In Spark, learners often default to friendship and fun as the traits they call out — which is appropriate at that age. D2 stretches further. Part of being older in this school is developing a richer vocabulary for what we admire in each other. This page is the working list: a non-exhaustive reference, not a wall of limits. New traits get added by the studio. Unused ones get retired.
"I have a character callout for [learner(s)] for [what they did] and I call that [character trait(s)]."
Specific. Named. Witnessed. The script forces the caller to do the harder work of identifying the actual trait at play — which is the whole point. "You were a good friend" is a feeling. "You stayed when I asked you to leave me alone — that's loyalty" is a callout.
Grouped loosely by family. Use whichever lens helps in the moment. The list is meant to grow.
Sticking with something hard, even when you'd rather quit.
Holding your attention on one thing instead of letting it wander.
Doing what you said you'd do, when you said you'd do it.
Starting before being told. Seeing what needs doing and doing it.
Bouncing back after something went wrong.
Long-term effort toward something that matters to you.
Noticing someone and acting in their interest, especially when you didn't have to.
Feeling with someone — not just for them.
Empathy + action. Doing something about what you noticed.
Giving something — time, help, materials — without keeping score.
Standing by someone, especially when it costs something.
Making space for someone new — visitor, learner, anyone.
Treating people equitably — not necessarily equally, but equitably.
Letting go of harm done to you, on your own terms and timing.
Telling the truth — to others, and to yourself.
Doing the right thing when nobody is watching.
Knowing what you don't know. Letting someone else be right.
Pausing between feeling and acting.
Noticing the good and naming it out loud.
Waiting well — for the answer, for the person, for the moment.
Asking real questions. Wondering on purpose.
Doing the thing that scared you. Speaking when it was hard.
Making something work with what's actually available.
Bringing something into the world that wasn't there before.
Genuinely considering an idea different from your own.
Reshaping the plan when the plan needs reshaping.
Knowing not just what to do but when.
People can count on you. They know what you'll do.
Helping the group move forward, not always at the front.
Taking care of something that isn't only yours — space, supplies, time.
Owning the outcome of what you said you'd do.
Doing for others without needing credit.
Print the list and post it in the studio. Read a few at the start of the week. Notice when a learner uses a new one in a callout — that's the muscle building. Resist the urge to "correct" a callout that didn't use the perfect trait — affirm what they noticed and offer a richer name privately if helpful. The studio's job is to make the list grow.