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Tonya Papanikolas Reporting Parents train their children to tell the truth and do the right thing. But if a child found something valuable without anyone knowing, would most of them keep it or turn it in?
I talked with a 6th grader who put that question to the test. This 11-year-old decided to conduct an experiment in honesty at East Layton Elementary School. He was pleasantly surprised at what he found.
For his science project, Josh Harrop wanted to know how honest the kids were at his school. So to find out, he gathered up 10 wallets.
Josh Harrop, Tested Kids' Honesty: "I basically put one to two dollars in there and put them around the whole entire school."
Some wallets had dollar bills inside, others had coins. Josh expected the kids might turn in about half of them.
Josh Harrop: "I thought that 6th graders, some of them might keep it, just cause they're older and starting to become teenagers."
Josh made sure to put the wallets in place where the kids would find them, like on this couch outside the 6th grade hall.
Josh Harrop: I put one of the wallets right here because a lot of people come here to get pens, pencils and notepaper."
It didn't long before the kids starting finding them.
McKay Allen, Found Wallet: "I found it in the bathroom, one of the bathroom stalls."
McKay Allen says he looked inside and found a dollar.
McKay Allen: "I was like, that would be kind of cool to have a new wallet, but I was like, yeah, I should just do the right thing."
So he turned it in. So did Gage Wadsworth, who gave the wallet he found to a teacher.
Gage Wadsworth, Turned in Wallet: "She said take it to the office. So I took it to the office. Then on the way back I found another one."
Gage says he didn't even look inside.
Gage Wadsworth: "It wouldn't be right to take the money."
After school, Josh learned all 10 wallets had been turned in - with all of the money inside.
Josh Harrop: "I learned that our school is really trustworthy."
Even the principal was floored.
Beth Johnston, East Layton Elementary Principal: "I just started to cry and I came out in the office and said ‘you guys will never believe what just happened'."
The kids didn't even seem to hesitate; all the wallets were turned in before lunchtime. The principal says it may be because her teachers talk about honesty all the time, and the kids also get the lesson at home.
