How to Start a Kindness Club at School

With the start of the a new school year why not start off with a little more kindness! A great way to spread the joy of kindness is to start your very own Kindness Club at School.

A unexpected surprise.​​​​​​​​
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One time during a period when I was a bit depressed my school was selling roses for you to give to other people on Valentine’s Day. I never expected anyone to get me one. So you can imagine my shock when I was handed a rose. All the note said as to who it was from was “A PERSON WHO APPRECIATES YOU.” I never found out who gave it to me but it brightened up my day and left a lasting impression on me. I will never forget it.​​​​​​​​

“Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud”​​​​​​​​
—Maya Angelou​​​​​​​​ 

Get Started:

Begin with a few dedicated students and one or two staff members who are willing to act as the advisor. An advisor is essential to help keep you on the right track and to offer suggestions when you get stuck.

Meet with your school advisor to see if there are any documents or steps that need to be taken to officially start your Club. There may be special school requirements or specific people whom you need to talk to before you can start a club.

Include Everyone: The founding students should look to all groups at school. Your kindness club is a representation of the whole school, not just a certain group.

Assign Roles: Give all members a responsibility. If you have a large group, form a team of leading officers to perform different tasks.

WHAT WILL YOUR GOALS BE? 

Develop a set of goals and ideas that will help you in the first week of the club’s existence. Allow the goals and ideas to evolve over time as your club becomes more organised and your membership grows. What influence do you want to have and where? In the entire school? In the larger community?

When you are planning the goals for your club, it’s great to set up expectations for your leadership and members. Having everyone sign a Code of Conduct is a great way to help them feel committed to the kindness lifestyle!

Set Yourself Up for Success: Make sure your goals are realistic . Under each goal, write down the steps you need to take to accomplish that goal and assign a timeline to those steps.

Just think of all the kind acts you can do as a team!

“Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.”

WHEN AND HOW OFTEN WILL YOU MEET?

Pick a time before, during or after school when the most  people can attend.  Remind people the day before each meeting so they remember to be there. 

Pick a meeting location that is easy to find and is open at the time of day you need it. If a classroom is not available, consider meeting in the lunchroom, the gym or even on the steps.

WHAT WILL BE YOUR MISSION?

 Besides the obvious goal of doing kind acts for others, consider creating a mission statement to go along with your set of goals so everyone knows what the purpose of the club will be. Some examples of mission statements are:

● To build self-esteem and raise school morale by showing every person at our school that he or she really can make a difference.

● To bring everyone at our school together in a cooperative, caring way.

● To remind students to look for the good they see in people!

● To change the world with kindness! Once you have established all of the above steps, compile them into a big poster and have every Club Member sign it. Share this with other students, school administration.

So to review, here is a handy checklist of things you need to do:

❏ Find an adult supervisor who is willing to help launch your club.

❏ Check with your school about making your club official.

❏ Decide who will be part of the club (to start out).

❏ Decide when and how often you’ll meet.

❏ Decide on some goals and write a mission statement.

Let the fun begin by holding your first meeting!

AGENDA MEETING IDEAS

❏ Welcome Share a moment of inspiration by telling about a kind act you saw online or reading a kindness quote.
❏ Ice-Breaker Activity Even if it’s really short, it’s always a good idea to take some time for the club members to get to know each other better.
❏ Monthly Kindness Activities Review the progress of your kindness activities you’ve planned. Be sure to give specific things each club member is in charge of when planning an event.
❏ Big Event Planning If your club is planning a big event, take time to discuss the project and any details that need to be covered.
❏ Impromptu Kindness Activity Feeling like doing something right then and there? Take the last part of your time to do a kind act nearby. It can be as simple as leaving positive messages on lockers or cleaning up litter on the school grounds.

Think of fun ways to show kindness in your school and community. Make sure to write them down! 

Try to establish a few activities that might become school traditions. For example, organise a drive to collect personal products for the homeless each year before Christmas.

There are a lot of fun ideas at the randomactsofkindness.org website. Depending on the activities you decide to do, The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation has created some fun resources you might find useful. They have a huge collection of kindness ideas to inspire you and a some pages to print.  

Healthy Kind wishes to you and the start of a new year!