Teaching Students Compassion, Dignity, and Respect with guest David Flood

<p><strong>Teaching Students Compassion, Dignity, and Respect</strong></p><p>David gives every student he speaks to three challenges:</p><p><strong>Look on the Inside</strong> - don’t focus on another student’s appearance or the color of their skin, religion, or disability. Try to focus on the whole person. Be a friend to everyone.</p><p><strong>Connect With and Identify Two Adults at School</strong> - It’s important for students to always have a trusted adult they can turn to if they need to talk to someone or if they have a problem.</p><p><strong>Noone Eats Alone</strong> - When David's son Justin was in middle school, he came home one day and told his dad he ate lunch alone. David now challenges other students to make sure no one in the cafeteria ever eats alone and to be a friend to those "invisible" students, like his own autistic son. He teaches teens to “be an includer, not an excluder” at lunchtime, and also on the bus, in hallway conversations, and on social media. </p><p>"If you can connect with the place in yourself when you realize and recognize that someone near you is lonely that needs to be reached out to - that's the message," he said.</p><p>David teaches students that “your life is not about you,” rather it’s about the way you treat the people around you. He learned this from his mother and from his son, Justin. David calls his son his “onramp to the highway of kindness.” Watching other students show kindness and include him in social activities taught David that reaching out to others goes a long way. </p><p>This message carries over to the digital world. David uses the example of friends chatting on a public social media page about an upcoming party. How do the students who weren’t invited feel when they read the comments? David encourages students to always be aware of who’s watching and try to prevent making others feel left out.</p><p>“A phone is a great connection to the world, but it’s no substitute for personal interaction and looking someone in the eye,” said David.</p><p>Learn more: </p