VAN NUYS : Two Teachers Help Youngsters Mind Manners

Two Van Nuys private school teachers who created what is thought to be the nation’s first comprehensive curriculum on manners received a gracious “thank-you” Friday from the city of Los Angeles.

An Award of Excellence was presented by the Los Angeles City Council to Diane Manchen and Deborah Richmond of Valley Schools, a private facility with about 500 students in kindergarten through eighth grade.

Supporters say the program’s lessons--ranging from “Respecting Elders” and “Language: Appropriate & Not” to “Whining v. Requesting” and “Insults: How to Respond”--are important enough to appear alongside traditional instruction on math, reading and science.

“It’s a simple presentation of something that has been missing,” Richmond said. “People are tired of the rudeness.”

Teachers begin each two-week lesson by having students act out mock scenarios dealing with everyday situations. Days later, they refer back to the lesson whenever a relevant, real-life situation occurs. The emphasis is on proper behavior, which the curriculum’s creators see as distinct from social etiquette.

“We didn’t want to have an etiquette class,” Manchen said. “It’s not, ‘Which fork do you use?’ and ‘This is how you place your napkin on your lap.’ It’s all about human relations.”

Valley Schools launched the 20-lesson program along with a new uniform dress code in September for all grade levels.

“What you’re doing,” Manchen said, “is giving them an alternative to acting like Bart Simpson.”

“Or Beavis and Butt-head,” Richmond added.

A staunch supporter of the curriculum is the National Parents Assn., an Indiana-based group that promotes manners as a long-term way of reducing violence.

Garth Bishop, NPA executive director, visited Valley Schools on Friday and said he would like to see the program presented in schools across the country.

“If we’re going to end crime and violence in America, this is the way to do it,” Bishop said. “It seems like the antidote this country needs.”

Shortly after the awards presentation, 51 of the school’s kindergartners exercised their manners during a brief graduation ceremony.

Clad in white gowns and caps with gold tassels, the youngsters smiled, whispered and fidgeted quietly. They sang four songs, including the Beatles’ “She Loves You” that was modified to “We Love School.”

Their performances were greeted with--what else? Polite applause.