or many children going
to school can be a challenging experience. Fear and insecurity
can often cause great kids to act in less than positive and constructive
ways. Bullying, targeted viciousness, and violence in our schools
have become a national concern.
In 2004, Orchard Elementary School in Orem, Utah
found itself with an especially difficult 6th grade class. Many
of these students, both male and female, were forming predatory
cliques that seemed devoted to teasing, belittling and bullying
other students before, during, and after school. “There
was little empathy or respect for one another,” said Principal
Brent Palmer, “A lot of the kids were wonderful, but those
that were causing problems were pretty aggressive.”
Deciding to take matters into her own hands, a mother
of one of the “problem” boys asked his teacher, Lisha
Hill, to allow her to try an experiment. She gathered all the
6th grade classes together and read them the book Ordinary
Mary’s Extraordinary Deed.
Mary, an ordinary girl from an ordinary
school, on her way to her ordinary house, stumbles upon ordinary
blueberries. When she decides to pick them for her neighbor, Mrs.
Bishop she starts a chain reaction that multiplies around the
world. Mrs. Bishop makes blueberry muffins and gives them to her
paperboy and four others—one of whom is Mr. Stevens, who
then helps five different people with their luggage—one
of whom is Maria, who then helps five people—including a
man named Joseph who didn’t have enough money for his groceries—and
so on, until the deed touches every single person on the planet
and finally comes back to Mary.
After reading and discussing this book, the entire
6th grade decided to set a goal of leaving their school with 15,000
good deeds by the time they graduated. The results were astounding.
Not only did they reach their goal, but the entire tone and climate
of the school changed as a result.
“All the kids really became one cohesive
group,” said Hill, “Popular kids started reaching
out to less popular kids and several kids left cliques they were
in and forged new friendships. It was really hard for some of
them emotionally but it turned out to be a really great thing.
This program pulled kids out of the shadows, included them in
social interactions and made them more aware of the ratio of positive
to negative things they do.”
y taking the focus
off of negative behaviors and getting children, teens, and even
adults united in a positive goal, a difference can be made --
and that difference can be huge.
