‘Tis the season of love, and students at Jacksonville Country Day School have been sharing their love with the community this Valentine’s season. Second grade students created heart-shaped cards to send to Feeding Northeast Florida, a food bank serving counties in Northeast Florida.
The students work on building character while learning about the “7 Mindsets,” a curriculum guide that helps people find happiness, success, meaning and purpose in life. Students were emboldened by the “attitude of gratitude” mindset and decided to share their gratitude and love with the people at Feeding Northeast Florida and those who use their services.
“We have been discussing all the people and things we are grateful for in our lives, and we thought of them (Feeding Northeast Florida),” said second-grade teacher Kristen Szallay. “They are so special to us; each Thanksgiving our student council hosts a canned food drive to support this organization as well.”
Students spent time during their morning meetings last week creating these cards and were happy to do so.
“It made me feel happy because I am giving something to others,” said second-grader Gracie Hightower. “My heart was rainbow-colored, and it said you are so nice and kind; I wanted to let them know that I was thinking of them.”
The cards were sent to Feeding Northeast Florida over the weekend to arrive in time for Valentine’s Day.
Szallay and the other two second-grade homeroom teachers hope that projects like these will inspire students to give back in other ways outside of school, and that they keep the “attitude of gratitude” mindset at the forefront of their minds.
