Dennis Township Principal Jamie VanArtsdalen has issued her students a challenge for the next week: be kind.
Addressing the elementary and middle school students in an assembly, VanArtsdalen describes the challenge as an opportunity for the students to show how kind they already are by logging kind acts on a checklist. If students can complete the checklist by next Wednesday, they will be entered into a drawing for a prize.
"We already have great kids in this school district and a great community where people look out for each other," she explains. "I want them to be aware of how they treat each other and realize that kindness can make their day better as well as those other students or people they treat kindly."
Working with guidance counselor Monica DiVito to roll out the Great Kindness Challenge, VanArtsdalen is planning other challenges and programs to help create an environment where students feel supported and welcomed, such as a lunchtime challenge to sit with other students and ensure no one sits alone.
DiVito thinks it's great. "Everyone needs to remember that small acts of kindness can make a big difference in someone's life," she says.
Photos - left to right: Principal Jamie VanArtsdalen and Guidance Counselor Monica DiVito explain the Great Kindness Challenge to students Alex Pulaski, Nick Izzi and Chloe Kretschmer.