| WORLD KINDNESS DAY 13 NOVEMBER 2009
KIND KIDS AWARDS 2009
What a fabulous evening we all had on World Kindness Day! We began the evening with ‘Fischy Music’ who put us all in a fun mood, getting us dancing and singing their hilarious songs. Edinburgh’s Lady Provost – Mrs Elizabeth Grubb – had very kindly arranged for us to have the presentation ceremony in the main Council Chamber of City of Edinburgh Council and Mrs Grubb presented these awards to over 30 children and to classes involved in group projects from 19 Primary and Secondary schools. Teachers nominate children for these awards which take the form of a certificate recording the child’s kind act, and a baseball cap bearing the Kindness Scotland logo.
These were the schools who participated –
Braidburn School Stacey Herriott
and Primary School Edinburgh
Campie Primary School Sean McCann
Musselburgh Alison Rafferty
Robbie Gilfillan
Georgie Stevenson
Charlotte Keogh
Natalie Chisholm
Maggie Livingston
Dalmeny Primary School Ailidh MacKellar
Dalmeny Katie Marsden
Amber Riddell
Megan Hall
Demi Anderson
Davidson’s Mains Primary Claire Nisbet
Edinburgh
Forthview Primary School Kyle Fitzpatrick
Edinburgh
AND In 2008 Forthview Primary School was presented with a Group Award for their project of twinning with a school on the Burma/Thailand border. This project is still ongoing and through this work led by Sheila Laing (formerly Head Teacher at Forthview but now at Campie School, Musselburgh) 5 Primary Schools are now involved – Balgreen Primary, Pirniehall, Forthview, St Mary’s (Leith) and Tollcross Primaries
James Gillespie’s High School Jake White
Edinburgh Phoebe Dalziel
Harry Staples
Hannah Crisp
Linlithgow Bridge Primary Lyle Martin
Linlithgow
Pentland Primary School Logan Cameron
Edinburgh Jessica Begg
Pirniehall Primary School ALL the children in Primary 5 to 7 Classes
Edinburgh
St Cuthbert’s Primary School Natasha Hogg
Edinburgh
St Mary’s Primary School Mia Ehret
Edinburgh
Sighthill Primary School ALL children
Edinburgh
Stenhouse Primary School Owen Reynolds
Edinburgh
Towerbank Primary School represented by Jules Lawrie, Rory Bolt and Aliz Burns
Edinburgh
Scotstoun Primary School ALL the children in Primary 6
Glasgow
Carmyle Primary School Cameron Orr
Glasgow Ainsley Fraser
Kerys Watson
A flavour of the ‘Kind Acts’ undertaken by these amazing children included –
helping fellow pupils with problems of communication
fundraising for charities such as Riding for the Disabled
helping finance a safe house for 200 street children in Durban, South Africa
working on a twinning programme with a school in Durban by fundraising
and now establishing an exchange programme for pupils
aware of feelings of others in class and playtime when someone feels ‘left out’
working together to achieve the ‘Green Flag’ award for their school
working to promote a long-term twinning project with a school
on the Burma/Thailand border – fundraising to provide better facilities and equipment – a book has now been published about this amazing project
establishing their school as an eco school – involving pupils, staff, parents
and the local community, promoting the values of fair-trade
including a ‘whole-school’ event with a specially written RAP song
“Go Fair Trade bananas – come to school in your pyjamas”!!
filling backpacks for children in Malawi with essentials that disadvantaged
children will need at school – including a spoon to allow them to
have a meal while at school
learning to knit – then knitting tiny hats
for premature babies in Africa
designing and selling reusable carrier bags instead of using plastic ones
School received recognition from a Waste Action Group
A common denominator with all the children nominated is that they are ‘happy’ thoughtful children who have ready smiles and are quick to offer help where and when they can.
Kindness makes the world smile
KIND KIDS AWARDS – 2008
World Kindness Day – 13 November – was magic That’s the only word for it! This year we hosted the Kind Kids Awards at Ocean Terminal in Leith looking out of the huge picture windows over the Firth of Forth with Her Majesty’s former Royal Yatch “Britannia” lying close by. A truly magical setting.
Our wonderful City of Edinburgh Lady Provost – Mrs Elizabeth Grubb – presented awards to 17 individual children from 8 Primary Schools for kind acts to family members, friends and the environment and to children who undertook group environmental projects from 2 Primary Schools and James Gillespie’s High School. Read on to discover the wonderful acts of kindness they have been involved in and why they were all nominated for awards.
