Art with Heart has begun piloting our Magnificent Marvelous Met! Program at two local elementary schools. Both schools have a over 50% low-income students on free/reduced lunch and extremely diverse populations. These schools were selected because of this factor, and because of their intentional work with students on social and emotional learning.

The first elementary school program is beginning this week with four second graders, five third graders and four kindergartners and will be focusing on how Magnificent Marvelous Me! supports the theme of empathy. Students will be utilizing pages from MMMe with extension art projects to help them identify feelings, show compassion, make friends and feel confident. The second school site will run the pilot program over the entire school year and will begin in the next few weeks.

One of the school counselors stated, “I am thrilled to be able to inject new ideas into my program! I am always looking for new ways to reach the students.”

One of the empathy activities the students will be doing from MMMe is the page “Kindness Counts” which helps children recognize kindness – what it looks like when others are kind to them, and what it looks like when they are kind to others. Students will then make puppets of family members or others who are important to them and use them to act out things they like to do and ways they can show kindness to each other.

These test sites will inform how use of Magnificent Marvelous Me! impacts student learning and behavior. Our findings will become the basis for our detailed lesson plan which will be included in the Art with Heart’s first After School Kit!  Stay tuned for details…

Patrick was first diagnosed with Leukemia when he was three years old. He spent months in isolation for various infections and bone marrow transplants and received Oodles of Doodlesduring one of his many lengthy stays. While receiving treatment, he also participated in our Art Buddy workshops at the Hutch School. His family shared with us how it transformed his hospital experience:

“Oodles allowed us to show doctors that Patrick was more than just a patient. We taped the ‘All about Me’ page on his hospital room door so that they would know that he loved sports, the ocean and art.

“We used pages to decorate the cold walls. Each night we read the words aloud from the ”˜Dreams’ page. In the all too familiar sterility of a hospital room, the beautifully created Oodles created an escape from the reality of illness into one of imagination and future hopes and dreams.”

Seventeen-year old Lauren is a senior in high school that founded her very own non-profit organization with the hope of lifting the spirits of children and their families fighting pediatric cancer.

Her organization provides care packages to kids ages 0-18 and also includes gifts for their parents and siblings. Lauren understands that when a child is diagnosed with cancer, the child is not the only one fighting the disease; everybody can use a little support and smiles.

Lauren was inspired to help at a young age when a friend was diagnosed with childhood cancer. It wasn’t until later that she realized she could make an even bigger impact. At first, Lauren sent small gifts to kids at local hospitals. Her vision grew and she began sending larger care packages to the families.

A care package may include books, blankets, beanie hats, play dough, stuffed animals, coloring books and supplies, movies and card games. Lauren is generous enough to provide all this out of her own pocket, unless others mirror her generosity and donate to her cause.

This is where we can help — Lauren contacted Art with Heart in hope of receiving a few of our books for her kids. We were touched by her kind words for Art with Heart but also amazed by her own determination and devotion to her cause. That is why we are extending her story to our friends.

The mutual admiration we have for each other can help further the reach of both our missions. If we raise $75 we can send Lauren and the kids she serves five Oodles of Doodles books. Together we can cheer up even more kids and families dealing with childhood cancer while encouraging creativity through Art with Heart’s therapeutic publications!

Donate online today to help send Lauren’s kids Oodles of Doodles! (Please specify your donation is for Lauren). Thank you so much!

“When I’m in pain, I go through the book and it gets my mind off the pain and helps me relax and have fun. I put the pictures around my room to remind me that when I am sad, I can look at them and they take my mind off things. This is a good thing for other kids because it’s creative and gets you thinking and feeling better.”

~ 11 Yr. Old Surgical Patient, Children’s Hospital, Seattle

We asked our community partner and friend, Joan Duffel, CEO of Committee for Children, what she thought of our newest book, designed specifically for tweens dealing with tough issues. This is what she told us:

”Ink About It is as fun and engaging as it gets, though it inspires ‘tweens to write, draw, and reflect on serious issues.  From helping youngsters set goals to discovering the difference between ‘assertive’ and ‘aggressive,’ this gorgeously designed, interactive book takes kids on a journey of self-discovery that will foster their emotional growth during the sensitive period of pre-adolescence. Here’s a ‘workbook’ that helps kids focus on difficult topics—and in the bargain, feels like anything BUT work!”

Thanks so much Joan for your vote of confidence, and a big thanks to Committee for Children’s Program Developer, Tonje Molyneux, M.Ed., for her help in vetting the manuscript! Please visit their online store to see our books offered alongside their fantastic Second Step program!