Five-Star Program for Pre-Kindergarten, Preschool, Toddler and Infant Education located in Greenville, NC.
Contact Us To Schedule A Tour Call: (252) 756-8200You’re never too young to make the world a better place. By gently teaching kids about age-appropriate community issues and giving them an opportunity to volunteer, you empower them to make a difference and tackle social problems head-on. Plus, hands-on volunteering teaches self-reliance, motor skills, responsibility, and kindness.
Even if your child is too young to go volunteer on-site, Preschoolers and Elementary students have fun with classroom volunteer activities, like creating cards for the elderly, goody bags for kids in the hospital, or treats for animals in shelters. They learn compassion for people in need, while also exercising their own power to help. Here are four easy activities kids can do in the classroom or at home with their parents, that directly benefit Greenville, North Carolina non-profit organizations.
The Ronald McDonald House provides a comfortable home-away-from-home for families who must travel to be near expert medical care for children with illnesses. It’s easy to feel helpless when facing something as difficult as terminal illness or cancer, but volunteering for the Ronald McDonald House allows kids to make a difference in the lives of kids just like them!
For younger children, simply explain, “Some children are very sick, and their mommies and daddies are sad. So they move to be near a hospital to take care of them. But we can help make them feel less sad by making sure they have toys and games, cards and blankets, to cheer them up and make them feel better!”
Preschoolers and Elementary students can help with several types of projects.
These fun and simple projects directly benefit families staying at the Ronald McDonald House. Plus, painting, decorating, or quilting, or weaving bracelets builds fine motor skills and arts and creativity. Putting together goody bags develops critical thinking, verbal, and social skills. Finally, all projects build a sense of empowerment, create a broader understanding of social issues, and help instill a sense of compassion and community.
Most kids love helping animals! Who among us hasn’t watched a video about a poor homeless pup or kitty and gotten teary-eyed? Because many children—and adults, too!—connect so deeply with helpless animals, working with an animal shelter is often a softening introduction to the world of volunteering.
For younger children, simply explain, “When families adopt a cat or dog, it’s very important to be prepared ahead of time. Providing a home for an animal is a big responsibility. Sometimes, families change their mind about their pet, and the animal doesn’t have a place to live. So animal shelters provide a safe place for kitties and puppies until they can find someone to give them a ‘forever home.’ The project we’re doing today will help take care of those animals!
Preschoolers and Elementary students can help with several types of projects.
Creating animal toys develops fine motor skills, practice tying knots, and critical and creative thinking. Making animal treats is a cooking project that enhances culinary skills, math and measuring, and tactile understanding. Plus, it’s super fun! Creating a pet pillow or bed is considering a sewing project and should be attempted only by older children, but it develops fine motor and crafting skills.
Making art and doing random acts of kindness is a fun way to encourage kids to learn about service and community-building. Families in many cities around the country—including Greenville, North Carolina—have begun a Random Acts of Kindness game out called The Kindness Rocks Project! Kids paint smooth pond stones, which can be purchased at most craft stores or picked up nearby creeks and ponds, with creative words of encouragement, inspiring quotes, or even just happy images. Then, they hide their Kindness Rock somewhere in Greenville, where someone else can find it and feel encouraged and inspired by the act of kindness!
It’s also fun to stumble upon someone else’s Kindness Rock, and take it home for yourself- a reminder of how kindness creates a ripple effect in the world, and good deeds often come full circle.
Sometimes it can be difficult to for a child to learn how to share they favorite toy, respect a peer who is bothering them, or stand up to bullies. However, focusing on the fun and importance of Kindness helps kids connect more deeply with why things like sharing, respect, and anti-bullying are important. As children build positive experiences with making another person happy, they will also learn how good it feels to help others. They will also experience the reciprocal nature of kindness – when you are good to others, others will be good to you.
Painting smooth stones develops fine motor skills. Adding words like “Inspire,” “Smile!” or “Kindness,” helps develop spelling and literacy. When finding or hiding the stones, parents have the opportunity to teach children about nature around a creek or pond, and kids build physical fitness by walking around the park or town hiding stones. Plus, it’s just a fun day out!
Our teachers are passionate about teaching preschoolers the social and emotional skills to be successful in elementary school — and life! That’s why kindness is part of our curriculum. We believe preschoolers and elementary students can be empowered by learning to be kind to each other and work together to make a difference in Greenville.
Contact our Greenville, NC preschool program today to learn about our Summer Programs and preschool. Schedule a tour or give us a call at 252-756-8200 to learn more.
