Kind Hearts launches resources for early childhood education centres

Manaaki te katoa.

Be kind to all.

Kind Hearts Trust has expanded its services with the launch of resources promoting kindness in early childhood education centres.

Who Are Kindness Heroes? is written by Kind Hearts schools co-ordinator Raewyn Marshall and illustrated by Audrey Larsen. There are discussion points at the end of the book.

Larsen is the co-ordinator for Kind Hearts’ early childhood education programme.

When she left school, she worked as an illustrator for the printery and photographic unit at Massey University. She had done art and tech drawing at school. Larsen has been a primary school teacher for 22 years and has also been a play centre supervisor.

She is a teacher of English to speakers of other languages at West End School.

Her Kind Hearts role is a voluntary one. Larsen comes from a service background - her mother was in Lions, and her father was on every committee he could be, she says.

The kete to promote a kindness culture in schools also contains kindness hero red capes, a kindness memory game, whakataukī to display, certificates, Kind Hearts cards, and craft ideas and materials.

While different centres have different values, most of them are underlaid by kindness or manaakitanga, Larsen says.

Kindness can be as simple as a smile or a kind word. It could also be helping pack up after a game or activity, listening or sharing.

When a centre registers they not only get the kete but access to Larsen as a facilitator. She can visit a centre and read Who Are Kindness Hereos? to the children and facilitate a professional development session for staff.

Kind Hearts is also selling the book, cape and badge as one package.

Kind Hearts will be at the Downtown Christmas Market 4pm-9pm on Thursday.

To register for the kete and programme, visit kindheartsmovement.org or email [email protected].

Arohamai aroha atu.

Love received, love returned.

This is a Public Interest Journalism funded role through NZ On Air

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