Inside Out Club DuPage is on a mission to develop kids with character inside and out; children living by values founded in acceptance, curiosity, collaboration, empathy, gratitude, kindness, perseverance and self-awareness who have a desire to help others, the community, the planet and more!
This fall, over six hundred Inside Out Club kids across 22 local elementary schools participated in “Hunger in Our Community.” Like every Inside Out Club lesson, there were fun activities at each station to teach, inspire, and empower these kids. Check out what they did!
At the Collaboration Station, volunteers read Stone Soup by Heather Forest while kids pretended to make their very own stone soup. Through the book and discussion, kids learned that if everyone comes together and gives just a little, then everyone can be fed. This activity was a great way to lead a conversation about the power of collaboration!
After Stone Soup and talking about hunger in their own community, kids learned about and practiced empathy. What might it be like to not have enough food to eat? What could we do to help those that are hungry? Working side-by-side, each of them assembled a gift bag with crayons, stickers and a coloring book for a child visiting local food pantries at Loaves & Fishes Community Services or West Suburban Community Pantry. The best part of the gift is the tag that says “From Your Friend______.” It’s very meaningful to the child receiving the gift to know that another child cares for and is thinking of them, and Inside Out Club kids really rallied around the idea that they were helping someone their own age.
At the third and final station, kids built kindness kits comprised of a decorated card, hand sanitizer wipes, pretzels, and we’re pretty sure they added some love and hugs, too! They were asked to take their kit home and consider how it could make a difference – they could keep it in their car’s glovebox until they saw someone in need, or donate it to a local food pantry. Some of the kits stayed close to home, given to the school to be shared with their own classmates.
Kids were encouraged to share the lesson at home, and they were empowered to help feed the hungry together as a family. We are proud of what they learned and created, and know they are, too.