Create a Tidal Wave of Kindness in Schools

By  Elizabeth Mulvahil

“Remember there’s no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end.” —Scott Adams

October is National Bullying Prevention Month. But what if, instead of focusing on anti-bullying, we focused on kindness? We all know the profound influence our everyday actions and attitudes can have on our students. When you toss a pebble into a pond, the ripples spread from the point of impact to the very edges of the whole. With that in mind, what if we made a vow to create as many “ripples” of kindness as we can to create a tidal wave in our schools and in our lives by simply focusing on acts of kindness?

Here are 49 ideas to help you get started:

1. Acknowledge each student with a greeting as they enter your room. Let them see how happy you are to see them.
2. Stop at the coffee shop on your way to school and surprise your teammates with their favorite beverage.
3. If you jack up the copier, don’t leave it that way!
4. Give your students five minutes to just visit with one another.
5. Resist temptation to “borrow” the unlabeled Diet Coke in the staff refrigerator.
6. Compliment another teacher’s class as they walk through the hall quietly.
7. Slow down!
8. Thank your administrators for setting a positive tone in the building.
9. Keep eye rolling to a minimum during your professional development meeting.
10. Leave anonymous chocolate kisses in the staff mailboxes.
11. Eat lunch with your team and take a break from “work talk.”
12. Make eye contact.
13. Pick up your kids from Art a few minutes early and admire their work.
14. Pick up your kids from PE a few minutes early and join in the game.
15. Pick up your kids from Music a few minutes early and enjoy their performance.
16. Share an awesome read-aloud with another teacher, better yet- lend them the book.
17. Forward funny teacher cartoons to the staff.
18. Laugh at your students’ jokes.
19. Put up inspirational or humorous posters in the staff bathrooms.
20. Compliment your students like crazy for their awesome ideas, incredible word choice, stupendous mathematical skills, etc, etc.
21. Offer to take a stressed-out teacher’s after school duty.
22. Email a “happy note” home to one of your more difficult student’s families.
23. Have your students decorate and sign a thank you poster for the front office staff/cafeteria staff/custodial staff.
24. Put up a mailbox for students to deposit “kindness reports” about their classmates.
25. Replace the paper in the copier before it runs out.
26. Tell your parent volunteers what lifesavers they are.
27. Acknowledge publicly every kindness you witness in your classroom.
28. Smile!
29. Invite the guest teacher to join you for lunch.
30. Post students’ work everywhere!
31. Ask a veteran teacher to share their wisdom with you about something that’s been baffling you.
32. Stay with your class during library time and help them pick out great books.
33. Straighten up the mess someone else left in the teacher workroom.
34. Compliment another teacher in front of his class.
35. Repeat it one more time (yes, even if it’s the fifth time!).
36. Listen to the librarian’s read-aloud and tell her what a great storyteller she is.
37. Eat hot lunch every once in awhile and tell the cafeteria workers how delicious the food is.
38. Take time to listen to your students’ stories.
39. Help another teacher change his bulletin board.
40. If a positive thought about someone crosses your mind, take the time to share it with them!
41. Raffle off a free homework pass.
42. Call a few parents after school just to tell them something wonderful their child did that day.
43. Share a sweet moment from your day with a colleague.
44. Give your grouchy voice the day off.
45. Ask a newbie teacher for advice.
46. Sit with someone different at the staff meeting.
47. Make a big deal about extraordinary effort in class.
48. Help another teacher carry a heavy load to their car.
49. Ask your students questions about their time away from school.

What acts of kindness would you add to the list?

 

By Stacy Tornio

This is the fourth in the “Community Service Ideas” articles sponsored by St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

It doesn’t matter what grade you teach, students are never too young (or too old) to volunteer or help out. As we head into the holiday season, here are some ideas to try with your students to teach them compassion and kindness.

1. Do a 10-day “thankful” challenge.
This is how it works: Every day for 10 days, you write down something that you’re thankful for. Every student in your class can have his or her own poster. Then they can glue on a new item each day. Their families will love it when they take it home for Thanksgiving.

