Less than a year ago, teacher Dave McMaster’s sister Kathy passed away. To honour her memory, he started a kindness program for students at Edgehill Elementary School this year. While the program is still in its infancy, it is already having a positive impact on the school community.
“Kathy was a wonderful person who was always kind and supportive of me and others,” said McMaster. “Her words and actions throughout her life inspired me to start this program as a way to help spread her ‘Choosing Kindness’ message.”
The STARR Program was the result.
“Kathy’s middle name was Starr, so we used that as an acronym for Students Teach Altruism Resilience Respect,” said McMaster. “Kathy liked dragonflies, so the students who work in the program at school are called the Dragonflies. They are role models who inspire and encourage others to choose kindness. They do a wonderful job and I am so proud of them.”
While school was in session, McMaster and the Dragonflies met weekly to develop themes, create messaging and brainstorm special events. Edgehill principal Ian Landry would share the messages each morning during announcements, and weekly posters were placed around the school and on a designated bulletin board.
The students also organized several special events, including assembly presentations, the STARR Hallway of Happiness, the Kindness Tree, and The Yellow Brick Road. The student rock band, Strangers in a Strange Land, performed “The Kindness Song,” written specifically for the program, at Edgehill and again at the 2020 Powell River Festival of Performing Arts grand concert.
“The program gives a school-wide approach to the themes we as teachers talk about all the time,” said McMaster. “It is nice for everyone to have the same focus.”
Even though the program is still new, McMaster said it was already having an impact.
“Principal Landry told me that he’d noticed a decline in the amount of behavioural problems he’d been seeing,” said McMaster. “It made me very happy to hear that.”
McMaster is continuing to spread the message of kindness to his students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As a teacher it’s important for me to guide students to make healthy choices,” he said. “I am encouraging my students to stay kind to themselves and others, and offering them actions they can try at home, like telling their parents they love them.”
McMaster hopes his message of kindness will also resonate with the larger community.
“Kindness is a choice, and you have to put out the effort, especially now,” he said. “We might never rid the world of mean people and bullies, but we can help fill it up with more kindness. The actions will be remembered and appreciated by those who receive them. Keep pulling together, everyone.”
McMaster continues to develop messages and events, and hopes to share the STARR program with other schools in the future. Anyone interested in finding out more can email [email protected].
