Leadership for Student Activities - April 2015, NHS & NJHS Edition - (Page 30)

Things to Do APRIL MAY AND Distracted Driving Pledge. During Distracted Driving Awareness Month this April, use resources from the National Safety Council to show students why cell phone use behind the wheel is dangerous. Promote the idea of students signing a pledge not to drive distracted by hanging a poster in the cafeteria and asking students to sign their commitment to drive safely. Visit www.nsc.org/learn/NSC-Initiatives /Pages/distracted-drivingawareness-month.aspx for infographics, videos, and more. Poem in Your Pocket Day. Create bookmarks with inspirational poems on them to hand out for Poem in Your Pocket Day, April 30. Visit www.poets .org/national-poetry-month/poem-yourpocket-day for more ideas. Nurture the Nurse. Organize an effort to recognize the innumerable contributions of your school nurse to the health and safety of students by getting students to sign a banner outside the nurse's office with good wishes on National School Nurse's Day, May 6. Campus Cleanup. As part of Keep America Beautiful's Great American Cleanup (www.kab.org), do a little spring cleaning around campus and sponsor a day where student groups get together to collect trash from school grounds, paint trash cans, plant flowers, and beautify the campus. Poetic Prowess. For National Young People's Poetry Week, April 12-18, celebrate the poets in your school by having students submit poems for a poetry contest. Read selected poems during school announcements, and have students vote on their favorites. Solicit a local bookstore as a sponsor and offer prizes. Follow up with Poem in Your Pocket Day on April 30 (see item to follow). Fabulous Teachers. Do your own version of the Behind Every Famous Person is a Fabulous Teacher campaign (www.teacherscount.org/free-posters) by creating posters recognizing teachers in your school or district. Begin by asking student leaders to identify their most influential teacher and have them create a poster featuring that teacher. Hang them around the school for National Teacher Day on May 5 (www.nea.org/grants /teacherday.html), then invite all students to create a mini-poster to recognize their influential teachers at lunch that day with supplies provided by your organization. Book Week. To celebrate National Children's Book Week, May 11-17, conduct a children's book drive to collect new or gently used books for younger children and donate them to a local elementary school. Give a free book to each student or issue tickets "good for one book of your choice" so they can select a book that interests them. After-Prom Breakfast. Work with parent groups to sponsor an after-prom sunrise breakfast for students at a local park. Global Youth Service Day. Make your community greener, safer, smarter, healthier, cleaner, and fairer as part of Global Youth Service Day, April 17-19. Visit www.gysd.org /causes for project ideas. 30 leadership for student activities Open Forum with Police Officers. Conduct an after-school open forum session with local police officers during Respect for Law Day on May 1. Invite officers to sit with small groups of students and answer questions regarding teen-police relations. Leadership Retreat. Plan a day of leadership training for the newly elected class, club, and student council officers to help everyone get off on the right foot for next year. Coaching Kudos. Create a video with clips featuring all the coaches at your school to show during International Coaching Week, May 18-24. Hang "Thanks, Coach!" signs near the gym for each coach and invite students to stop by and write messages. Snack Break. Provide juice, oatmeal raisin cookies, or fruit for all students during standardized testing breaks this spring. Recognition Banquet. Organize a potluck banquet for your group members and their parents. Recognize outstanding members, install new officers, and take time to reflect on the accomplishments of the year. http://www.poets.org/national-poetry-month/poem-your-pocket-day http://www.kab.org http://www.nsc.org/learn/NSC-Initiatives/Pages/distracted-driving-awareness-month.aspx http://www.teacherscount.org/free-posters http://www.nea.org/grants/teacherday.html http://www.gysd.org/causes

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Leadership for Student Activities - April 2015, NHS & NJHS Edition

Editor’s Note
Questions & Answers
Take Note
From the Director
21st-Century Student Leadership
Real-Life Stories of Student Success
The Team Myth
Assess, Confess, and Address: Teaching Exemplary Leadership
Lessons for Leaders
Activities Exchange
Things to Do

Leadership for Student Activities - April 2015, NHS & NJHS Edition