Great Bend Middle School Student Council members started the month of February off by helping to spread kindness amongst the students through positive notes. The Student Council implemented “Happy Notes” in 2018 to allow students to reach out to one another and let them know someone cares. Last month the tradition was revived with students producing hundreds of Happy Notes in February, Student Council Sponsor Tami Schepmann reported.
The important part of the program is the students’ willingness to write multiple notes each week. The content can be as simple as saying “Hi,” a quote about friendship, or a couple of sentences telling the person how special they are.
The theme for this year’s student council is “Stronger Together,” Schepmann said. Student Council representatives have been visiting classrooms providing examples as well as presenting the opportunity for sharing kindness. These acts personify how strong the bond is in the middle school.
Within the three weeks of getting this initiative rolling again, students are completely dedicated to bring smiles to their peers. Student Council member Morgan MacKinney said she enjoys handing out Happy Notes because, “It is very evident when a student receives a Happy Note, it makes their day. Their faces light up, even behind their mask.”
Brianna Rodriguez Garcia, another Student Council member, shared her thoughts about the program as well. “I think Happy Notes do a good job in including everyone in the school with something positive. Whether people choose to write one or not, the Student Council makes sure every student receives one. We are all going through something and just by getting a small note reminding you that you are loved, can truly be a lifesaver. The look people get on their face when receiving one is just so great to see. You can really tell it means a lot to them to know someone was thinking of them while writing that note. I also think this has helped a lot of people get closer and that’s always a really good thing, especially at times like this.”
In the three weeks the program has been in place, the Student Council has distributed 812 notes to the students. As Diego Pasos explained, “Writing Happy Notes is the best thing you could do to make someone’s day, but also receiving one makes your day. I wrote to plenty of teachers and they all had similar responses that it made their day. Knowing you made both a teacher’s and a student’s day is amazing. It’s also amazing to know these notes could inspire others to be kind or do a nice gesture for somebody else, and the chain continues.” The chain has continued as 388 of the 812 notes were written in the third week. Addy Irwin summed the program up by stating, “I love Happy Notes and I can see that it makes a lot of kids really happy. It is almost like getting a full-sized candy bar instead of a snack size or bite size. It makes you feel appreciated and it makes you even more excited for Fridays because you get to see if you got any Happy Notes. Last year in seventh grade we would all talk about the Happy Notes we got in the morning and how much they meant to us. I’m so glad we got to bring back Happy Notes this year because it makes such a big impact on people and you might not know it but one note can make a huge difference.”
Student Council Sponsor Courtney Wilson said, “Happy Notes have been a good way to spread kindness through our school. They are an easy way to let someone know you appreciate them. Seeing a student’s face light up when they receive a Happy Note is priceless. When I receive a Happy Note, it makes me smile knowing someone thought of me and had kind words to share. I think the Happy Notes provide students and teachers with extra words of encouragement this year.”
