Waverly Celebrates World Kindness Day

Waverly students are no strangers to the concept of selflessness. In many ways, the lessons they learn daily about empathy and compassion are just as important as the academic strides they make each day in the classroom. 

On Thursday, Nov. 13, those themes of goodwill were at the forefront, as the school celebrated World Kindness Day with a host of classroom activities designed to bring students closer together while highlighting the importance of the youngsters’ emotional growth.

Team-building exercises, collaborative activities, and inter-class projects were all part of the celebration, as the programming for World Kindness Day was designed to help strengthen the school community.

“The purpose of World Kindness Day is to promote kindness, empathy, and goodwill across the globe by highlighting good deeds and the positive power of kindness,” said Waverly teacher Rachel Tortorella. “It encourages people to perform both large and small acts of kindness, recognizing that these actions can create a ripple effect and unite people from all backgrounds.”

Waverly Principal Caitlin Mondelli explained how closely the aims of World Kindness Day align with the everyday work being done in the school. Mondelli noted other initiatives—including Giving Retriever visits, Monday meetings, teacher modeling and community-building activities— that are used to strengthen interpersonal skills among the district’s youngest learners.

“At Waverly, kindness and empathy are part of our daily culture. Through our PBIS framework and our SOAR values: Safe, Organized, And Respectful, we teach students what positive behavior looks like across all settings,” said Mondelli. “Our school-wide Waverly Charter, created collaboratively with staff, reinforces how we want everyone to feel at school and the actions we take to support one another.

“As principal, it is incredibly inspiring to see the entire building come together on World Kindness Day. Dedicating a full day to these ideas highlights the caring community our students are growing into,” she added. “Watching children encourage one another, share kind words, and celebrate empathy shows that our SOAR values and charter are truly alive in our school. World Kindness Day simply shines a brighter light on what our students already practice.”