Educator Stories

Shelby Somelofske, a second-grade teacher, expanded her social-emotional learning (SEL) lessons by incorporating kindness research in positive psychology through Positive Education. Working with a Positive Educator, she built on the 'Second Step' curriculum by introducing A Little SPOT of Kindness by Diane Alber and facilitating activities based on Dr. Rick Evans' 'Acts of Kindness' lesson from his book Thrive, adapting it for second graders.

The students generated examples of kindness in various contexts and explored its impact on well-being. Tracking their acts of kindness with "Kindness Tickets," while reflecting on the impact of kindness, the approach boosted enthusiastic engagement. Ms. Somelofske displayed their responses on a bulletin board in the shape of a flower, symbolizing kindness growing in their classroom. Her colleagues are interested in expanding these lessons. Shelby envisions second and fourth graders collaborating on future kindness initiatives.