Episode Details

Isaac Broadbent:
Through this program, Teach Kind, we were able to go through each grade and teach a variety of lessons centered on kindness and how that looks like, how that sounds like, and how that feels, and the impact it can have.

Student:
I think kindness is important because it makes people feel noticed and wanted, and it just makes people feel like they're proud.

Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. They are spreading kindness and enhancing a positive culture at Daybreak Elementary School. The school even celebrates student kindness with a big parade through the happy halls of Daybreak once a month. On this episode of the Supercast, find out how Isaac Broadbent, school counselor at Daybreak and a former Daybreak student himself, has stepped in revamping schoolwide expectations and, together with the support of teachers, is making kindness rule number one. The work has earned Daybreak a national Kind School designation.

Anthony Godfrey:
We are at Daybreak talking with the school counselor, Isaac Broadbent, about a kindness initiative that's been happening here at the school. But first, talk to us a little bit about yourself.

Isaac Broadbent:
My name is Isaac. I am a school counselor here and I've been a school counselor for about three or four years. I started here, and then I stayed because it's so amazing. And, fun fact, I actually used to attend the school when it was first built.

Anthony Godfrey:
And what grade did you... How old were you when you came?

Isaac Broadbent:
Fifth and sixth grade. So, when it first opened up, they pulled us from Rose Creek to help populate it a little bit because Daybreak wasn't as built out as it was back then.

Anthony Godfrey:
Right. Yeah.

Isaac Broadbent:
And so, I was a student here and there were some familiar faces that were around as well.

Anthony Godfrey:
Some of the teachers are still here that were there when you were in fifth grade.

Isaac Broadbent:
Correct. Yep, correct. There's actually, I think, four. Yeah. Four of them. So, it was kind of cool to have a full circle where I was a student. And then, lo and behold, I'm working here with some familiar faces from back then.

Anthony Godfrey:
And how has the school changed? First of all, it seems a lot smaller now, right?

Isaac Broadbent:
It's a lot smaller. I remember this was a gigantic place when I was a student.

Anthony Godfrey:
That's right. That's right.

Isaac Broadbent:
But no, it's really great because obviously I'm biased. I really like this school because I used to go here. And it's great to be able to help it become a better place because the whole reason why we kind of want to focus on kindness is that in our MTSS meetings and leadership meetings, we were realizing that there's just a lot of meanness going on. Every school has their bullying instances, but there's just a lot of overall just meanness, just one-off jabs and things like that.

Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah.

Isaac Broadbent:
And so, through a process, we revamped our entire school system with our big three rules and number one is being kind. And we really