By Scott Brinton
"I helped take in the groceries," wrote one student.
"I walked for cancer," wrote another.
"I am going to a soup kitchen on Thanksgiving," wrote another.
The project was one of many that Grand Avenue students completed in all subject areas during Kindness Week, which is recognized by schools throughout the country.
Lewis Serra, Grand Avenue's principal, said Kindness Week fits in well with his school's ongoing character-education curriculum, which teachers work to infuse into all parts of the curriculum.
Teachers and administrators emphasize four key character qualities:
€Respect
€Impulse control
€Compassion
€Equity -- meaning everyone is treated fairly
Serra said the school found the RICE program in a book, "Connecting Character to Conduct." One of the book's main authors, Roberta Richin, serves as a consultant to Grand Avenue Middle School, meeting regularly with staff.
Serra said that RICE "reflects students' shared purpose": to learn well, to stay safe and to graduate.
Students in Sean Doherty's Spanish class learned the RICE vocabulary in -- what else? -- Spanish. On a bulletin board above a set of lockers, they posted messages for Kindness Week: "Usar el control de impulsos," or "Use impulse control."
Science teachers Jane Kline and Stephanie Sloane had their students create a "chain reaction of kindness." They decorated cutout dolls and lined them up side by side on a wall outside their classroom. Students wrote messages on the dolls:
"Kindness is the golden chain in which society is bound together."
"Kindness is the light in the darkness."
"Kindness makes the world complete."
Right on!
Comments about this story? SBrinton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 203.