2. Solve problems with the St. Jude Math-A-Thon.
This program helps improve students’ math skills in grades K–8 while providing the opportunity to help kids just like them.

3. Write anonymous notes.
Give everyone in your class an envelope or mailbox, then encourage students to write positive notes to one another without signing them. They will love the undercover aspect of it, trying to find times to deliver the notes when no one is looking.

4. Team Up for St. Jude through Game Day.
The St. Jude Game Day Program is a way for your school to raise funds during an athletic event (football, basketball, baseball and more) that is already taking place on your campus. All you do is add the “Team Up for St. Jude Spirited Game Day” program to your game. Score!


5. Send “just because” letters.
Everyone likes receiving mail. Have your students bring in a pre-addressed stamped envelope for someone special in their lives. They can create a card or letter, then drop it in the mail. This is guaranteed to make someone’s day.

6. Mix it up at recess.
Kids often play with the same schoolmates day after day. Encourage your students to play with at least two new kids (or they can sit with someone new at lunch). Chances are, they’ll make new friends and connections.

7. Teach the art of the thank-you note.
Thank-you notes are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Help your kids learn how to write a proper thank-you. It’s a skill they’ll use for years to come.

8. Wear pajamas to school.
This is one of the easiest items on the list. Designate a special “Pajama Day” in your school where everyone pays 50 cents or $1 to wear pajamas. Collect this money to donate to St. Jude.

9. Hold a raffle at your special event.
Chances are, you already have plenty of school events on the calendar. For instance, a school dance, party or concert. During one of these events, raffle off something special, like lunch with the principal. Have the money go to a worthwhile organization.

10. Hold a PB&J drive.
Food pantries are always asking for more peanut butter and jelly because it’s a good and easy source of protein for kids. Hold a Peanut Butter & Jelly Drive at your school, and offer incentives. For instance, if you bring in more peanut butter, the principal has to wear a silly costume. But if you bring in more jelly, the gym teacher has to instead.

11. Organize a Trike-A-Thon event.
Even the youngest St. Jude supporters can get involved when you hold a St. Jude Trike-A-Thon. This bike- and riding-toy-safety program teaches kids valuable safety lessons while they also learn how they can help others. The event will be one of your most popular events of the year and a great reason to invite parents to the school to watch their children show off their new riding skills.

12. Put together a care package for a senior center.
Connect with a local senior center and ask them if they have any current needs. Then send a note home with students asking them to bring in an item to help out. Once you have everything together, put it in a big box and fill it with cheerful notes from the kids. The seniors will love it.

13. Clean up around your school or neighborhood. Encourage students to take pride in their surroundings. Put on some plastic gloves (kids will love this part) and go around picking up garbage to beautify the area.

14. Donate books to your library.
Hold a book drive with your students, then take them to either your school or local library. You could also donate to a local community center or shelter.

15. Hold a “coat, hat and mitten” drive.
You can’t underestimate the importance of kids having warm winter gear. While it’s standard for a lot of students, this is something that many kids can’t count on.

• https://www.weareteachers.com/49-ways-to-create-a-tidal-wave-of-kindness-in-schools/
• Link: https://www.weareteachers.com/15-ways-to-teach-kids-kindness-and-gratitude/

Climate Movement 2.0

Here is an outline of an idea I had on how to invigorate the climate movement and make it really lead our societies towards a zero emissions future in a strategic way:

http://www.slideshare.net/kjell79/climate-positive-movement-outline

More information is available here:

http://kjells.wiki-site.com/index.php/Climate_Positive_Movement

Start This Day To Create A Better World

Guidance from Eileen Caddy

Start this day to create a better world around you by all that you do, say and think and really enjoy it all to the full. Life is there to be enjoyed and every day should be full to overflowing with all the good things in life. Expect the best and accept only the best. You have been told this many times, and yet many of you are still content to accept second best either because you feel you are unworthy to receive the best or you are just too lazy to raise your consciousness until you visualise the very best and then hold the very best in your consciousness until it manifests in form. This is where you have to put into practice that lesson of patience, persistence and perseverance and see it work out.

