Kindness Connection: 2013 - 2014

During the 2013 - 2014 school year, Houghton Elementary School celebrated The Kindness Connection during the week of January 20th through 24th. The theme was based on the books Ordinary Mary's Extraordinary Deed by Emily Pearson and One Smile by Cindy McKinley. On Community Reading Day on November 8, 2013, readers from the community read the book, Ordinary Mary's Extraordinary Deed, to all of the students at Houghton Elementary School in order to introduce this year's theme of Pass It On.

Toward the beginning of January, teachers read all of the students the book One Smile in order to reintroduce and remind students of this theme. After each classroom had been read both of these titles, all students were given two Community Pass It On cards (pictured below) to remind them to spread good deeds within the community setting. Students were encouraged to do small acts of kindness to their family members (near and far) or to strangers (with the help and permission of an adult) within the community setting. The Pass It On cards served as visual reminders about the ripple effect that acts of kindness have on our school, our community, and even on the world. The Pass It On cards were also representative of our five school values of Honesty, Respect, Cooperation, Kindness, and Responsibility given the five different colors on which these cards were printed. Each color represents a different school value.

The front of these cards explained our school's theme while the directions on how to use these cards were written on the back. The directions stated that, after engaging in an act of kindness, the bearer of the card should write the location and type of good deed on the back of the Pass It On card before handing it off to the recipient of the good deed. After the five spaces on the back of the card were filled in, bearers were asked to mail these cards back to Houghton Elementary. Bearers/Recipients were also encouraged to email acts of kindness done as the result of this theme to houghtonpassesiton@gmail.com. A portion of the cards returned can be viewed below:

Students also participated in this theme within the school setting for four days (during the week of January 20th through January 24th) by passing on School Pass It On cards (pictured below) after committing an act of kindness toward a fellow student or teacher. Once again, these cards were color coded based on our school values and each grade began with a designated color. Each student was given one School Pass It On card to clip on their clothing. After committing an act of kindness, students were directed to pass on their cards to the recipients. In this manner, students were able to visually track how their kind deeds affected others and how acts of kindness were spread from person to person and grade to grade. On the back of each of these School Pass It On cards, older students were encouraged to write their name and the good deed committed before passing it on to the recipient of the good deed. Examples of these cards completed can be viewed below as well.

During this week, on January 22, 2014, Kindness Connection Day was celebrated by students and staff in two manner. First of all, each grade was encouraged to wear a different color that corresponded with our school values. Secondly, each class wrote about an act of kindness either done to them or done by them. From the week prior to this theme being celebrated through this week, the morning announcements contained an additional portion called the Good News Announcements. These announcements gave teachers a chance to acknowledge students who were caught engaging in acts of kindness for no other reason than to be kind. There were so many good deeds reported that Good News Announcements needed to continue on for a third week! Throughout this whole process, children and staff engaged in a variety of kind deeds toward one another and worked to pass on these deeds to one another, to their families, and to their community. Our students are hopeful that their acts of kindness will eventually spread outward to other communities, states, and possibly the world!