Recently, WeAreTeachers HELPLINE reader SM wrote in with this comment: âI see my students picking at each other all the time, yelling and not being nice when their peers arenât following expectations, but the ones who are doing the picking arenât exactly doing their best either. I am looking for some good character education quotes or tricks to teach them the importance of worrying about THEMSELVES instead of everybody else. I use the phrase, âit is your job to worry about you, not others,â but it doesnât seem to be doing the trick. Any suggestions?â
Ah yes! Kids seem to have the uncanny ability to know exactly what their classmates are or are not doing regardless of whatâs going on in their little corner of the classroom. My mama would have responded to that sort of thing with âMind your own beeswax!â Here are some playful suggestions from other teachers (and okay, one from Hank Williams.)
1. Focus on the road.
Drive your own car.
Credit: Anna S.
2. Check yourself.
Donât mention the barbecue sauce on someone elseâs shirt before looking at your own.
Credit: Karen G. (and Kid President)
3. MYOB.
Mind your own biscuits and life will be gravy.
Credit: Suzanne H. (and Kacey Musgraves)
4. Cultivate your own learning.
Tend your own garden.
Credit: Nancy C.
5. Sage advice at any age.
Itâs better to have your nose in a book than in someone elseâs business.
Credit: Sara W.
6. Busy is good.
If you mind your own business, youâll stay busy all the time.
Credit: Hank Williams
7. You never know when youâll get a nibble.
Mind your own bobber.
Credit: Amy J.
8. Dip, dip and swing.
Paddle your own canoe.
Credit: Elaine F.
9. Navigate wisely.
Stay in your own lane.
Credit: Theresa B.
10. Follow your own current.
Mind your wake.
Credit: Kat K.
11. Keep your lips zipped.
If itâs not your story, donât tell it.
Credit: Donia M.
12. Lol!
Taco, burrito, NACHO business!
Credit: Meridith M.
