Making Caring Common
Raising kids who care about others and the common good.
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Resources For Educators

Welcome to Making Caring Common’s Resources for Educators, Teachers, Counselors, School Administrators, and School Leaders!

We offer strategies, resources lists, audits, surveys, discussion guides, and more, which we hope you will use in your school. You can review the list of resources below or click to sort by the following topics: Bias, Bullying, Caring and Empathy, Gender, Leadership, Moral and Ethical Development, Romantic Relationships, School Culture and Climate, Sexual Harassment and Misogyny, Social-Emotional Learning (SEL), and Talking Across the Aisle.

Creating a Cycle Of Kindness at George Washington Middle School (Project Idea)

The KIND Schools Challenge team at George Washington Middle School in Dubuque, Iowa has been working hard to spread kindness in their community by handing out kindness cards to spark a cycle of kindness in their community. Read on for the students’ thoughts on their work so far.

 
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Overview
For: Educators
Ages: Middle School and High School
Resource Type: Project Idea

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What is your vision for your KIND Schools Challenge project?

We hope to help make our school a better and more kind place for students. Whether it is face-to-face interactions, texting, or social media posts, our vision is to have our community lead with kindness, always giving a little extra thought to words and actions, always asking oneself, “Am I about to say or do something that is kind?” And if it isn’t kind, maybe students will think twice before speaking or doing something.

What has been the most surprising outcome of your KIND Schools Challenge project so far?

Members of our school’s Kindness Crew have handed out approximately 200 George Washington Middle School "Caught with Kindness" cards to students demonstrating kindness. The cards promote being a part of the cycle of kindness and, ideally, students should be passing the cards on to other students when they spot an act of kindness.

We were surprised that some students were keeping the cards for themselves and striving to “collect” the cards. As the Kindness Crew, we realized that we needed to encourage students to be a part of the cycle of kindness by passing on the card to others. When students keep the cards, the cycle ends. When students pass on the cards, the kindness continues. 

What are you looking forward to most as you continue your work on the KIND Schools Challenge?

We look forward to seeing the cycle of giving and receiving cards continue to gain momentum. We are also looking forward to shining a light on kindness through our "Feel Good Friday" segment on the student news broadcast. We ultimately want to make kindness prominent in our community and make our school a better place.

Originally published April 2018.

Related Resources

 
Educator Resources, KIND Schools ChallengeMCC TeamFor Educators, Caring and Empathy