ASK 8 - Organize or participate in a fundraiser for someone that is struggling

The ASK: Organize or participate in a fundraiser for someone in the community that is struggling

I was hoping I would not get the chance to complete this ASK, because it would mean that someone was having a difficult time.  Unfortunately, I had the opportunity today.  A local family is struggling after being impacted by a disaster.  I was able to participate in the fundraiser through a financial donation.  However, there are many ways to participate in a fundraiser without spending money, like:

• Donating an item to be sold (at a garage sale-type event)
• Hanging up flyers
• Volunteering to help run the event
• Organize or create the event with a teacher or administrator
• Send e-mails, Facebook posts, or tweets to promote the events
• Bring something for a bake sale
• Donate loose change that you find on the floor (see ASK 7)
• Tell friends!

There are a lot of ways that any individual can help another,  When we help someone else, especially someone who is going through a difficult time, we are definitely doing an Act of School Kindness.

Considerations for Schools:

• Students should make sure they have staff permission before organizing a fundraiser.

ASK 7 - Donate loose change you find on the floor to a charity

The ASK: Donate loose change you find on the floor to a charity

Today, I stumbled upon a lot of loose change.  Normally, I would just put it in my pocket any carry on with my day.  Instead, I collected it throughout the day.  It came to 47 cents.  Now, that seems like a very small amount. But let's think of it this way: 

If every student in the US finds just 5 cents of loose change each week...

And there are 40 weeks in the school year...

.05 x 40 = 2

Then every student in the US finds an average of $2.00 throughout a school year.  

If Students generally spend 13 years in school (Kindergarten - Grade 12).

2 x 13 = 26

Then every student in the US find $26.00 in loose change over the course of their elementary and secondary school careers. 

Here's where it gets fun.  According to the National Center for Education Statistics, there are currently approximately 50 million students currently enrolled in the elementary and secondary education system.

Based on our numbers above, if every student finds $26 in loose change over their educational careers,then the 50 million students in school right now would find...

$1,300,000,000.  That is 1.3 billion dollars.

Imagine if that was given to charity

No amount is too small.  Donating loose change that you find to charity is a true Act of School Kindness!

Considerations for Schools:

• This is a great time to go over the school's "lost and found" policy - a penny is okay, but what about a dollar? How about 5 dollars? Set limits of what "loose change" means.
• If the school doesn't have a spot for coin donations, students can talk to a teacher or administrator to start one or they can collect the change to donate when they get home

ASK 6 - Say "Hello" to someone you don't know very well

The ASK: Say "Hello" to someone you don't know very well

This ASK was hard for me!  I am an introvert and feel very anxious talking to new people.  Today, I saw a colleague that I've never really met, and I said "Hello."  This led to a lovely conversation, and it turns out, he is a quite a nice guy!

For students, this is a great ASK, because it encourages them to break out from their small friend group and meet other people.  Also, the person could be lonely or shy.  Saying "Hello" is an easy way for students to be kind, and they might even make a new friend along the way!


Considerations for Schools:

• Younger students should be reminded that this does not contradict teachings of "Don't Talk To Strangers" and should be able to understand the difference!
• This may be difficult for some students who are very shy.  Alternatives could include role-playing saying "Hello" to someone new with a guidance counselor or teacher.

ASK 5 - Thank a custodian!

The ASK: Thank a custodian for all of the work they do!

I am partial to this one because my dad is a custodian! I still think it's a great ASK though. We have been having midterms at my high school, so I have only been seeing my middle school students. This leaves some free time to get things done in my office! I ran a stress relief fair last May, and I had a big box filled with supplies from that. I was able to condense the boxes down into a filing cabinet drawer! It cleared out my room a lot, but that meant I had several boxes to throw out. Then, one of those big boxes had a lot of used paper that someone had sent over. So, again, I put out a ton of trash. 

When I put the trash out, I left a note on it (I really enjoy the sticky notes!):

It might not be much, but I hope it helped him to not feel like he is taken for granted. So often, we ignore the people that keep our worlds running smoothly. Take a few minutes to acknowledge that without your school or office custodian, there would be trash all over the place. I've always been aware that I am grateful to my school's custodian - now he knows too!

