Teaching Kindness: How Hygge Shows Up in Our Classrooms

I live in Guelph; a university town. There is a sculpture of Gryphon which sits on the edge of campus. It is an odd mascot; the way it reclines, it allows students to climb all over it. 

The other day I was driving by the gryphon and about 10 recent graduates in cap and gown had climbed on it to have their pictures taken – a common occurrence in Guelph. In an act of spontaneity, I honked my horn in celebration; they all turned, laughed and waved. In response, I laughed and smiled. Then for some strange reason I started to cry. One could argue that a woman in her 60’s might be longing for her younger days that were filled with promise much like the graduates on the gryphon. However, I think my unexpected tears appeared because I felt, however briefly, that I had connected with strangers. While I didn’t know them, I felt the pleasure of being part of a shared community. A community that felt warm and kind.  

If you are unfamiliar with the term hygge, I hope that it will soon be something that you crave. Hygge is that magical feeling that we get when we take time away from the daily rush, either by yourself or with others, to enjoy life’s pleasures. In Denmark, hygge is essential. More importantly, it is something they value in schools. All students in Denmark start their educational career by focusing on their socio-emotional growth before they even think about their academic needs.  

During these Danish classes, students discuss the challenges they face at school and elsewhere. They develop their listening skills and learn the importance of non-judgement. With their teacher, students become more emotionally intelligent and absolutely kinder. The contentment they feel with one another is the basis of hygge.  

Does this all sound familiar? Park Street Education is different from many other tutoring agencies. At Park Street, we feel that the socio-emotional development of our students is equally as important as academic development. In our peer-to-peer (P2P) classes, our students actively talk about ways that they can be kinder to one another. I had the great pleasure of sitting in a class the other day. The students had been given the challenge to reach out to someone new. One student reported back to the class with pride and joy that she had made a new friend because of this challenge. We run a class called Kindness is Cool Klub (KICK). The participants in this class actively help others see the magical power of being kind. We are teaching our students to value kindness and we are watching them stand taller, as they feel better about themselves.  

In all of our classes, we end every session with thank you’s. This time of appreciation for one another is a highlight for many of our students. To hear students show gratitude for one another and to clearly articulate the positive qualities they see in their classmates definitely leads to hygge. Hearing our students find value in their classmates often leaves me with the same tears I felt when the university students waved at me.  

While many of us feel we are living in challenging times, I gain comfort in knowing that there are students in the world who are putting value in kindness and are actively seeking ways to be gentle with their own feelings and the feelings of others. They have learned that kindness is always a win-win. The health benefits of being kind are overwhelming. There is a 60% chance that when someone is kind to you, you will pay it forward and be kind to someone else. It perpetuates itself. I am grateful that Park Street can play a small role in helping our students lead the path to a kinder and gentler world.  

When things feel challenging, remember the benefit of slowing down, connecting, seeking kindness, and just allowing the outside pressures to fall away. Find hygge.