BEN GARVIN, Pioneer Press
Students from Rosemount High School work on a
list of 10 things they consider disrespectful as part of a workshop
exercise at the Rosemount Community Center Tuesday.
An act of kindness could leave some Pilot Knob Elementary School students with a citation.
For about the past three years, a "kindness patrol" at Pilot Knob has recognized, rewarded and rejoiced in students who display respect, truthfulness, peacemaking and other good-hearted expressions.
Wearing a red shirt emblazoned with TTTBK for "take time to be kind," fourth-grader Hayden Cole said, "You can show people being kind is easy and fun."
In an essay, Hayden wrote: "I love being kind. It makes others feel good and safe and a good place to be. I like when people are kind to me, it makes me feel safe."
Once an afterthought, character education curriculum and programs like Pilot Knob's kindness patrol are not unusual in schools today. Two weeks ago, the Minnesota Department of Education formally announced the 22 recipients receiving a total of $1.5 million in grants for character education development.
So far, Pilot Knob's patrols and citations have worked in deterring disrespectful behavior and even bullying. Discipline referrals have fallen from about 350 three years ago to 150 the past school year, said Terry Green, a Community Action Council family support worker at Pilot Knob.
The recent school violence across the country is a reminder that paying attention to student behavior is vital, Pilot Knob teachers said.
"When you're focusing on the good, it just improves everyone's experience," said first-grade teacher Debbi Krohn. "With the tragedies, it feels like you're doing something positive in a global sense."
Some school days for Pilot Knob students are tagged as TTTBK Day and classrooms form their own kindness slogans.
Metro area districts receiving the grants include South Washington County, Bloomington and North St. Paul-Maplewood-Oakdale.
In the South Washington County School District, the nearly $181,000 grant will fund a yearlong residency program for Inver Grove Heights-based CLIMB Theatre, which regularly performs in schools to educate students on everything from bullying prevention to respecting the environment.
Besides stage performances, the theater group will visit each kindergarten through ninth-grade classroom three times to promote character education, said Jill Kiltie, the district's project manager for the grants.
"We're really trying to build that community and respect," said Kiltie, also a social worker at Royal Oak Elementary in Woodbury. "This can be a stepping stone to connecting kids."
Pilot Knob's kindness patrol kicked off its program Friday. Fourth-graders serving on the kindness patrol can write up students for acts of kindness on a bulletin board in the cafeteria. They have performed skits and raps promoting TTTBK. The students will also sign agreements to promote kindness.
Jenny Parker, a third-grade teacher, said her first-grade students two years ago "have now taken ownership of the school's kindness policy. They practice it regularly."
At Rosemount High School, all freshmen must attend a daylong respect retreat this week.
The 525 freshmen will have a chance to form relationships and interact with students they wouldn't normally, said Pete Roback, dean of the freshmen class.
Seniors and juniors will serve as peer leaders during the retreat. As the students advance in high school, administrators will look at attendance, discipline and academic achievement data to monitor the program's success, Roback said.
"One of the biggest things is respecting each other's differences and celebrating the differences," Roback said. "We think that's a valuable thing."
Rosemount High and Pilot Knob's character education will go year-round with activities in and out of the classroom. Students will participate in discussions and some of their schoolwork will emphasize character education.
Addressing any behavioral issues works best when done early, especially for anti-bullying tactics, said Pilot Knob principal Byron Schwab.
"Of course, the kids aren't all perfect," Schwab said. "But I believe they all have kindness and good intentions inside."
When Green helped spearhead the kindness patrol at Pilot Knob, she said, she wasn't sure it would succeed. Now the kindness philosophy flows from the classrooms to the hallways, teachers said.
"I feel to recognize kindness, you have to be kind," Green said.
Bao Ong can be reached at bong@pioneerpress.com or 651-228-5435.