Shirley, NY - February 7, 2019 - Nathaniel Woodhull Elementary School in the William Floyd School District recently held “The Great Kindness Challenge,” a week-long event in which students and staff came up with creative ways to display kindness and support to others in their school and throughout their community. To kick off the event, snowflakes with affirmations of kindness written by the students and staff members were affixed to the ceiling of the building’s main hallway. The snowflakes help welcome those entering the building into a “blizzard of kindness.”
“This is the third consecutive year that Nathaniel Woodhull has participated in The Great Kindness Challenge,” said Heather Murillo, assistant principal, Nathaniel Woodhull Elementary School. “Throughout the week, students, teachers, administrators and families worked together to create a culture of compassion, acceptance, unity and respect.”
The Nathaniel Woodhull school community celebrated the festivities by designating a special theme and activity to each day, including reading a book based on kindness and writing kindness letters to others. Students made cards for children currently staying at the Stony Brook University Hospital Pediatric Oncology unit to help lift their spirits and collected food for the local food pantry to help those in need. Students wore ties as they were “tied” together by kindness, dressed in the jerseys of their favorite sports teams and as their favorite superheroes, which in some cases was a family member who has served as a police officer or in the military. Students also wrote special appreciation notes to their classmates and teachers on a board displayed outside of the cafeteria.
“This week is important for us because it reminds students that being kind and doing nice things for others can truly change their day and how they are feeling,” added Mrs. Murillo. “Students regularly approached us in the hallways proud of what they have done for others and we want to continue to help instill these values in them each and every day.”