A Kindness School is an educational institution that fosters a distinctive culture centered around the daily acknowledgment and promotion of acts of kindness as the fundamental norm of behavior. Rooted in the ethos of respecting children’s rights, a Kindness School is committed to providing the essential conditions and guidance for students and staff to express kindness in a diverse range of age-, gender-, ethnicity-, and culture-appropriate ways. With time and practice, such kindness culture builds an unshakable ‘contagious’ element that allows it to spread to all corners of the school and beyond its boundaries to students’ families and larger community.
We are thrilled to share a heartfelt poem “A Child’s Wish” by Svetlana, an 8-year-old participant from Russia, who joined our international contest, Kindness City-School. Her poem beautifully captures the essence of children’s aspirations and their readiness to create and describe Kindness Schools. Svetlana is one of over 500 young talents from 19 countries who shared their creative visions on how Kindness Schools should look, feel, and operate. Using art, video, written word, and other expressive forms, these participants contributed to a vibrant mosaic of ideas that have shaped our Kindness Step-by-Step Guide. Their collective vision helps pave the way for a kinder, more empathetic world.
Start exploring ideas, strategies, and activities developed by the founders of IKR based on powerful insights of all Kindness City-School participants. Stay tuned as we continue to explore and implement these inspiring ideas from our future leaders!
A Child's Wish by Svetlana
In the morning sun so clear,
Look out the window, have no fear.
Give us a new day, fresh and bright,
A day that’s kind, full of light.
Warmth that hugs, like a cozy charm,
A new step taken, on a hopeful farm.
Light us up with joy so true,
Paint the sky in a vibrant hue.
Love that twinkles, like stars above,
A world made kind, where all hearts move.
Work and labor, a rhythm in time,
Friends together, a melody sublime.
In our hands, the power to save,
To mend the world, like ocean’s wave.
Fill our souls with kindness sweet,
A melody of love, a heartwarming beat.
So let the sun shine, in its golden art,
A child’s wish, a hopeful start.
