Fourth-graders at Bronxville Elementary School discovered the power of kindness and learned how they can make a difference in the lives of others when they participated in No One Eats Alone Day on Feb. 9. Part of a national movement and run by the nonprofit Beyond Differences, the initiative was aimed at helping students make new friends and celebrate inclusiveness.
Student representatives from each class – who formed the Kindness Committee and worked with Assistant Principal Adrienne Laitman to plan for the event – gave each person in their class a colored marker and asked students to sit at that corresponding color-coded table during lunch. As a result, students sat a table with others they don’t usually sit with on a typical day. The student representatives also provided their peers with discussion topics to help them start a conversation.
Quinn, a fourth-grader, said she bonded with a new student at her school and discussed the topic of “If you could get one of your wishes to come true, what would it be?” Meanwhile, Conlan, also a fourth-grader, had the opportunity to play with a new friend as a result of the initiative. The students also wrote pledges of inclusiveness on apple-shaped pieces of paper, which have been placed on a bulletin board in the lunchroom as a reminder to always be kind to one another.
“When asked about how the day went as a whole, the committee felt it was a big success,” Laitman said. “The students felt energized about doing something positive for their school. This was an excellent opportunity for them to develop their skills as leaders and engaged citizens, two key components of the Bronxville Promise.”
Special thanks to members of the Character Education Committee at Bronxville Elementary School for their support of the program.