Grand Avenue Empathy

GRAND AVENUE MIDDLE SCHOOL

This school has a long tradition of incorporating character education and social and emotional literacy into its curriculum. Respect, Impulse Control, Compassion, and Equity (RICE) has been embedded into the school’s culture since 2004. In an effort to expand on the tenets of RICE, Empathy has recently become a focal area. 

 In May, Art Teacher, Michael Di Nucci, organized his Art 8A class into four groups to design several words, Empathy, Caring, Kindness, and Community.   Each group chose one word and every student in a group designed a letter.  Students followed a series of parameters to design and paint various panels.  As a result, they developed collaborative murals depicting Empathy, Caring, Kindness, and Community. The work is now a permanent display in the main lobby at Grand Avenue to visually remind students about RICE and being empathic in school and throughout their lives.