We welcomed 80+ friends, families, fellow pupils and teachers to the event and first on our evening’s programme was a short story by Ewen Hardie who was truly inspired to see how many new friends he would make during a bare-foot walk from Edinburgh to London to raise awareness of the political situation in Burma, armed only with rice and salt, a cooking pot, a lighter, a tarpaulin and a penknife. That man is amazing and he sure got us off to an exciting start with tales of all the kindness he received en route. He plans to write a book about his experiences.
All the children received certificates and Kindness Scotland baseball caps – ‘BE COOL : BE KIND”– we must set up a baseball team! Cameras were flashing all evening so scroll down to see some of the results. (pictures coming soon!)
One of our award winners was from Daviot Primary School near Inverness and was unable to come to Edinburgh for the awards evening so Margery Bruce delivered his certificate and cap personally the week after Ocean Terminal. Margery arrived at the school in a heavy hail shower but had a very warm welcome and met all the Daviot Primary School children for a short time that morning. This award winners Mum and Dad were able to come along that morning too which was lovely. (Margery’s journey home to Edinburgh was exciting – through Drumochter in a blinding blizzard in a convoy of cars – all the way to House of Bruar (at 15 mph with lots of police cars to keep everyone safe) but what a convenient place to stop for a kindly couple of coffees and some retail therapy! Well why not, Christmas was on the horizon!)
Another of our award winners had a late presentation too – a pupil from Lorne Primary School in Leith where Margery again did the honours at Morning Assembly shared by all his fellow pupils and his teachers. His Mum also came along to cheer him on and his sister who is also a pupil there.
Details of some of the kindnesses – individual and group projects:
- Children who are outstanding for their age with amazing insight into showing kindness and helping others.
- Perceptive children who have a quality of offering care to others; arranging mini sporting competitions to create positive and cooperative friendships for children finding it hard to make the right choices in the playground.
- A child who always remembers to contribute to charitable collections from his pocket money; recycles paper etc and reminds others – in a kindly way – to do so too. Actively and enthusiastically involved in his school Eco-Council.
- A young girl with a very kind heart towards other children – even those who are annoying at times! Kind to teachers giving wee letters and cards to cheer them up. Did a long sponsored walk in horrible weather for a little girl dying of cancer.
- One little girl who has enriched the life of her school with amazing ability to notice someone needing help – a small example: Left Assembly to bring in a cushion for a primary 1 little boy who had fallen asleep and looked very uncomfortable.
- Taking care of his Mum who has rheumatoid arthritis and a younger sister recently diagnosed with a problem illness, a young boy who loves them both so much, he gives them as much of his free time as possible.
- Two children who are Playground Prefects, looking out for the younger children, being extremely helpful and showing a very mature and caring attitude.
- Four children at yet another Primary School who are consistently kind to their peers in and out of class and who have bravely spoken out against bullying they have seen.
- A young boy whose kindness is evident to pupils, staff and parents of others who have noted this quality in him. He is rarely without a smile even though life at home helping with his autistic sister can be difficult when he shows great patience.
- GROUP PROJECTS –
Eco Bags initiative : Working towards achieving their Green Flag, part of the criteria is to reduce waste in their area. Developed the idea of a re-usable bag after a survey showed they would be popular. First Edinburgh school to gain funding from Waste Action Group.
Last year’s group project was successful in changing the school uniform over to Fair Trade organic sweatshirts and poloshirts. This year maintaining the Eco practices selling reusable bags, managing composting, paper recycling, speaking out at assemblies, maintaining the school garden and much more.
Wonderful high school project twinning since 2003 with a school in one of the townships near Durban in South Africa – fundraising and arranging regular pupil exchanges. A new wing has been added housing a library and large amounts of equipment have been supplied to the school.
We’re hoping to have LOTS MORE schools nominating LOADS MORE children for Kind Kids Awards come World Kindness Day 2009 – always 13 November. So keep us in mind and keep up the kindnesses – to yourselves, to others, to the environment. We’ll be watching out for news of you in the newspapers from all over Scotland – and further afield too.
For any further information please contact
Margery Bruce (Chairman - Kindness Scotland) 24
Silverknowes View Edinburgh EH4 5PT 0131 336 4930
Or email info@kindnesscotland.co.uk
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