Students in Middleton High School English teacher Jen Mathison-Ohly’s Intro to Teaching and Education class launched a positivity campaign, Small Act, Big Impact, for their final project of the semester.
“We wanted to launch the Small Act, Big Impact campaign because we all wanted to create something that would leave an imprint on our school,” said Middleton High School junior Yan Yang, one of the students behind the campaign. “With finals week approaching and seniors graduating, we felt that our community really needed positivity and a boost of morale.”
This week, daily activities are open to all Middleton High School students, including “clipping” peers with clothespins decorated with positive messaging. Other activities included chalk drawings outdoors, taking a nature walk and visiting the Student Project Fair to check out students' work.
Yang said her classmates opted for a series of smaller activities rather than one big project “so that people would have something new to look forward to every day.”
“All the things we've chosen are meant to get students interacting with each other and hopefully outside in the sun, enjoying the fresh air,” Yang said.
She was most excited about the clothespin project.
“The idea was first introduced because we had athletes in the class who had seen this activity done between their teammates, and it was called being ‘clipped,” Yang said. “It has so much potential to become a great way to spread kindness and positivity in an unconventional way, and I want people to really have fun with it. My hope is that people will participate and go out of their comfort zones, spreading the clothespins farther than just their friend group or social circle.”
“I think it's a really easy way to compliment each other and help spread joy and happiness,” added Middleton High School senior Samantha Kleinheiz, who also helped with the campaign.
Planning school-wide activities is a valuable experience for students in the Intro to Teaching and Education class, which is a year-long, dual-credit course with Madison College.
“Many of the students that take the course want to go into teaching, or see what a job in education might look like,” Mathison-Ohly said. “But some students take the class just to explore what it's like working with kids; these students plan to go into nursing, the medical field, social work, counseling, or physical therapy – to name a few of the interests students have had.”
The course requires students to observe for 50 hours over the course of the year, and students complete their observations at elementary and middle schools across MCPASD. But their final project of the year focused on Middleton High School.
Student organizers hope their peers learned the value of making connections through the week’s activities.
“I hope my peers recognize, like the name suggests, the value of small acts,” Yang said. “Even though the activities on each day aren't grandiose or elaborate, they are all opportunities to connect with friends and strangers alike. I hope people see the value in spreading positivity throughout our school community instead of viewing it as a cliche or a lame project not worth doing.”