Compliments Project at Hanawalt

Mrs. Foltz’s 4th grade class did something a little different during their Hawk Team Time.  In an effort to expand the classes’ circle of influence and create a safer space, we jumped into a project simply called the Compliments Project.  The students first learned about what kindness is and what words do to others.  They learned about what good compliments looked liked.  They practiced writing a few about students in the room or someone they knew.  When the time came to start the project, they took turns sitting in the “hot seat” in the front of the room while their classmates came up and wrote compliments about them on the board behind them.  There were no real directions given except that comments needed to be positive and school appropriate.  After everyone had a chance to write a compliment, the person sitting in the “hot seat” had their reveal.  The reveal was the most powerful part of the project.  Seeing student’s faces that were sitting in the “hot seat” as they read the board was amazing and the video tries to capture it, but their peers in the audience also had smiles on their face as they were able to expand their circle of influence on their classmates.

If you are interested in seeing the project in action, check out the video.