Have you ever felt like something wasn’t going well? Have you noticed a problem in your school? Well, Mrs. Janosek’s fourth grade class at Boulevard Elementary School in Shaker Heights noticed that there was a lot of negativity and people simply weren’t being kind and they came up with a plan to increase the kindness at their school. This week’s A+ Award goes to Mrs. Janosek’s fourth grade.
“They noticed a change in the school this year with how people treated each other, and they wanted to make a difference,” Mrs. Janosek told us. Her students took on the responsibility of inspiring kindness and limiting negativity. They started with a brain-storming session to kick off their design process.
“They started to list their ideas on the bulletin board and started to research each kindness strategy,” Mrs. Janosek explained to us. She told us that a few themes started to become obvious and that even though one student’s idea was chosen, it was very similar to a few other ideas.
The class then made a list of action steps that they would have to complete to make sure their plan worked. The first step was for them to make a board of affirmations. Affirmations are positive messages. When a student needs a “pick me up,” they take an affirmation off the board and put it on their desk or in their desk to remind them to think positively. Early results have been positive and it’s been reported that a lot of students have been taking the affirmations off of the board.
The class is now working on creating “kindness challenges” for their schoolmates to take part in. Some examples of the kindness challenges are holding doors for people, helping people carry their things, and complimenting classmates.
Mrs. Janosek’s students’ long range goal is to include all of the students at Boulevard in creating a kinder and more positive environment. This week’s A+ Award goes to Mrs. Janosek’s fourth grade class for identifying a problem, and doing their best to solve it! Keep up the great work and making your school a positive place to learn!
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