~Denise Poland, Social Worker, Dewey Elementary, Illinois

 

What Principals and Other Administrators are Saying

This is more than character education. We are not just teaching perseverance, patience, and kindness, we are teaching leadership. We are teaching children that not only can they develop leadership traits in elementary school, but that we expect them to take these skills with them when they go on to middle school and high school, and to embrace them as lifelong skills. ~Lauretta Teague, Principal, Chestnut Grove Elementary, Alabama

As educators and parents, our ultimate goal for our children is to have them be successful in life, and to do the things we would like them to do when we are not around. Our job, therefore, is to prepare them for life, not to guide every moment of every day of their existence. What better way to do that than through teaching timeless principles? ~Dr. Beth Sharpe, Principal, English Estates Elementary, Florida

By engaging students early on in the importance of leadership, students will develop habits in their lives that will lead to success throughout their academic career. ~James Henry Russell, Superintendent of Schools, Texarkana Independent School District, Texas