Embedded Files
Hope Week is an exciting time for our squad members. It gives students the opportunity to share hope with their peers and spread awareness of their purpose as members of the Hope Squad. Listed below are just a few of the great examples members have shared about their Hope Weeks across the country.
Singing at Shoreline Jr. High
School Counselor, Adam Rosenberg, performed a song written specifically for his students during their Hope Week. The lyrics of the song talk about how Hope can make a change. "There is always someone there to talk to who will advocate for you." The school also invited an addiction recovery specialist to talk to students during their lunchtime about how to cope with and knock out addiction.
Post-Its, Poems, and Pledges
Monday – Hope Wall for the week. Provide your students with post-it notes that they can place on the wall during the week. Kind words that give us hope or a quote.
Tuesday – Kindness/Hope book.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5HEKWib33g (What does it Mean to be Kind?)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=et4KluESo0o (Kindness is cooler)
Wednesday – Write notes of encouragement to a peer in your class.Teacher has the students draw names so they can write a “secret” note of encouragement to that peer, and the teacher decides when/how to deliver it.
Thursday – Acrostic poems. Each student will spell out the word “HOPE” with encouraging words. Bind or staple in a book, and present the books to the following school helpers: lunch ladies, custodians, secretaries, copy aides, specialty teachers, Special Ed., homeroom teachers, school nurse, PTA, and bus drivers.
Friday – Class poster pledge. Have each student sign their name, or trace their hand to pledge to spread HOPE and Kindness throughout the world. Then hang the poster on the hall side of your own door.
Theme: “Our Story Isn’t Over”
Symbol: Semicolon
Quote: “A semicolon is used when an author could’ve ended a sentence but chose not to. You are the author and the sentence is your life.”
Tuesday: semicolon tattoos at lunch, friend-o-grams at lunch, hands of hope wall at lunch
Wednesday: free backpacks, photo booth, and friend-o-grams at lunch
Thursday: dress up in school spirit clothes; just dance on the wii, friend-o-grams, and compliment wall at lunch
Friday: dress up in fandom attire; life savers, friend-o-grams, and sticky notes of love on lockers at lunch
Other activities: Community partners handing out resources at lunch (Life’s Worth Living Foundation, Valley Mental Health, Tooele County Health Department, etc.)
The counselors went into the freshman English classes to give a quick suicide prevention lesson and pass out resource cards
Before school each day we had sign dancers on the corners of the school holding signs that say “you are loved” etc.
During class transitions we will have inspirational music playing
The “rock” on the East side of our school will be painted yellow with the word HOPE on it
Take What You Need
Monday: Loops to Loops- Colored yarn will be presented to different students and a topic to talk about during lunch at different tables set up.
Tuesday: Hands on- Students race their hands on the poster and sign their names. Students hand out wristbands at lunch
Wednesday: Take What You Need- Created a poster with individual flaps that say “love, help, courage, etc.” with quotes and hotlines on the back. Handed out lifesavers and members wear their Hope Squad shirts
Thursday: Where’s Waldo Wearing Hope Shirt- Students find Hope Squad members and get Life Savers
Friday: Comfort Food- Involved pancakes and hot chocolate and orange juice
Jump for Thanks
Meaningful Monday: put a positive message on social media #hopeweek
Togetherness Tuesday: write the name of someone who has given you HOPE on a strip of yellow paper, link them together and hang the chain in the commons. 3-legged races at lunch
Wacky Wednesday: wear wacky clothes/hair to show unique personality
Thankful Thursday: jump for thanks jump rope and say one thing they are thankful for with each jump. Get a treat and the student who jumps the most without stopping gets a prize (t-shirt)
Friend Friday: photo booth rental, take pictures with friends
Quote Week
Morning announcements:
Monday: “Be the reason someone smiles today.”
Tuesday: “How you make others feel about themselves says a lot about you.”
Wednesday: “One kind word can change someone’s entire day.”
Thursday: “Stay positive, work hard, and make it happen.”
Friday: “When the world says ‘give up’, Hope whispers ‘try it again’!”
Hope Squad students open the front doors and welcome students into the school each morning of Hope Week
Paper Chain Anti-Bullying Pledge- Gather several colors of construction paper, a stapler, and markers or crayons. Cut up strips of paper that students can write on. Pass out several strips of paper to each student. Have each student come up with two pledges of what they will do to prevent bullying. Have each student sign the strips before giving them back to you. Create a paper chain to display for the students to see.
March of Hope
Tuesday: Hope Squad members handed out lifesavers before school as kids came in to remind them that they can be a lifesaver. That night we had a “March of Hope” with our district.
Wednesday: We had a lunch activity for kids to come write thank you notes to people in their life that have influenced them for the better that could be a friend, teacher, family member, etc. We even offered to deliver them if it was for someone at school if the student did not want to deliver it themselves. We had a table set up by the cafeteria with blank Thank You notes.
Thursday: “Don’t Be Mean, Wear Green” Day. We also had a “Wall of Hope” during lunch where we put positive thoughts. We invited students to come write a positive thought to put up on sticky notes, and we invited them to take any for themselves that they liked.
Friday: “Be a Fellow, Wear Yellow” Day. We announced that yellow is the color of suicide prevention to help encourage kids to participate. Our lunch activity was “Speed Friendshipping” to get students to mingle. We had students come in the gym and get a noun taped on their back. We told them to go around and ask ‘yes or no’ questions to figure out what they were. Once they figured it out, they were able to get a doughnut.
