The Character Classics program is an excellent tool to help parents build character in children.

The Character Building Company produces this series of 12 audiotapes or CDs. A workbook geared to elementary school-aged children accompanies each recording. The Character Classics teach attentiveness, truthfulness, thankfulness, contentment, respect, kindness, patience, obedience, dependability, self-control, perseverance, and goodness by setting catchy and cute lyrics to the classical music of Mozart, Bach, Mendelssohn, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, and other composers. Our family reviewed "Attentiveness." If the other workbooks and recordings are half as good, you will enjoy them. The recordings feature information about the original music, songs set to classical music, and each classical piece played without the lyrics. The workbooks feature background information on each composer, lyrics, age appropriate activities (crossword puzzles, coloring, word puzzles, matching, secret messages, and mazes) to reinforce concepts in the songs, and a memory phrase describing each character quality. My six and 10-year-old children really enjoy the songs featured in "Attentiveness." My two and 12-year-old children like the classical music. I find myself singing several of the songs while doing housework. Because classical music has been proven to enhance learning, I am excited that someone has come up with teaching lyrics set to it.

Our CD has been played repeatedly & it's a good thing they don't wear out! There are several ways to purchase this program; you can buy it all at once, buy single workbooks, or sign up to receive one workbook each month for a year. The workbooks are reproducible for family use. For a large family, this is a great savings. The Character Building Company also produces Sing-A-Story Books (which illustrate the story from a particular Character Classics song), Mother Goose Tales, The Good News Express, and Character Builders. We have volume one from Character Builders and my six-year-old daughter enjoys the tape and activity book that goes with it. Try a Character Classic and you will be hooked! To purchase any resource from the Character Building Company, contact Claudia Gerber at 1-888-531-3984, or on the web at www.teachvalues.com.