What is TALLIS CHARACTER?
At Tallis we believe that who we are and how we treat each other is an essential part of preparing for a happy and successful future, as well as achieving our best and flourishing now. As a community we agreed on five core character traits which make us ‘Tallis’. We therefore strive to be: KIND, HONEST, FAIR, RESPECTFUL & OPTIMISTIC.
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What is kindness?Being caring and compassionate. Simply put, it means be nice to people. Other words for kindness are: caring sympathetic, empathic, friendly, supportive, considerate, helpful.
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What is honesty?Truthfulness. Simply put, it means to do what is right. Other words for honesty are: ethical, morally upright, truthful, frank, having integrity.
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What is fairness?Doing something in an honest and evenhanded way. Simply put, it means being just. Other words for fairness are: impartial, unbiased, unprejudiced, caring about equality, justice.
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What is respect?Thinking and acting in a way that shows others that you care about their feelings and their wellbeing. Simply put, it means everyone counts. Other words for respect are: esteem, tolerance, appreciation, consideration, courtesy, honour, recognition.
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What is optimism?Being hopeful about the future. Optimism means believing that positive results are likely. Simply put, it means to be positive. Other words for optimism are cheerful, confident, hopeful, assured, positive, upbeat, encouraged.
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What is Character Education?
Tallis Character is about helping young people to become thinking and caring people who can flourish throughout their lives. A concerted effort to help the members of our school community to live by the values outlined in our character traits will not only strengthen the Tallis Community, by placing a focus on how we treat others, but will also contribute to the overall success of our students.
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HOW WE PROMOTE THE CHARACTER TRAITS:
This Handy Guide for teachers contains plenty of practical advice:
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The vocabulary of character: Affirmation & Correction
The way that we talk with students, praise and give feedback can all have an impact on how they understand and get to know the character traits. There are times when the use of the traits should be recognised (Affirmation) and time when a student’s behaviour will need to addressed (Correction).
TALLIS CHARACTER GRAPHIC IDENTITY
The Tallis Character graphic identity was designed by Gilles & Cecilie Studio with whom we have collaborated on several previous projects. The designs have emerged from a detailed consultation process with students, teachers, parents and carers. Several design workshops helped us to discuss how best to capture the spirit of Tallis Character. Gilles & Cecilie took all of our thoughts and scribbles and crafted a beautiful set of designs on the theme: BUILD YOUR CHARACTER. Their work was inspired by a combination of paper cuts, Mid Century and Japanese graphics.
One way in which we can promote a better understanding of Tallis Character is by incorporating the graphics into our teaching materials.
Here is a folder of graphics, in a variety of formats, for us to download and use:
| Tallis Character graphic identity files.zip |
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You can find out about the consultation process related to TALLIS Character on the Tallis Community Days blog. It documents the various activities we have undertaken on these days (3 each year) during which time the whole community spends time considering issues related to character education. In addition to these dedicated days there have been several meetings with a variety of stakeholders to ensure that we have collectively identified a set of character traits which truly represent our values at Thomas Tallis School.
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TALLIS CHARACTER NEWS:
Tallis Choices Community Day - November 2017
Community day is all about bringing the Tallis Family together, and having fun! On Tuesday, 28 November, each year group participated in a range of activities designed to help students make important future life choices.
While year 7 took a trip to Greenwich Park for some tutor group bonding, year 8 focused on their GCSE options and attended a presentation on career choices. Luca, 8AP, was given lots of information about jobs and further education. He said, ‘It made me realise how much I didn’t really know. It’s fun for the students and has other benefits too.’
Year 9 talked about gangs, friendships and social media, exploring how gender was represented in modern pop music and genres like rap. They were also educated on issues such as bullying. Year 10 considered their personal health and wellbeing with sessions on the importance of sleep, healthy eating and exercise from outside agencies and the school nurse. Year 11 spent the day creating their legacy. Each tutor group focused on making their own memory book, as well as engaging in energetic and fun activities on the basketball court. They also, due to upcoming exam season, got some revision done. Rhianon, 11TW, said, ‘Revision was the best thing we did today because it is our last year, so working on flashcards was really helpful.’