Considerations for Schools:

• As with any note-leaving ASK, make sure students have access to sticky notes and don't deface property
• Students can also go up to a custodian and thank him or her in person
• Students should not just leave sticky notes randomly around - then they are creating more work! Putting it on a garbage can shouldn't create any more work!

Ask 4 - Make time for someone who needs to talk.

The ASK: Make time for someone who needs to talk.

A school day can be very hectic and stressful for students and staff.  I know that I often have so much to do that even having lunch seems like an impossible task.  Today was very close to being one of those days.  At one point in my day, I was working on paperwork and one of my colleagues needed to talk.  He was feeling uncomfortable about something that was going on, and wanted to talk to me to get some feedback (I'm keeping this vague to protect my colleague!).  It was very difficult to stop what I was working on and listen to him, but I did.

Now think about all that a student has to do during the day: get to school, complete schoolwork, focus on the teacher, plan for extracurricular events, study for tests, and much more!  It is hard for a student to find time to listen to someone who is needs to talk!  Here's why it is important though;  when you make time for someone and listen to them when they need to talk, what you are saying is "You matter.  You are important.  I care about you."  When you have the opportunity to give that message to someone, you know you have found a true ASK.



Considerations for Schools:

• Students have to tell at trusted adult if their friend is dealing with any of the following: hurting themselves or other people, being hurt or abused in any way, being bullied, wanting to die.
• Sometimes, students may take any opportunity to avoid class. (I know, this is completely shocking!) Make sure students don't abuse this ASK to get out of schoolwork or class!
• Students should not take on more than they can handle - if they feel uncomfortable or overwhelmed they should get a trusted adult involved.  

ASK 3 - Go out of your way to open the door for someone

The ASK: Go out of your way to open the door for someone.

Brr! If you are in the Northeast, stay safe and warm! We are hunkered down inside right now.  The stress of preparing for this storm has definitely created an environment where kindness is needed! I stopped by 7-11 on my way home (Slurpee for the husband, Peanut Butter Kandy-Kakes for me).  It was packed!  After I left, I saw a man wheeling a cart of supplies he was delivering towards the store.  I turned around and opened the door for him.  It wasn't much, but it may have made a difference for his day.

Plenty of times at my school, I am carrying papers, boxes, or yoga mats to or from an event or a meeting.  It is very rare for someone to open a door to help me out, and on those busy days especially, a little help would mean a lot to me!  So, for this ASK, students should go out of their way to open the door for someone: student or staff.  It doesn't take a lot of time or effort, but it can certainly make a difference in someone's day!

Considerations for Schools:

• This is another of those ASK that would be wonderful for students to do on an everyday basis.
• Keep your school security rules in mind, especially those about not letting people in from outside! Students can open the doors for fellow students and school staff when entering the school in the morning or open doors within the school building during the school day.  Don't breach the school's security by opening the doors for people outside: they can go to the main entrance and sign in!

ASK 2 - Leave the restroom better than you found it.

The ASK: Leave the restroom better than you found it.

This ASK was completely spontaneous.  That's the beauty of a project like this - you start spotting ASK opportunities everywhere!  I was in the restroom at Target and noticed that someone had put a new outfit right away.  How did I know? They left their tags all over the place - on the floor, on the top of the toilet paper dispenser, and on top of the sanitary receptacle.  Now, let's make one thing clear.  I was certainly not scrounging around on the floor to pick up garbage.  That would be disgusting.  However, the tags on top of the toilet paper dispenser and sanitary receptacle - that I could handle!  I gathered them up and tossed them out.  It was just a little thing, but it was definitely a kindness for the people that would use that bathroom in the future and the employees that would have to clean it.



Obviously, this will be a bit different when it's for school.  The ASK is "leave the restroom better than you found it.."  How can students do this?  Students can flush a toilet with their foot when they notice that someone else didn't, wipe up water that spilled on the counter or sink, or throw some garbage away (not anything potentially hazardous!).

Considerations for Schools:

• I can't say this enough - students should NOT touch anything potentially dangerous or hazardous
• Hopefully, students will never have the opportunity to do this ASK because students will always clean up after themselves.