Oct. 10, 2019 -- Kindness and inclusion starts with one simple word: Hello. That’s the idea behind the Sandy Hook Promise, “Start with Hello” week, which was celebrated at Canterbury and Roxboro Elementary Schools at the end of September. Designed to foster a culture of inclusion, school counselors Sarah Coyne and Christine Bell engaged students, teachers, and staff in special activities every day of the week.To kick off the week, Canterbury Elementary had 5th
grade students posted at all entrances to greet students with Hellos and high
fives as they entered the school building. Both Canterbury and Roxboro
Elementary designated a day of the week where all students, teachers, and staff
wore nametags so that everyone could greet each other by name. With no quiet
hallway walking policies in effect during this day, students were encouraged to
smile and say hello to everyone they passed.
Throughout the week, students at Roxboro Elementary wrote
messages of kindness and encouragement that they posted on their “Kindness Rox”
banner, while students at Canterbury Elementary created a Kindness Chain with
paper chain messages like “Be great” and “Keep up the good work!”
The schools also incorporated their messages of inclusion during
lunch periods. On Thursday, students had “Cups and Compliments” where they
wrote a message of kindness on cups of pink lemonade and passed it to a
classmate. Students were allowed to “mix it up” at lunchtime and sit with students
from other classrooms and grade levels.
Mix It Up Day was a
clear favorite among students who said things like, "It was fun to talk to people I don't normally sit with," and "I like that I got to sit with my friend in 2nd grade because I am in 4th grade, and he's nice!" Rox El’s Jada summed up the day with, "This is the best Friday ever because we got to talk to new people."
