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“Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.” - Dalai Lama
CRTWC Receives $25,000 Towards Kindness Grant from CASEL
This summer, the Center was honored to receive a $25,000 grant from CASEL to deepen our understanding of prosociality among teacher educators in Minneapolis Public Schools. These educators — participants in our Teacher Educator Institute and part of the district’s innovative Grow-Your-Own pathway for Special Education teachers — are shaping the next generation of teachers from within their own community.
This two-year grant allows us to study how this cohort of teacher educators supports one another as they integrate a focus on culturally responsive practices and social and emotional learning into their teaching and mentoring of teacher candidates. Just as importantly, it enables us to examine the downstream impact of the Institute: how teacher educators’ prosocial behaviors influence new teachers’ capacity to foster their students’ social and emotional well-being and learning.
We are deeply grateful for partners like CASEL—and for supporters like you—who make it possible for us to strengthen the adults who shape every child’s learning environment.
Introducing Hana Nip, Newest Member of our Research Team
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We’re excited to introduce CRTWC’s new research assistant, Hana Nip! Hana currently works at The Ohio State University studying how acts of kindness impacts one’s mental health and relationships with others. You can read more about Hana on our team page here. |
Hana’s Suggested Kindness Resources & Reads
Turns out, kindness—no matter how big or small — can improve our positive emotions and self-esteem, and help us develop closer relationships with strangers, friends, and family!
Below Hana provides some of her top reads and resources for you to learn more about the science behind kindness and how it works, as well as why it matters for our individual and social well-being.
Quick reads about kindness:
Research articles about kindness:
Other Resources to Explore & Foster Kindness
Random Acts of Kindness: This website provides free resources to help you make kindness the norm at home, at school, and at work. The site is filled with resources on the science of kindness and provides kindness quotes, as well as ideas for bringing a daily dose of kindness into your life.
Kindness Playbook: A set of resources for educators to foster kindness in their classrooms and with their students.
Where is the Love (Black Eyed Peas): Our team recently spent time listening to this song from the Black Eyed Peas and the words resonated strongly with us. This song calls for finding love and remembering our shared human connection.
Klaus: A beautifully animated film that highlights how one generous act can spark another and ultimately transform an entire community. Klaus is a powerful reminder that kindness is contagious and that even the smallest gesture can create a ripple effect of goodwill. It is a wonderful, uplifting watch for the holiday season.
Be Kind: A book for our little ones that showcases the power of kindness. It reminds us that a small act has a ripple effect.
Calm, Clear, and Kind: What Students Want From Their Teachers: A short read that summarizes the research shared in this newsletter. For a longer read, check out this article from Whitehead and colleagues (2022).
Kindness Can Have Unexpectedly Positive Consequences: A study with 1,000 participants found that “both performers and recipients of the acts of kindness were in more positive moods than normal after these exchanges. For another, it was clear that performers undervalued their impact: recipients felt significantly better than the kind actors expected. The recipients also reliably rated these acts as ‘bigger’ than the people performing them did.”
Thank you for your continued belief and support of the Center. Please consider making a donation to help both educators and students to thrive.
