Behind the Lessons: Service Projects!
Over Thanksgiving break, my 15-year-old and 12-year-old daughters decided to bake pies. In North Dakota where we live, COVID numbers were out of control and officials were suggesting that families not gather for the holiday.
My girls decided they would bake pies for all the families on our street and a few other loved ones. They set to work and in 6 hours had baked 15 pies, a combination of apple and pumpkin. Once baked, they hand delivered to the neighbors, drove across town to deliver to family and surprised a few friends with some flaky goodness. My 12-year-old said, ‘Mom, this is so fun! I feel so good inside because it makes people so happy!’ Even my penny-pinching husband, who balked at buying all the pie supplies, said the few hundred dollars were worth it to see the joy on the faces of our girls.
We have seen incredible acts of kindness throughout the last year, but this is nothing new for the BIO Girls program.
Kindness has been a pillar of the program since day one. The curriculum focuses on spreading kindness and engaging in acts of service. From working at a food pantry to visiting nursing home residents to hosting a lemonade stand to raise money for a local cancer patient, BIO Girls participants have rolled up their sleeves and made a difference in communities across our region.
There are a multitude of benefits to the giver of kindness including an increase in serotonin, the ‘feel good’ hormone, and oxytocin, a chemical released to lower blood pressure and decrease inflammation; and a measurable decrease in anxiety and stress.
One of our lessons is based on the book, “Have you Filled a Bucket” by Carol McCloud. The lesson demonstrates the impact both kind deeds and cruel deeds have on the giver and recipient.
BIO Girls believes the impact of these valuable lessons spread well beyond the number of participants into peer groups, families and communities as a whole.
In fact, we often hear from parents that their BIO Girl gets along better with siblings, teachers share that participants set a positive example in the classroom and families thank us for inspiring them to get involved in service work.
BIO Girls believes kindness is a superpower we all possess and challenges all participants to be leaders in the kindness movement in our communities.
