Clarence Elementary Schools Receive Kindness Suitcase Learning Materials
Clarence Elementary Schools Receive Kindness Suitcase Learning Materials
Updated
Elementary school students across the Clarence Central School District will have the opportunity to use a new Kindness Suitcase to turn the lessons of history into kindness, empathy and tolerance.
The suitcases, which feature 15 age-appropriate books and 30 learning activities about the Holocaust and people who helped others during the time, were presented by the Holocaust Education Resource Organization of Buffalo during a lesson for fourth grade students at Ledgeview Elementary School on May 8. A suitcase will be provided for each of the District’s four elementary schools.
“We want to make sure they understand the past and how one person can change the lives of others and how they can use their own heart to inspire others,” said Lauren Bloomberg, the organization’s director.
Many of the books in the suitcase focus on the Kindertransport, during which 10,000 children were transported from Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland to Great Britain. Among the upstanders mentioned were Sir Nicholas Winton and Gino Bartali, who were among those who helped bring children to safety. The suitcase also featured a Paddington Bear stuffed animal as well as the books of author Michael Bond, who created the character based on his memories of seeing child refugees from the Kindertransport.
Mari-Jo Gregor, Ledgeview Elementary School librarian, said storytelling can be a powerful tool to teach life lessons on qualities like kindness.
“It makes a huge difference to see themselves in a book or in a character,” Gregor said. “This helps them grow as learners.”
After reading about champion cyclist Gino Bartali, who saved more than 800 Jewish people by using his talents as a cyclist to secretly deliver items to Jewish people in hiding, students took time to create a name tag identifying their own superpower and how they can use it to help others. Some students who enjoyed music talked about being able to perform for others, while some in sports talked about how they could be a role model on their team.
“The power of one person can make a huge difference,” said Wendy Weisbrot, manager of the Holocaust Education Resource Organization of Buffalo. “We know you’ll make a huge difference by showing kindness wherever you go.”
