How to Teach Kids to Care Inside and Outside of the Classroom (Part 1)

Is it just me, or does it seem like every year behaviors are increasingly more challenging in the classroom? Kids are coming from homes where there's more intense needs and situations that make our hearts hurt, trumping even what we saw the year before. The compassion we feel for our students and what they go through on a daily basis is overwhelming. But how do we teach kids to care? This is the million-dollar question.

How many times have you opened a new box of pencils all sharp, ready to be used for the day, and later see broken pencils (formerly new pencils that morning), laying on the floor without a care? This is real! Total disregard for the materials we buy with our own money, so how do we change this? Let's dive in!

Top ways to help kids CARE in the classroom:

Acknowledgements: There's always a bit of transition time when perhaps you're concluding class, or maybe there was a transition and you have a 5-10 minute block of time. Something I love to do (and I think my students love it even more) is "Acknowledgements," which is a time dedicated to acknowledging the acts of kindness done by others in the room. When students are acknowledged by their kind acts, they tend to do more of that positive behavior. I find kids speaking during Acknowledgements even if they aren't participating much during class discussions. This seems very important to my students because the room quiets down and more eye contact is made. People love to be recognized!

Kids in my art club made this Matisse inspired bulletin board to brighten other students day!

Agreements: Many teachers are getting away from "class rules" because they know that when kids help to make the rules, they are more invested. I tweak this a little and instead of calling them rules, I label them agreements because they are actual agreements that we make together to create awareness of others' needs that allow us to make the best classroom environment possible. I literally try to boil this down to only 1-5 agreements, such as "Do the right thing" so that you can easily refer to it, as well as students reminding each other.

Help Kids Experience Success in Multiple Ways: Success can be academic, social, involve creativity, leadership and so much more. As a teacher I look for multiple ways to help my students experience success, whether it's making an on-the-spot modification when I see a task is too difficult for a student, or giving a leadership role, etc. Give kids many opportunities and experiences so that they can experience success in different ways.

My class put on a school-wide scavenger hunt. We painted these rocks and placed them all over our campus. The whole school absolutely loved this activity and it connected students young and old.

Practice Gratitude: We often start the day in a circle and share something we are grateful for, or something they love about themselves or about their life. I love to use a mindfulness or gratitude journal to have kids write down what they are feeling grateful for, things they admire about someone important in their life, etc. This can be a daily practice to start class and works like a charm. I love encouraging kids to add doodles or fancy writing, colors, etc. to take ownership and pride in their work.

Click Here for FREE 30 Page Gratitude Journal

Laugh With Your Students: There are so many times during the school week where I am making fun of myself in front of my students. By now they know my quirks and it's fun to laugh at them together, showing my vulnerability. We laugh about mistakes I make (oops, I spelled that word wrong didn't I? or Man I forgot to put on my deodorant today! really gets them going!) The more we laugh with our kids, the more they see us as a real person.

Have structure and high expectations: While building a strong relationship with kids is essential, it doesn't mean being their best friend! They need to know we are their teacher. Set firm expectations so that students know what is required of them. Make sure expectations are high, but attainable. When students experience success, this helps their overall demeanor in the classroom. They feel good, they are proud of themselves and will continue to rise above.

Community Service: An experience to serve others is one of the most amazing gifts. I see kids light up when they are helping the greater good. To deal with behavior issues, I have spent the second part of lunch (when kids finish eating) cleaning up trash with students in the school halls and grounds. Students actually loved this so much that they wanted to do it the next day! There are loads of ways to encourage kids to do community service within and outside of the school. I believe this can be the most significant opportunity to help kids care more. When kids connect with other people that are either less fortunate with them, or simply see a warm smile given because of helping out, it has a profound affect. It lets our youth know that they are part of something greater, that we are all connected in a woven tapestry. This is a cool site I found that incorporates a friendly competition with community service, which may reach those who may not be internally motivated.

We had a gratitude challenge one week and students wrote as many thank you cards that they could. As you can tell, they put quite a bit of thought into these. What a nice treat for the random ice cream store to get a thank you note!

Spend time in and appreciate nature: Kids have an innate connection with nature whether it is climbing trees, catching frogs, playing in the mud or flying a kite in the wind. The more time kids spend in nature, the more they appreciate all the gifts nature has to offer. While I currently teach at an urban school with virtually no nature in our surroundings, I bring nature into my classroom by having branch limbs hanging from my ceilings (see picture below), wooden and rock accents throughout my classroom, and real plants. This is good for exposure, but the more kids can spend in nature, the better. There are great programs out there that teach survival skills like Flying Deer (local to me, but there are other wilderness schools out there). When students interact with nature in an intimate way, whether it be a class camping trip, a field trip to a state park, or playing in an outdoor space, kids benefit so much. Nature calms, restores and rejuvenates kids and adults.

My current classroom at the start of school this year. I hadn't brought in my plants yet, but I wanted to share this photo because you can see the tree limbs hanging from the ceiling. If you are wondering how the fire inspector reacted, he did not like it!

Limit technology: You may not agree with this one, but I think the less technology in our kids' hands, the more enriched their lives will be. I see this over and over again! Those who spend less time looking at a screen are the same kids who are more polite, kind, care for others, and strive for excellence in the classroom and in life. If you homeschool or teach at an independent school, then likely you don't have as much pressure of having a google classroom and all of these computer-based data tools that public school teachers are being force-fed. I see how this genuinely turns kids off from learning, and when kids don't engage in school, then I also find they are less kind.

Stay tuned for How to Get Kids to Care Inside and Outside of the Classroom (Part 2) next! More ideas to come...