20 March 2009

Your Positive Attitude is Vitally Important

My Beloveds, the secret of making something work in your lives is first of all the deep desire to make it work, then the faith and belief that it can work and then to hold that clear, definite vision in your consciousness and see it working out step by step, without one thought of doubt or disbelief. Your positive attitude is vitally important to anything you undertake in life. When you are determined to do something wholeheartedly, perfectly and to do it with love, the results are bound to be wonderful.

27 February 2009

All Is Very Very Well

Always let perfection be your aim. It is doubts and fears and worries that prevent you from establishing this wholeness. So cease your worrying, banish all fears and doubts and walk with your head held high and a song of love and gratitude in your heart with the knowledge that all is very, very well, that I AM with you always and with me all things are possible.

Without faith and confidence you will get nowhere, but with faith and confidence you can go anywhere and do anything. Hold this ever in your consciousness and put it into practice, prove it to yourself until your faith and confidence is so strong and unshakable that nothing and no one can possibly undermine it. But remember: always let your faith and confidence be in Me. Walk hand and hand with Me, consult Me at all times and let Me guide and direct you. When your security is in Me all is indeed very well.

20 February 2009

Let Your Whole Life Be A Revelation

Cease trying to work out everything with your minds - it will get you nowhere. Live by intuition and inspiration and let your whole life be a revelation. When you live in this way more and more of the new will be revealed to you, for the new does not come through the mind, but by inspiration and through intuition. That is why it is not necessary to be intellectually clever to live an inspired spiritual life. It needs a dedicated life, a life fully surrendered to Me and to My work, a soul who is willing to do it with joy and a grateful heart. Are you willing to live in that way?

Are You Willing to Live In That Way?

13 February 2009

Live On The Tips Of Your Toes

The now is the most wonderful and exciting time you have ever known so do not miss a second of it. Live on the tips of your toes, ready for anything to happen at any moment. When you live in this way you are ready and open for anything that may take place. Changes will come and they will come very quickly; wonderful, glorious changes. Lift up your hearts in deep gratitude as they come along one by one, and always see the best in every change that takes place. Never try to hold on to anything or anyone. Possess nothing then all will be yours.

6 February 2009

See Today As MY Day

My beloveds, it is up to you to make today the most wonderful day you have ever lived, by your right attitude, by your positive thought. See today as My day, a day fully blessed by Me and see it all unfold for you in true perfection, with never a thought of disappointment to mar it. Why should you be disappointed at anything today may bring? Remember that you are in full control of it. You are master of the situation, therefore it is up to you how it unfolds. If you are faced with a problem, know that there is an answer to it and never allow the problem to get you down. See it as a stepping stone, see it as a challenge and the solution will reveal itself- and never, never allow the problem to control you.

30 January 2009

You Must Have Vision

How can you hope to discover the new without the spirit of adventure, without being willing to step fearlessly into the unknown? Where is that pioneering spirit? How can you expect to pioneer something without taking risks, without rock-like faith and belief in what you are doing? You must have vision. No matter how fantastic or seemingly unreal and unattainable that vision may be in the eyes of man, you must have it if you are to step into the new and achieve the seemingly impossible.

Never be satisfied to swim round and round in that little pool, safe and secure. Be willing to swim out into the great wide ocean and see what that has to show you. There is always something new and something different to see and to learn that will expand your understanding and wisdom. Great wisdom and understanding is needed in the New; it is impossible to grow and expand without it.

Do not try and take these great strides into the New on your own. Let us do it together with real joy and expectation. Let there be no hanging back, waiting for someone else to make the move. When you know what you have to do, do it without hesitation, without fear and trepidation. I AM with you always.

