Kindness inspirations
#StandTogether National Kindness Week might be over, but kindness lasts all year round. Here are the top 10 student-led kindness projects: when it comes to kindness, everyone is a winner.
SK Tambun Tulang “Kindness Tokens”
Students are given tokens by “kindness squad” members for performing kind acts – the student with the most tokens wins a prize. Members of the “squad” are anonymous so that the kind deeds are done out of sincerity and not for the sake of “winning”.
SMK USJ 12 “Hero Project”
Students nominated “heroes” – students, teachers and members of school staff that they found kind or inspiring. The top 10 heroes received awards during school assembly after National Kindness Week. The students also honoured the school staff, including gardeners and security guards during the assembly. During National Kindness Week, they collected messages of hope and support in a “Kindness Box” which they then displayed on a “Kindness Board”.
SK Kebun Sireh “Honesty Shop”
Teacher advisor Sanghita Muniandy and a team of students set up an Honesty Shop, which gave stationery, exercise books, and even food to underprivileged students for free. Those who can afford it buy the supplies, which will then be added to the charity pool. Many others also donated money to help restock the shop.
SMK Convent Light Street “Looking back; moving forward”
The students came up with a telematch that depicts the journey of their founding Infant Jesus sisters to represent the hardships they went through and the generosity they showed. The obstacle course featured balancing planks, a station where students had to put on diapers on teddy bears and puzzles.
SMK Convent (M) Kajang “Boxes of Kindness”
The team from SMK Convent set up boxes at the back of classrooms, and students filled them up with motivational and inspirational quotes. Those needing a boost of self-esteem and kindness could dip into those boxes for a message.
SMK Sanzac “Act It Out”
SMK Sanzac won the title of “Malaysia’s Kindest School” because of its huge array of sustainable, simple projects, including Act It Out, a short film competition, encouraging students to role-play and “act out” different bullying scenarios, a Speakers’ Corner and environmental activities like “plogging”, a combination of jogging and picking up trash.
SMK Meru “OKU Cafe”
The OKU Cafe, which is mostly manned by children with disabilities, was set up in an effort to encourage integration between the school’s students with and without disabilities. At the same time, the cafe sources food from parents, therefore helping underprivileged families.
SK Kota Dalam “Trees of kindness”
Instead of punishing misbehaving students, SK Kota Dalam gets them to plant a vegetable in the school vegetable plot, which will then be tended by the students themselves, with the help of the school gardeners. The fruits of their labour will then be distributed to underprivileged families.
Sekolah Agama Menengah Jeram “Free Market”
Students set up a free market where anyone can bring items such as food, clothes and stationary to “sell” for free to any students who need the items. This is to help students in need without making them feel ashamed for taking “charity” or think they need to bully others in order to get basic necessities.
SK TTDI (1) “Kindness Marathon”
For National Kindness Week, students of SK TTDI (1) held a kindness-themed marathon where participants run a route that has been decorated with motivational messages. They also organised a short film screening, plays and dramas, and shared bullying-related educational resources like “How To’s” and “Facts and Myths”.