Teaching children kindness and emotional literacy builds healthier relationships, stronger communities, and happier lives. The Kindness Project within the Community Early Learning Center (CELC) is leading this important work with the support of grants from these funds within the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, including the Community Vision Fund. 

The Kindness Project teaches essential life skills such as empathy, compassion, kindness, gratitude, and forgiveness through a science-based program called the Kindness Curriculum. Coaches work directly with early childhood teachers, families, and students, supporting them in mindfulness and emotional literacy practices. The goal is to ensure classroom lessons extend effectively to home and community environments.

“We would like to share our sincere gratitude, the Kindness Project has grown in ways we never would have anticipated,” said Marta Statz, Kindness Project Manager with the CELC.

As of 2024, the Kindness Project has trained more than 200 early childhood educators in the Fox Valley area. These educators now deliver the Kindness Curriculum to over 60 local classrooms, positively affecting over 1,800 children. A 2023 study replicated by the CELC on the Benefits of Cognitive Skills involving 245 preschoolers from diverse racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds showed marked improvements in school readiness and executive functioning skills, including attention, planning, and self-regulation, compared to children not using the curriculum.

The Kindness Curriculum is a science-based program that began in 2008 at the Center for Healthy Minds and incorporates mindfulness practices like mindful listening, breathing, movement, and attention exercises. These foundational skills help preschoolers build social-emotional competencies and academic readiness. Additional research consistently highlights benefits such as improved self-regulation, which is especially significant for children from lower-income families.

“Many of our parents are refugees and new to the United States and the area,” added Statz. “So, their children are receiving the Kindness Curriculum in their pre-school classrooms, and the parents are also learning some adult practices to coincide with what their children are learning, providing coping tools for these families that are often under a great deal of stress.”

To learn more about the Kindness Project and the Community Early Learning Center, visit www.communityearlylearningcenter.com.