exactly where I am meant to be!

This week has been one of the most amazing in my teaching career. I don't use the term career lightly because officially it feels like an actual career. I am making a name for myself and a long list of experiences and accomplishments to go with it.

This week my class won the NBC12's Acts of Kindness Award and was awarded $300 for their cause. The cause? Supporting the Capital Diaper Bank. 

I came across the Capital Diaper Bank back in the Fall when they first opened. I was extremely interested in helping and thought it would be the perfect philanthropy project for my school.

When I presented the idea to my bosses they mentioned a new program to be implemented called Brainworks and thought this would fit in perfectly.

[A little bit of background: This school year, my school started some special training by Stephen Covey called 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Long story short, it has been introduced on a kid level in a book called 7 Habits of Happy Kids in magnet schools throughout the world. Rainbow Station's founder thought it would be brilliant to try and introduce it at the preschool level as well which has never been done before. We spent MLK Jr. Day learning ways to implement the 7 habits into our daily curriculum and teaching styles.]

Enter Brainworks. After all the kids learned the 7 habits (it is unbelievable how they really got them.) We began our Brainworks Brainstorm. I told the kids about the mommies in need and how the Capital Diaper Bank helps those mommies and babies too. The kids loved the idea. They decided they could collect diapers, money and even sell stuff to raise even more money. They organized a bake sale complete with hand written posters to pass out and coin jugs they painted. They went from classroom to classroom to tell the other kids and teachers about their cause and raised over $242 at their bake sale and already a pack-n-play full of diapers.

One of the parents wrote an article for the Wyndham Wire (the community newsletter) and I even sent some information to our franchise PR person to nominate them for the NBC12 Award. AND WE WON!

Sabrina Squire and her camera guy showed up last week to award the class with $300 for their cause and even interviewed the kids. 

I am so beyond words. This class is amazing. One of those classes that is going to be VERY difficult to let go. They are so special to me and this is all just amazing. Ms. Lauren (my co-teacher) and I just couldn't be prouder.

Kristi Stilson over at Children R First is even writing about us and is also doing an article in Richmond Family Magazine about the Capital Diaper Bank where we will also appear.

This another one of those moments where I look around and realize I am exactly where I am meant to be!

Look for us on NBC12 Tuesday, May 3 at 5:00pm.