The Happiness Challenge
Monday: Happiness Challenge: the challenge being to make at least 5 people smile each day. Students would receive a smiley face sticker daily if they completed the task (self-report)
Tuesday: Wall of Optimism: a competition between the 7th, 8th, and 9th graders. At lunch time, students wrote an inspirational note on the post-it (that way all notes could be screened for appropriate content) and the post-its were placed on a banner and hung in the 7th, 8th, and 9th grade hall for the week. The wall with the most post-its won.
Wednesday: Positive Peer Day: at lunch time students were paired up and did a compliments relay race. Students ahd to moonwalk, samba, runway, crab crawl, Saturday Night Fever dance, etc. from one end of the stage to a table at the other end, write a compliment to their partner and slow motion, chicken dance, etc. back. Both students got a treat for participating.
Thursday: Everyone Has the Power to Empower: students got to dress like superheroes this day and wrote their super hero power on our banner which was displayed for the week
Friday: Photo Booth: students got to dress up and hold signs with positive messages
Flash Mob
Tuesday: information booths, sign the Wall of Hope, life-preserver post-it notes with positive messages
Wednesday: Pancake Day (served breakfast to about 300 kids before school. Hope Squad members sat at the tables and facilitated conversations to get people talking to new people), lunch-time announcements with positive mental health tips
Thursday: flash-mob at lunch which led to teaching line-dancing to anyone who wanted to learn, passed out cards with suicide stats followed by “don’t keep deadly secrets” statement and a lifesaver
Friday: put sticky notes all over the school with positive messages either personalized for specific individuals or generic for everyone, had a Walk to Remember at lunch to remember those who struggle or those who have died (about 65 kids came and carried yellow balloons on the walk and then at the end we wrote the names of those we were thinking of on them and let them go. It was powerful and the kids loved it!)
Theme: What Gives You Hope
Everyday: pass out yellow wristbands and also pass out little notes with lifesavers attached that say “Be a LIFESAVER,” “Don’t keep deadly secrets,” and “Ask a question, save a life.”
Tuesday: Random Acts of Kindness or Pay it Forward (pass pre-printed positive messages throughout the school)
Lunch: Hope Squad members paint yellow smiley faces on the students’ faces and they paint yellow fingernails on those who want it; chalk art with message of HOPE
Wednesday: Learn 5 New Names Today
Lunch: write HOPE letters/notes during lunch to someone who has given you hope or has been kind to you
Thursday: Don’t Stand By, Say Hi (anti-bullying)
Lunch: sit with someone new at lunch and have a big banner saying “Suicide is Not an Option” that students sign their pledge to follow. Also have a box in the school for students to leave comments or tips for students who are being bullied
Friday: Wear Yellow Day and “Keep Holding On” (Song by Avril Lavigne. Have written lyrics playing on monitors throughout the day. Encourage students to read the words and use them to be a good friend.)
Lunch: do an activity about ‘holding on’ using hands like tug-o-war, etc. Do a ‘Tree of Life’ in the commons having strips of paper with ribbon or string and students write a way they can make our school a better, happier, and safer place
Find Joy, Find Laughter, Find HOPE
Tuesday: lifesavers were handed out and students were asked to be a ‘lifesaver’ to other students
Wednesday: studented signed the HOPE pledge at lunch, where students signed their names on life preservers.
Thursday: kept handing out lifesavers to spread the message
Friday: Hope Squad requested student names from teachers. We were looking for students that could use a little extra love and cheer in their lives. We bought Valentine’s from our Key Club and had them sent to these students on Feb 12th. We sent 121 students a valentine and a bag of candy.
Wrote “Find Joy, Find Laughter, Find HOPE” on banners with jokes and cartoons surrounding it
Pillars around the school were decorated with pick-up lines
Talk2Me Posters that were customized for the school were hung up and remain hanging all year
Frozen Walk
Monday: Frozen Walk (a 3K walk outside in the cold. Students paid $5 for a beanie and entrance into the walk. They could wear the beanie in school all week. The frozen walk is intended to remind participants of the feeling of being cold and isolated, like those struggling with mental health
Tuesday: Hope Squad members passed out wristbands and tattoos with this years motto on it: “Hope Changes Everything”
Wednesday: Students were encouraged to sign their names on the Hope Chain to build as long a paper chain as possible to show unity in the student body
Thursday: Handprint Banner (students painted their hand and left a print on the banner and signed their name underneath to signify their support for those who might be struggling with thoughts of suicide. Both the handprint banner and chain are hanging in the main commons of our school)
Friday: Internet Safety assembly and No One Eats Alone Day
Door of Compliments
Guessing game with elementary school pictures of our staff along with stories of resiliency from their school days (all week)
Door of compliments (all week)
Monday: Hope squad sidewalk decorating
Tuesday: Hope squad service project
Wednesday: Hope squad passing out lifesavers and compliments
Thursday: Local high school Hope Squad members playing games with all students during lunch recess
Friday: Buddy lunch (students eat lunch with their younger grade reading buddy)
Dress Up Week
Monday: “Save the Day!” - Dress like a superhero
Lunch: bean bag toss/corn hole game
Tuesday: “Be original” - Mismatch day
Lunch: stomp out suicide, balloon stomp
Wednesday: Wear Yellow to spread HOPE
Lunch: “Pass on the HOPE” - pass the ball (beanbag) through the ‘O’ in HOPE
Thursday: “Shade out suicide” - Wear sunglasses
Lunch: shake out suicide dance battles
Theme: “You’ve Got A Friend In Me”
Monday: Jr. Hope Squad acted out the scene from Toy Story
Tuesday: students handed out lifesavers cookies to the 4-8th grade students
Wednesday: friendship quotes on the Hope2Share wall
Thursday: walk around the school (inside school fence)
Friday: activity day (staff vs. student basketball and tug-o-war)
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