Year 12 took part in The Great Debate, discussing a range of topics from online privacy to self-driving cars. Year 13 focused on their UCAS applications and reflected on their progression. Abdi, 13SW, who is applying to study Geography at university, found the experience valuable, as the personal statement is ‘really focused on your character.’
Michelle Springer, director of guidance, was responsible for overseeing the organisation of the day. She said, ‘We get to work in different ways and think about how school is not just about your grades, but how we make decisions about lots of different things.’
A brand new media team, comprising of selected year 8 and year 12 students helped document the day through a series of interviews, podcasts and photos of students immersed in the day’s activities. You can see the results by visiting the Tallis Facebook, Twitter (using the hashtags #talliscommunityday and #tallismediateam) and by visiting our Flickr site.
While year 7 took a trip to Greenwich Park for some tutor group bonding, year 8 focused on their GCSE options and attended a presentation on career choices. Luca, 8AP, was given lots of information about jobs and further education. He said, ‘It made me realise how much I didn’t really know. It’s fun for the students and has other benefits too.’
Year 9 talked about gangs, friendships and social media, exploring how gender was represented in modern pop music and genres like rap. They were also educated on issues such as bullying. Year 10 considered their personal health and wellbeing with sessions on the importance of sleep, healthy eating and exercise from outside agencies and the school nurse. Year 11 spent the day creating their legacy. Each tutor group focused on making their own memory book, as well as engaging in energetic and fun activities on the basketball court. They also, due to upcoming exam season, got some revision done. Rhianon, 11TW, said, ‘Revision was the best thing we did today because it is our last year, so working on flashcards was really helpful.’
Year 12 took part in The Great Debate, discussing a range of topics from online privacy to self-driving cars. Year 13 focused on their UCAS applications and reflected on their progression. Abdi, 13SW, who is applying to study Geography at university, found the experience valuable, as the personal statement is ‘really focused on your character.’
Michelle Springer, director of guidance, was responsible for overseeing the organisation of the day. She said, ‘We get to work in different ways and think about how school is not just about your grades, but how we make decisions about lots of different things.’
A brand new media team, comprising of selected year 8 and year 12 students helped document the day through a series of interviews, podcasts and photos of students immersed in the day’s activities. You can see the results by visiting the Tallis Facebook, Twitter (using the hashtags #talliscommunityday and #tallismediateam) and by visiting our Flickr site.
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Tallis Cooks! Community Day Cookbook - July 2017
On Friday 7th July 2017, students from Years 7, 8, 9 & 10 worked collaboratively to create pages for a community day cookbook. Students thought hard about the relationship between food, wellbeing and community. They brought in their favourite recipes before deciding in each their groups would be chosen to be displayed in the Tallis Cooks! cookbook. Here's the completed book:
Charity Dragons' Den Tallis Character Event Final - Community Day
On Wednesday 13th June 2016 students from across years 7-10 worked on a range of proposals to promote Tallis Character and charity work within the school. From the 55 original entries made as a result of the Community Day, 15 were chosen as finalists to compete in the Dragons' Den.
We had volunteers from a range of local charities, a full list of which can be seen below. The volunteers each had to judge from between 3 proposals on the same character trait and the charity groups will be working with their chosen groups more closely on the new academic year.
The winning teams were;
Kind - team H - Food for Life
Optimistic - team E - Upcycling and optimism box
Fair - team E - The Deaf Experience
Respectful - team B - Mini Olympics
Honest - team A - Cake Sale with a Twist
The charities were impressed with all of our students and commented on their commitment, organisation and understanding of the traits. All the events will be funded and supported in the new academic year. Look out in for news about all of these events.
Congratulations to all students.
Michelle Springer
We had volunteers from a range of local charities, a full list of which can be seen below. The volunteers each had to judge from between 3 proposals on the same character trait and the charity groups will be working with their chosen groups more closely on the new academic year.
The winning teams were;
Kind - team H - Food for Life
Optimistic - team E - Upcycling and optimism box
Fair - team E - The Deaf Experience
Respectful - team B - Mini Olympics
Honest - team A - Cake Sale with a Twist
The charities were impressed with all of our students and commented on their commitment, organisation and understanding of the traits. All the events will be funded and supported in the new academic year. Look out in for news about all of these events.
Congratulations to all students.
Michelle Springer
