Positivity Project: How 15 Minutes A Day Can Encourage Students To Be Their Best Selves
A national program, The Positivity Project, has impacted St. Joseph Catholic STEM School in many exciting ways. These short, daily lessons remind students to treat others with respect, empowers them to build strong relationships, and encourages them to become their best selves.
“The Positivity Project is something we do across PreK through 8 – where we work on virtue and character formation,” says Bruce Richards, Principal. “One of the things that make our school so special is that we educate the whole child. Spiritual-ness and socialness are two of the ways we do that through the instruction of The Positivity Project.”
This curriculum is taught across the country in an effort to create an empathetic and kind generation. Built into St. Joseph Catholic STEM School curriculum, The Positivity Project is taught every day for the first 15 minutes with a different theme each week. With the curriculum videos and slides already prepared and scheduled, teachers can prepare for lessons quickly and teach the material easily.
“The Positivity Project is a way for students to learn more about emotions, to get to know their friends better, and to respect everyone for who God made them be,” says Bonnie Triplet, 2nd Grade Teacher. “I think the lessons that are most important for second graders to learn are self-control, kindness, and leadership… these are some things that they know about but are not the best at yet.”
Each lesson focuses on one of the twenty-four positive character traits. A few examples of the Positivity Project themes of the week include: How your words and actions a
ffect others, the importance of perspective, and open-mindedness.
“The Positivity Project creates an awesome bridge between real-life scenarios and the curriculum. There are so many times where I can tie it into faith,” says Middle School Science Teacher, Janice Matlon. “In the middle school, we start with faith class because it is a natural transition from [the Positivity Project lessons] and it often helps bring the faith aspect to life for us.”
The impact of the Positivity Project can be spotted daily between students, but it is also embraced throughout the culture of the school. While culture is an invisible thing, the impact of the Positivity Project is seen and felt through the interactions between students. “We had a guest here from Florida last year for our annual Christmas pageant,” Richards recalls. “They just walked through the building and just got the goosebumps. They said there is something special here and it’s in the air.”
“The whole idea is people matter and we need to care about others. Teaching that other people are important is what the Positivity Project is all about.” – Bruce Richards, Principal
