There are so many wonderful ideas coming in from our trainers around the country, I wanted to share some of them with you. (All of these can be found in the full curriculum with over 270 scripted activities.Call 800-419-0444 to order yours.) Send us your ideas, won't you?  

Golden Rule of Character Ed: Keep it FRESH. As many schools enter their third year of 8 to Great implementation, they're finding new ways to keep the High-Ways "fresh" for upperclassmen. Not only new activities but having the students lead them instead of you when possible is vital for success! 8 to Great is an EMPOWERMENT process, preparing students to live independent, successful and happy lives. By the third year of the program, it's no longer time to teach, it's time to delegate, empower and coach.    

Before we share our eight, here are suggestions from Master Trainer Lindsay Buck who is teaching 8 to Great as an elective to students (in their 3rd school year with 8 to Great) at Central City HS in Nebraska:   

- Enter the Video Contest (see below).

- Prepare and teach the High-Ways to a group in the community (Senior Centers are great for this).

- Make Vision Videos through www.animoto.com - it's free!

- Watch "The Bucket List" and then invite them to make their own bucket lists.  

- Watch the film "You Can Heal Your Life" and invite students to make their own affirmation cards.

Thanks, Lindsay!   

#1: Enter the 88-second VIDEO CONTEST  - Deadline Extended !!

You asked for an extension on the video contest and you got it! Now you have until May 8th to get us your 88 second video on "The 8 to Great Difference." Email it to: Contest@8togreat.com and you could be one of the two winners of $88 or win one of the 6 other prizes! No age limit for entries. Call 402-212-3033 with all your questions. Have fun!  

#2: Host a POWER POETRY Contest   

This activity can be "for the fun of it" or a poetry reading competition. In small or large groups, invite the students to memorize inspirational poems about owning our power or any of the other High-Ways. Then the winners could present their poems at graduation, faculty meetings, board meetings or parent-teacher conferences. Click HERE for a list of 15 inspirational and humorous poems the students can select from that echo the themes of the High-Ways. Then send us videos of the students performing them so we can post them on our YouTube channel: mk8togreat.  

#3: Create a "DREAM CARD"  

Any teacher who's had students create videos (see animoto above) or make vision boards knows that students LOVE doing it. Now Master Trainer April Netley from Sioux City HS in Iowa has a great idea for putting our dreams right in our back pocket or backpack! She calls them "Bucket cards" and they are simply small versions of the dream board. Use poster board cut into 8.5" x 5.5" rectangles to make mini-collages from pictures of their dreams. (Feel free to use both sides!) They can fold them in half and carry them with them wherever their dreams take them. Thanks, April!  

 #4: Set up a SKYPE Call or Conference Call with MK and Your Students

The first 4 schools who request it (in writing please) will have a 20-30 minute conference call between your students and MK. Okoboji HS students used the time to ask questions and share success stories. MK got a great Skype view of their awesome classroom with gratitudes written on the door and dreams hanging from the ceiling! Now these same frosh are teaching 8 to Great classes to other students! Way to grow students and teacher Abby Goodlaxson!   

 #5. FUN AND EASY! The Frame Game is perfect for High-Way 7, helping us be grateful for the little things. Click on the underlined name to open up the document!    

#6. Start a Best VIDEO CLIP Competition   

        Invite the students bring in video clips for any of the High-Ways and have the class select that best one for each High-Way. For example, the dad/son scene in Rocky Balboa for Full Responsibility? OH YEAH!!! Here's another you can use as an example for Risk - Mr. Happy Man http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=3059. Let us know what you find!    

#7.  Gratefuls for the PRE-TEST JITTERS

         Adams Central teacher Twila Knehans' students believe it when 8 to Great says, "When we feel good, good things happen." So they're not surprised when their teacher made the first question on the Pre-Calculus test: "Name 3 things you are grateful for." What a great way to earn three points!  

#8. Which Came FIRST?  The Power of  "Get the Picture"    

         Perfect for a review of High-Way 1, this activity will help students do their best on their end end of the year exams! Click here to download it now: #8. Which Came First  

Thanks again to all our creative teachers for making 8 to Great even Greater!!!  

Record Number of 8 to Great Summer Certification Trainings     

(As of today, all trainings listed below have room except Florida.)

April 14-15  Lincoln NE

May 2-3 Floral City FL

May 22-23 Wayne NE

June 4-5 Stuart NE

June 7-8 Climax Springs MO

June 23-24 Overland Park KS

July 17-18 Spirit Lake/Okoboji IA

July 19-20 Newell-Fonda IA

July 26-27 West Point NE

July 30-31 Albion NE  

Call now to reserve your spots: 800-419-0444, or click 

here to register. Discounts apply when you send four or more from one school district or business.   

Trainings begin at 8:00 a.m. and end at 5:30 p.m. each day. All  attendeed receive 60 activities for use in the classroom or at work, meet phenomenal people, and upon completion, will be certified to train this program anywhere in the world! 

Need more information?  

Join us for the next "Educators Only"  Conference Call with MK

Monday evening, April 23rd at 7 p.m. 

Dial 530-881-1300, Access Code 155886# 

Or call us to set up a Conference Call with your own Team! 

We have gone from 17 in-school suspensions in a semester down to only 1 last semester using 8 to Great. I'm so grateful I was able to bring this program into our school.     - Dan Schiefelbein, Principal  

   Doniphan Trumbull HS NE