Be Fearless Be Kind: An Empathy Initiative for Kids

I made this sign for a friend's daughter after she saw and loved the "Be Creative" sign I made for my office last year. The quote from Cinderella's mom and the words on this sign: Be Kind were what started echoing through my mind following the chaos that came with the results of the 2016 presidential election. These are good words to remember for everyone all year but they seem extra appropriate now.

It was while I was mulling over this Be Kind sentiment and talking to my own kids about the importance of being kind to others (and standing up for them when necessary) that I was invited to participate in a great campaign from Hasbro promoting their "Be Fearless Be Kind" philanthropic initiative -- and of course I was interested!

Why Empathy?

Research is showing that kids are 62% less kind than they were in the past (NBC News State of Kindness Poll, 2015). Maybe it's our obsession with selfies. Maybe it's because in our busy day-to-day lives we have forgotten to stop and teach our kids one of the foundational principles of being a good human: EMPATHY.

But here's the good news: We can do something about it!

There is no "empathy gene." Empathy is something that we teach and nurture. When we are intentional about teaching empathy to our kids at home and in our schools, everyone benefits. Seriously: there is no down side to empathy!

Putting Empathy into Action

To kick off the 2016-2017 school year, more than 50,000 created their own Rules of Kindness. Visit the site with your kids to help them create their own rule of kindness and an action plan to put them in place. This is a great project to do on your own with your kids. Being intentional about teaching kindness to kids helps them make kindness an intentional part of their day.

If you are an educator who wants to get involved in teaching empathy to your students, the No Bully Project has a "No Bully Peace Summit" guide that you can download and use to lead either your class or your school as a whole in talking about bullying and how to be intentional about preventing bullying behaviors

Hasbro has other initiatives they will launch throughout the year including the Joy Maker Challenge, Creative Vision's "Rock Your World", the Special Olympics "Unified Strategy for Schools" and more -- keep an eye on the "Putting Empathy into Action" section of the Be Fearless Be Kind website to see more information on these programs throughout the year.

About the Author:

Carissa is a green lifestyle expert and mom of two boys. The owner and lead writer for Creative Green Living, she is also the author of two e-books including the best-selling beverage cookbook, Infused: Recipes for Herb & Fruit Infused Water, Tea and More. You can also find her recipes featured in The Non-GMO Cookbook as well as in periodicals like Urban Farm Magazine. Her goal is to empower families to make healthier choices that are easy, taste great and are fun!

Follow her on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter or join the Creative Green Living community group.

Do you like this post? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter!

When you subscribe you can download our FREE Recycled Crafts E-book!

Sponsored post disclosure: This post was sponsored by Hasbro together with Mom Bloggers Club. All opinions expressed are 100% mine and reflect my authentic experience and thoughts. I only recommend things I personally enjoy and think my readers will as well. For more information, see my full sponsored post and review policy.