23 January 2009

Live On The Brink of Something Completely New

My beloveds, stop being small minded. Move out of your little puddle and expand your consciousness, realising that there is no limitation. Take the whole world on your hearts, the whole universe and out into all eternity.

So many of you can see no further than yourselves or the group or community that you are living in. You get so tied up by small petty things, that you have difficulty in expanding in any way. This is where tremendous changes have to come and come quickly. Do not be satisfied to accept just what you can understand but be willing to go further and to step right out of your depth and do the seemingly impossible. In this way your capacity is stretched. Let it be stretched further and further until you feel it is going to snap and then let it stretch even further. Live on the brink of something completely new. Be not afraid of the new and the unknown but simply take one step at a time in absolute faith and confidence, knowing that every step will lead you to the wonderful new heaven and new earth.

I AM with you always. No harm can befall you when your complete faith and trust is in Me.

16 January 2009

Banish All Negative Thoughts

Your positive, creative, loving thoughts hold a tremendous power, far greater than you realise, for thoughts are power. Therefore banish all negative thoughts and start doing it now. When you feel a negative thought about anyone or anything begin to take form in your minds, try there and then, before it can gain any strength, to look for the positive and replace the negative with the positive.

Love and goodwill stimulates and builds up, hatred breaks down. Let love transform and transmute. Love is the greatest power in the universe. I AM Love.

9 January 2009

Cultivate Positive Money Beliefs By Busting 10 Myths

by Evelyn


Positive money beliefs are much more empowering than negative ones. The sad thing is that when most of us think about money, we do not have positive thoughts about it. As much as we would like to be some enlightened Being who have transcended above all material attachments, we cannot not deal with the practical aspects of existence in the third dimensional world.

Let’s get real!! We still need to pay for our bills, feed our kids and ensure that we have the means to have a computer, right? For those who are bloggers in the personal development field, we can all say aye to working long hours on our sites but not seeing any returns for a good many months . Well, my post is a follow up discussion to my article on 101 Negative Money Beliefs some weeks ago. Let us examine the better side to thinking about money today.

The Meaning Of Money

Money, in itself, is neutral. You cannot bring your wealth with you, after you pass away. It is impermanent, like all other material possessions. (In case you are wondering, only spiritual wealth counts towards an evolvement of your soul for all eternity). Rather, it is the meaning that you apply to money that creates its significance.

Principles of Positive Money Beliefs

Having some basic principles of what money really is and represents can help lay the foundation of more empowered thinking. We can also choose to examine the fallacy of some of our thoughts. I hereby select 10 myths from my list of 101 negative money beliefs for discussion:

Positive Money Belief: Money is A Measure of My Positive Thoughts.
Myth to Bust: “Money only comes from hard work”, “There is a limit to how much I can earn”.

What is money? Money is a form of energy exchange. It stores value by our applied meanings. It is a measure of confidence - of how much you believe that having it can be used for your future purposes, of the value that you place on your own goods and services and of how much others are willing to do an exchange with you for. It can therefore be said to be a measure of your positive thoughts on worth.
The more confidence you have about yourself and self-worth, the more money you are likely to make and attract. For the same hour of work, person A makes $10 but person B can make ten times more because the latter is more confident, happy and easily attracts customers. Since anything is possible, there really is no limit to how much you can earn.

Positive Money Belief: Money Can Be Assigned To Good Use.
Myth to Bust: “Money is the Root of all Evils.”

Well, money does not drive you to do crazy things. Rather, you have to understand that it is the attachment or love of money that is the root of all evils. The root “evil” is craving. Craving is the seed of our egos, causing us to fight, compete or even kill, because we are unable to make peace with what we already have.

Positive Money Belief: Money is Loving Energy.
Myth to Bust: “Money is filthy or evil”.

Money is a medium that we can use to express love. It is not the only way. But it can be a useful one. Think about how the buying of gifts make you or someone else happy! Andrea Heas shared more thoughts on Money is Love in her post here.

