Motivating & Inspiring Students. Robert J. Marzano
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like a fantasy that can never be reached, but test them for yourself, and see the kind of effect they have in the lives of people around you. You just may start a chain reaction.” Clearly, she lived her life aware that her actions deeply affected others and intended to create a chain reaction of kindness.
Rachel always seemed aware that she would leave behind a legacy. For example, she made comments to friends and teachers that she would cause positive change in the world and once created a tracing of her hands with a statement that read, “These hands belong to Rachel Joy Scott and will someday touch millions of people’s hearts.” However, she also seemed to be aware that her life would end prematurely, and she discussed this premonition with her friends and wrote about it in her journal. Unfortunately, her predictions about her short life came true. Even right before her death, she reiterated to her teacher that she was going to change the world for the better. This prediction has proved to be true as well, and she left behind a legacy through Rachel’s Challenge that has touched the lives of millions of people around the world.
After Rachel’s death, her father, Darrell Scott, began traveling around the United States to tell her story to lawmakers, educators, and students and to advocate that education should focus more on building character and teaching principles like those Rachel valued. Over time, his speeches developed into an assembly and workshop series called Rachel’s Challenge, which teaches others to follow Rachel’s example by embodying the characteristics that came to define her. Since 1999, Rachel’s Challenge has presented to over twenty-two million people, working in one thousand two hundred schools and businesses each year. The effects of Rachel’s Challenge are notable. Teachers and administrators have reported widespread changes in the climate and culture of their schools after students heard Rachel’s story. More exceptionally, Rachel’s Challenge has received hundreds of letters from students who associate the assembly program with their decisions not to take their own lives.
Programs
Rachel’s Challenge offers a variety of programs for schools. Each program tells the story of Rachel Scott and integrates age-appropriate lessons on social and emotional intelligence. These programs challenge students to practice altruism, empathy, forgiveness, gratitude, and mindfulness and use the inspirational ideals embodied in Rachel’s story to encourage such practices. Rachel’s Challenge programs are available in the formats listed in table 2.4.
Table 2.4: Rachel’s Challenge Programs
| Program | Recommended Grade Levels | Description |
| Link Up! Presentation | K–5 | The forty-minute elementary Link Up! presentation introduces elementary school students to Rachel Scott and her challenge to reach out to others with deliberate acts of kindness. The presentation is a fun, energetic, interactive assembly that mixes music, video, and activities to tell her story. Students learn about a young girl named Rachel; however, they do not hear or see footage related to the Columbine tragedy or her death. Although appropriate for students in grades K–6, the presentation is most effective with K–5 students. |
| Kindness & Compassion Club | K–5 | The Kindness & Compassion (K & C) Club is a way to involve students in fun, practical activities that keep them engaged in sustaining the culture of kindness portrayed in the Link Up! presentation. All K & C Clubs make Chains of Kindness, chains of paper links created by the students. Each time a student observes an act of kindness by another student, he or she writes that act on a strip of paper and links it to the classroom’s chain. Teachers read the links weekly and acknowledge students for their efforts. At the end of the year, teachers can have a Link Up! party and read some of the links to remind students how they made their school a better place during the year. |
| Power of One Program | K–5 | Developed by elementary school educators and counselors, Power of One is the follow-up program to Kindness & Compassion Club. It follows the same outline as its prerequisite and provides a full year of new lessons and activities. Power of One also adds a section of lessons and activities for students with special needs. There is no mention of Columbine or Rachel’s death in this program. The Power of One reinforces and expands upon the same challenges for elementary students as presented in Kindness & Compassion. |
| Rachel’s Story Presentation | 5–6 | This presentation introduces younger middle school students to Rachel’s story and her challenge to deliberately reach out to others with kindness. Rachel’s story is told through the eyes of her family. The Columbine tragedy is introduced at an intensity level appropriate for fifth and sixth graders. Her story shows the profound positive impact students can have on those around them by simply paying attention to the little things they do and say every day. Rachel’s story encourages participants to consider their own behavior. |
| Rachel’sChallengePresentation | 7–12 | Conveyed through stories from Rachel’s life and writings, the Rachel’s Challenge presentation shows the profound positive impact we can have on those around us. It demonstrates to the listener the power of deliberately reaching out to others in word and action to start what Rachel called “a chain reaction of kindness and compassion.” |
| Rachel’s Legacy Presentation | 7–12 | This sixty-minute follow-up to the Rachel’s Challenge presentation program builds upon the legacy that Rachel inspired in the lives of people around her. Through a series of stories told from the perspective of those whom Rachel touched, the Rachel’s Legacy presentation encourages participants to take specific steps toward making their own positive legacy a reality. |
| Friends of Rachel Training | 5–12 | The Friends of Rachel training is designed to help a select group of students (up to one hundred preassigned students) and adults (a minimum of one adult to every ten students) create a club that fosters a permanent culture of kindness and compassion in their school. The training starts with time for participants to share their feelings about Rachel’s story. The bulk of the training discusses why the club is important and provides resources to plan for the club’s first meeting and activity. |
| Chain Reaction Training | 5–12 | Chain Reaction is a six-hour, intensive, interactive training that consists of three parts: (1) teaching and processing segments, (2) physical activities, and (3) full- and small-group sharing. Chain Reaction includes a cross-section of a school’s population represented by eighty to one hundred students and twenty to twenty-five adults. It is important to maintain a minimum ratio of one adult to four students throughout the program. The program is designed to promote personal introspection, empathy, community building, and empowerment. |
| Community Event | 6–12, as well as community members | The Community Event introduces Rachel and her story to parents and community members using stories from her life and writings. This event is typically held in the evening. It is similar in content and intensity to the Rachel’s Challenge high school program. The Community Event shows the profound positive impact we have on those around us and demonstrates the power of deliberately reaching out to others to start what Rachel called a “chain reaction of kindness and compassion.” |
As seen in table 2.4, Rachel’s Challenge offers a variety of programs in different formats that are appropriate for a range of age levels. Visit rachelschallenge.org for more information.
To illustrate the power of Rachel’s Challenge’s programming, consider the Chain Reaction training designed for middle schoolers and high schoolers. Each Chain Reaction assembly works with around one hundred students and twenty-five adults in a school over a period of six hours. Participants move through teaching and processing segments, physical activities, and full- and small-group sharing sessions. The teaching and processing segments outline major themes of the assembly, including social labeling, appropriate affection, the power of words, isolation, shared experiences, and the ability to start chain reactions within a community. The physical activities (often in the form of cooperative activities; see page 114) forge and deepen community bonds, particularly among students who may not frequently interact in a positive way. Finally, the full- and small-group sharing sessions allow participants to reflect on the content