Community Early Learning Center of the Fox Valley

the kindness project seeks to enhance the educational programming at three celc agencies by implementing a mindfulness-based kindness curriculum through collaboration with dr. richard davidson's healthy minds innovation team at the university of wisconsin-madison (https://centerhealthyminds.org/). the kindness curriculum includes 24 lessons that teach children to focus their attention, be empathetic to others, control their emotions, and express caring and gratitude. Enriching the current programming with the kindness curriculum helps us to better ensure that by age 5, all our children have the foundation to reach their full potential. the project is serving about 250 children per year (predominantly low-income children), their parents, and their teachers, and helps to provide children with the self-regulation skills that lead to personal, social, and academic success.

Focus on families of young children and those serving them so their children will be ready for kindergarten by age five, especially those families with young children who are at risk due to experiences of poverty or other unhealthy stresses. Shared space will foster agency collaboration to meet a variety of family and children's needs under one roof, including, resources and diagnostic testing. In addition, the organization will collaborate with post-secondary institutions in the area to plan and conduct research around Early childhood and then disseminate these best practices to other families and Early childhood professionals in the local area and beyond. the organization has also implemented the mindfulness/kindness curriculum and research study.