High schoolers in Jordan School District install ‘Buddy Benches' at elementary schools
The Buddy Bench is a place to help make new friends if you are lonely at recess. A group of seniors in the Jordan School District know first-hand how the benches work, so they designed and built benches for their younger friends in the district.
ABC4.com was at the party at Monte Vista Elementary School when the students received their gift. It was an assembly where the school was surprised with their new recess accessory.
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A group of welding, construction management, and education students from the Jordan School District's Academy of Technology and Careers teamed up to not just design the benches, but build them and then introduce them to the schools.
Makayla Bird is a senior at Mountain Ridge High School. She was part of the student group.
Makayla explained, 'We are focusing a lot on inclusion and not really focusing on the fact that bullying is bad; but really focusing on the positive reinforcement and really focusing on kids being kind to others.'
Makayla didn't build the 18 benches being distributed across the district, but she did work with classmates to make sure the benches didn't just support the students — she made sure they learned how to use them. That was the goal of the assembly.
Makayla continued, 'We did it all together, and we planned what we wanted. We knew we wanted to focus on things that were real problems within the schools, so we came and talked with the principals with the schools — so we knew what our targeted audience was needed.'
This project was important for each of the students involved, not just because it was an important task, but because they know a Buddy Bench can work.
Makayla explained, 'A lot of the welding students had their own experience with buddy bench in elementary school and they saw the positive impact it had.'
Blair Jensen teaches the welding students. He was the one who got the idea going, but he said it was the students who made it happen.
Jensen said, 'It was designed by the students. It was built by the students. The prototype was made by my welding students, then came the teacher education students and construction management. It's three programs working on it together.'
After the assembly, they installed the bench outside the school — a gift for the younger generation and a step forward for the older students in their futures.
Jensen explained, 'My focus is to getting them successful in a career and I think stuff like this having an impact in your community, that's crucial for being successful.'
If you know of Acts of Kindness in your community, we want to share their stories. Please email us at .
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