{"id":47,"date":"2015-10-28T22:00:28","date_gmt":"2015-10-28T22:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/?p=47"},"modified":"2016-02-08T18:38:10","modified_gmt":"2016-02-08T18:38:10","slug":"hillbrook-voices-students-experience-the-power-of-kindness-and-compassion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/2015\/10\/hillbrook-voices-students-experience-the-power-of-kindness-and-compassion\/","title":{"rendered":"The Power of Kindness & Compassion For Young Students"},"content":{"rendered":"

Contributed by 3rd grade teacher Matt Callahan<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

At our weekly class meeting, the students of 3A got to meet Eleanor, a very special chicken. When Eleanor was born, her flock established the pecking order, and put her at the bottom. Somehow, along the way, Eleanor\u2019s brain was damaged. As a result, Eleanor walks differently than other chickens. In fact, she walks like a penguin! She has to be kept separated from the rest of the flock to keep her safe, but she is an amazingly quick and friendly animal.<\/p>\n

As a class we discussed how the animal world often functions in ways that might be seen as violent or cruel. We contrasted this with how we as humans have an opportunity to practice kindness to and acceptance of one another. Students were amazed at how comfortable Eleanor was around humans. She walked around the circle eating out of student\u2019s hands. At the end of our time, she crawled into the lap of a student and proceeded to fall asleep. Many students remarked that Eleanor\u2019s differences helped her to experience life in a profoundly different way than other chickens. They connected this with the Disability Awareness Program we had last week and wondered how students with disabilities might interact with the world in a different and beneficial way. It was a powerful afternoon!<\/p>\n

Editor’s Note:<\/em> This valuable\u00a0and moving moment for our students reflects back to one of the messages in Mark Silver’s reflections on “Most Likely To Succeed<\/a>,” as we\u00a0grasp the vital\u00a0importance of social-emotional growth\u00a0alongside \u00a0opportunities for academic learning in our modern world:<\/p>\n

An article in this past weekend\u2019s\u00a0New York Times<\/i>, \u201cThe Best Jobs Require Social Skills<\/a>,\u201d argues that what we learned in preschool is the key to success in the work world. Cooperation, empathy, and flexibility \u00a0\u2013 skills commonly taught in early childhood programs \u2013 are increasingly understood to be essential skills for lifelong success. \u201cWork has become more like preschool,\u201d the author Claire Cain Miller insists, noting that \u201cJobs that require both socializing and thinking, especially mathematically, have fared best in employment and pay.\u201d She points to the work of James Heckman, a Nobel-prize winning economist, who argues that \u201ccharacter, dependability, and perseverance are as important as cognitive achievement.\u201d<\/p>\n

At Hillbrook, we have always believed that social emotional skills are as important as academic achievement. From Kindergarten study teams, where they learn to work together as they explore shared passions, to the 8th grade play, where the entire class comes together to produce a complex theatrical production, we create numerous opportunities for students to work together and to focus on being their best, both as individuals and as a group.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

– Mark Silver, “Most Likely To Succeed” glimpses into the future of\u00a0school<\/a><\/p>\n

Through their discoveries during Disability Awareness Week and visit with our special chicken, the 3rd grade class came face-to-face with an organic opportunity to express\u00a0empathy, compassion, and kindness for those\u00a0around them. Their reflections on Eleanor’s plight were heartwarming, insightful, and speaks to the emotional growth\u00a0that Hillbrook students are inspired to partake in as each of our learners are inspired to reach beyond themselves and consider the needs of others – and that includes our furry and feather-bodied friends.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Contributed by 3rd grade teacher Matt Callahan At our weekly class meeting, the students of 3A got to meet Eleanor, a very special chicken. When …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","content-type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[57,62,22,20],"tags":[73,71,72],"class_list":["post-47","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-extraordinary-educational-experience","category-hands-on-learning","category-joyful-community","category-lower-school","tag-compassion","tag-disability-awareness","tag-kindness"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":192,"href":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47\/revisions\/192"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hillbrook.us\/voices\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}