Pupils commit to being kind

Alot of buckets are being filled at the New Egypt Primary School in Plumsted these days. Children who attend the school kicked off National Acts of Kindness Week by filling buckets with random acts of kindness, which is the foundation for the school's ongoing character education program.

According to school officials, the premise of the program is that when you fill someone's "bucket," you are creating an atmosphere of caring and kindness as opposed to dipping from someone's bucket, which can hurt someone's feelings.

Pupils highlighted the week by creating buckets with their families and pledging to continue random acts of kindness together.

Each year during National Acts of Kindness Week, New Egypt Primary School guidance counselor Heather Smith invites the New Egypt High School peer leaders to share a lesson about kindness.

"It was evident that the primary school students were excited about the guidance they received from the peer leaders," Smith said. "The peer leaders were just as excited and are eager to participate again next year."

Smith said it is clear that a little kindness goes a long way.

To conclude the week, the high school peer leaders reinforced the importance of kindness through literature.

Peer leadership adviser Jacqueline Duca, Plumsted School District Student Resource Officer Earl Meroney and 29 high school student peer leaders went into each kindergarten and first-grade class to teach a lesson about kindness.

The literature presented included "The Rainbow Fish" by Marcus Pfister for the kindergarten pupils and "Kindness Is Cooler, Mrs. Ruler" by Margery Cuyler for the first-grade pupils.

After listening to the story, the children discussed ways to be kind and then signed and decorated red handprints to symbolize their commitment to kindness.