Positive Money Belief: Poor or Rich People Can Be Just As Evil.
Myth to Bust: “Rich People are Evil”.

I can never understand the myth that rich people are evil. Are they really? Are you saying that poor people cannot be evil? I can only think of the many philanthropists out there (eg. Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, etc) who have given their money for worthy causes. I have got many friends, who by local standards, will be considered rich. Believe me, they are no different. In fact, I found many to be just as kind-hearted, generous and responsible.

There are as many evil people in the rich as there are poor. The amount of material wealth that one has is no indication of his or her values whatsoever. Let us not judge a person prematurely and without reasonable basis.

Positive Money Belief: Money is in Abundance.
Myth to Bust: “Money Does not Grow on Trees”, “Money is In Short Supply”, “It is Hard to Hold On To Money”.

We believe that money is in short supply when we fret over our future, save excessively, refuse to help a friend in need and have no faith that our needs will be well taken care by The Universe/God. Our constant worries over money are essentially thoughts based on scarcity. If we harbor thoughts like “money does not grow on trees”, “money is in short supply”, “it is hard to hold on to money”, we are not aligned to abundance.

If money is a form of energy exchange, the worst we can do is to hoard it. Money has to be allowed to flow freely. Its circulation keeps it growing. At a more macro level, think about the economy. Have nations prospered when each takes on protectionist policies? When money is centered on thoughts of fear, doubts and worry, negativity becomes more pervasive. Don’t forget that what we focus our thoughts on expands.

Positive Money Belief: Money is Spiritual.
Myth to Bust: “Spiritual people are not supposed to be rich” and “I choose to be spiritual than rich”.

You have this money myth if you are thinking that spiritual people should never charge for their services or that it is “evil” for spiritual people to be rich. You find that you are in a difficult position reconciling your thoughts on spirituality and money.

Well, money is a form of energy, just like anything else. It is not the end but a means to an end. Money can be put to good or bad use. It is how you use money that is of far more importance! Hence, by having a positive thought about wealth rather than a negative one, you can create a positive money belief that it is used for its highest good.

If money is part of abundance, then why should spiritual people be less “abundant” than doctors, lawyers and accountants? Let us take doctors as an example. Many became doctors, for instance, because they felt called to be in the healing profession. They go through years of study and at work, spend hours horning their craft. So it is that doctors tend to be generally financially wealthy. It is a “given” that we pay to see a doctor at no-less-than-cheap charges. In fact, few balk at having to foot high consultation fees the greater the reputation of a specialist doctor.

No one denies the good that spiritual people bring to the world. Yet, it is common thinking that spirituality and money “should not” mix. The reality is that spiritual development requires as much study and focus. Spiritual people also need money for their practical living needs. Pastors, for that matter, also have a family to feed.

It is a question of choice in belief. If the Universe/Source is infinite and abundant, then we need to believe that expressing our god-given talents or abilities in alignment to our soul purpose (and through our work) can help us be abundant in the physical world. In this respect, money is spiritual. More about thoughts being spiritual energy is discussed in my previous post on 10 Insights into the Power of Thoughts.

Conclusion

In conclusion, our struggles with money is really how we have been thinking about money. Having a physical existence requires us to deal with the practical aspects of living. Hence, we cannot not have thoughts about money. Since this is so, it is best to choose to have more positive and empowering thoughts about it.

Scarcity and the lack of money are thoughts based on fear. If we intend to reconnect with Source, then we would need to align ourselves in thoughts of love. Money is only a means to an end. Our focus is not about how to acquire more money but how we can serve humanity in the best possible way with it.
Repeated thoughts strengthened by emotion becomes belief. If we can have and feel wonderful every time we think about money, guess what is going to happen to us? We lose the inner sense of resistance towards it. We create the resonance for abundance, including money, in the field of energy around and about us.


Share Your Positive Money Beliefs

Do share your positive money beliefs. Your unique perspective may just help another person shift his thinking. Let us all work towards the conscious creation of abundance!