A Class of Superheroes

May 24, 2016May 24, 2016 twhimsLeave a comment

by Mrs. Carthans’ Second Grade Class

My students were so pleased and proud to share how they had shown kindness to others. — From that moment, I knew that showing kindness at school, at home, and in our community would be our “Superhero Mission.”

In the Fall of 2015, I embarked on teaching my second graders the value of kindness. As I searched for motivational ways to inspire their hearts and minds, I stumbled across a video about Leigh Ann Errico and her foundation. As I shared the video with my students, I watched their eyes light up as they embraced the connection between kindness and superheroes.

, I reached out to parents and requested that my students complete "acts of kindness" at home or in the community. — I reached out to parents and requested that my students complete “acts of kindness” at home or in the community.

From that moment, I knew that showing kindness at school, at home, and in our community would be our “Superhero Mission.” Therefore, I reached out to parents and requested that my students complete “acts of kindness” at home or in the community. My students were so pleased and proud to share how they had shown kindness to others. This inspired me to visit wearthecapekids.com to purchase superhero capes and other products to foster kindness in my classroom. My students and I were delighted when our special delivery arrived! The capes were hand-wrapped with care. In addition, we received a few extra Wear the Cape surprises with our purchases. My students were so appreciative and inspired to wear the capes.

This inspired me to visit wearthecapeforkids.com to purchase superhero capes and other products to foster kindness in my classroom. My students and I were delighted when our special delivery arrived! — As we became experts at showing kindness, our class chose to rotate a “super-boy” and “super-girl” of the day to wear the capes.

Initially, my students nominated peers who demonstrated acts of kindness to wear the capes each day. However, as we became experts at showing kindness, our class chose to rotate a “super-boy” and “super-girl” of the day to wear the capes. Superheroes searched for acts of kindness throughout each school day. By the end of the day, superheroes looked forward to writing and posting an act of kindness which they observed during the day.

After receiving and using our Wear the Cape products, my students and I decided to write, revise, edit, and publish a thank you email to the founder, Leigh Ann Errico, on the Wear the Cape “Connect with Us” website page. My superheroes couldn’t have been prouder that we did it as a class. Thus, they were so excited when we received a response from the Wear the Cape foundation. Thank you for making my students feel like “real” superheroes!

Student Acts of Kindness Wall — Our Acts of Kindness Wall

In the words of my second grade superheroes…
“Wearing the cape is an honor. You have lots of glory wearing it.”
“When I wear the cape, it helps me be kind. We can save the world with kindness.”
“Kindness is a big responsibility. I know that. Please be kind to others. You have to stop, think,
help, or hurt. Stop, you are better than that!”
“You can show kindness whoever you are. It doesn’t matter what your skin color is or if you are 50 or 21. You can still be kind!”
“When you wear the cape you feel good. You can be a hero wearing the cape.”
“We need kindness! I think that Wear the Cape can help hundreds of kids be kind. The things that they sell can make a difference in our world. Everybody needs kindness in their lives.”

Cape Kid of the Month: Sami Saunders

February 13, 2014 Leigh Ann ErricoLeave a comment

Cape Kid
/kāp/ /kid/
noun

1. A young person who embodies what it means to Wear the Cape and be Better Than That.
2. A youth who chooses to be an everyday hero by doing what’s right, not what’s easy.

We’re excited for the start of something good – and new! From here on out, we’ll be spotlighting a Cape Kid every month. Today we have the privilege of recognizing stand-out Sami Saunders, a 14-year old girl from Warren Township, New Jersey, for her heroic actions this past summer.

As a Camp Pontiac cabin in upstate New York nearly burned to the ground with 27 campers sleeping soundly inside, Sami demonstrated cool-headedness and quick thinking far beyond her years in the midst of a life-threatening emergency. When Sami woke up and noticed that her fan had turned off, she looked up to find the horrifying sight of flames engulfing the ceiling and wall of her cabin. Sami took action. She wisely realized that there was not enough time to rouse her camp counselor and took matters into her own hands, alerting her fellow campers of the emergency – a decision that saved the lives of 26 young girls. It was just a few short moments after the campers evacuated that the roof of the cabin collapsed upon the abandoned bunks. David Proper, chief of the Copake Fire Department, stated that it was a “miracle that no one was injured,” and praised Sami’s ability to stay calm in the face of danger and act for the benefit of others.

Fellow campers and their families have shown Sami great thanks and recognition for her actions that night, yet Sami has once again shown her maturity—this time through her humility—by playing it up to chance: “It’s kind of weird having people come up to me, thanking me and everything, but I really just woke up and saw it.”

A blessing it was that Sami woke up in time to act. But her actions also serve as a perfect example of what it means to be a hero. Doing what she did amidst a level of danger typically only seen in movies speaks volumes of Sami’s character – being a hero isn’t only about doing good for others when the time is right or when it’s easy to lend a hand.

Sami’s actions, while providing an immeasurable benefit to the lives of her cabin mates and their loved ones, can also make an impression on ours. They serve as a profound reminder that you’ll never know when a situation may arise for you to step up, Wear the Cape, and be a hero. But we don’t have to wait for a fire; every day you can ask yourself: what can I do TODAY to be a hero, however big or small?

Your maturity and selflessness are inspiring, Sami! May we all Wear the Cape, just like you.

Please send your suggestions for “Cape Kid of the Month” to leighann@wearthecapekids.com.

Grace Under Fire

February 5, 2014 Leigh Ann ErricoLeave a comment

Our goal was to win, to win a Super Bowl, but also to win in the right way, to be role models to our community, to represent Indianapolis, the state of Indiana and the National Football League. – Tony Dungy

Sunday night was religion for so many households in our country. One of the biggest nights of the year, Super Bowl Sunday.

In our house, for whatever reason, we were rooting for the Broncos and Peyton Manning. He is one of the all-time greats and even earned himself the coveted NFL Most Valuable Player for 2013. My little guy, who is 5, idolizes both Manning brothers and proudly wore his Peyton Manning Broncos Jersey all day and night on Sunday as he rooted for his idol.

I asked my little football fan if, even after the Broncos’ crushing loss, he would still plan to wear a Broncos jersey to school the next day as a sign of solidarity with his quarterback and idol of choice. To my surprise, he did not waiver; he nodded his head YES and said, “Absolutely mom!” Gotta love the loyalty (must be because he is a Taurus!) that came through in support of a strong role model and NFL great, Peyton Manning.

These big public figures are role models to our children – good or bad. For the sake of our society and our civility, we adults and especially those on the public stage need to decide what messages we are sending every day to our kids and remember that young people are looking up to us.

Manning seemed to maintain his grace last night, even after such a devastating loss, with reporters and fans who were clamoring for his autograph. He was poised and showed class despite his obvious and justified disappointment.

I’m not sure how many more years, if any, Peyton Manning will play the game of football in the NFL, but I am certain he has made a positive impact and impression on our children. That, to me, is certainly a heroic win. Would you agree?

Choose Kind,

Leigh Ann