Kindness Activities for the Classroom

Every teacher knows the truth that does not show up on a test: the emotional temperature of a classroom decides how much learning actually happens. A kid who feels invisible cannot focus. A room where kindness is the norm is a room where kids can take risks. Kindness is not a break from the curriculum — it is the ground the curriculum stands on.

These activities need no prep and no printables. They are small, concrete things students can do for each other, today: sit with the kid eating alone, learn the name of someone they have never spoken to, welcome the new student. Pick one, name it out loud as a class challenge, and watch what happens.

Kindness activities students can do

1. 1

   Sit with someone who is sitting alone.

2. 2

   Invite the new person to eat lunch with you.

3. 3

   Learn the name of someone you see often but never greet.

4. 4

   Introduce two friends who should know each other.

5. 5

   Give out 5 high fives to people that need them.

6. 6

   Make someone smile today.

7. 7

   Praise someone in front of others.

8. 8

   Smile!

9. 9

   Give more hugs.

10. 10

    Thank a teacher who shaped you.

11. 11

    Support a teacher's classroom needs.

12. 12

    Donate school supplies.

13. 13

    Thank a teacher who believed in you.

You cannot make a class kind with a poster. You make it kind by letting students practice it, one small act at a time, until it is just how your room works.