CARLSBAD — The Kids for Peace 11th annual “Great Kindness Challenge” is here and started off with a bang at Hope Elementary School.
The event, which is run by Carlsbad-based Kids for Peace, promotes acts of kindness to address bullying and foster connections, inclusion and compassion. The global kindness campaign involves more than 18 million students in 115 countries and all 50 U.S. states.
More than 35,000 schools are participating in the Great Kindness Challenge, Kids for Peace co-founder Jill McManigal said.
This year’s theme is “Kindness Matters Everywhere,” which is expanding into businesses so adults can be a part of the challenge, McManigal said.
As for the schools, Hope Elementary students were escorted onto campus by a Carlsbad police officer and were cheered on by teachers, with many students donning “rock start” outfits and getting ready to further decorate the campus with notes of kindness.
The challenge also includes a weeklong kindness checklist for students and their families to perform.
McManigal said another part of the Great Kindness Challenge is helping students be global philanthropists. One service project is raising money for laptops for students who cannot afford computers to attend school virtually in Peru.
“The Great Kindness Challenge provides educators and students the tools, opportunity and encouragement to actively create a positive, respectful and inclusive school culture for all,” she said.
