The Peru Gazette

A Message from the Office of the Superintendent of Peru Central School

The “Buddy Bench” is being used in schools around the world. First introduced in September, the “Buddy Bench” has been rolled out to students in the Peru K-2 House at our first assembly as a way to teach “compassion,” which is one of the character traits the K-2 is focusing on during the 2016-2017 school year. The idea behind the “Buddy Bench” is that when students need a friend to play with at recess, he or she will sit on the bench. When children see another child sitting on the bench, the other children know that the child sitting on the bench needs a friend to play with. The children will invite that student to play.

An article published by Dustin Petty from Michigan State University indicates that social exclusion is the new bullying and that “Instead of the child being teased, pushed around or called names, they are shunned and not invited to join games and activities” (Petty, 2012). Our goal is to continue to find new ways to empower students to be inclusive and to show compassion to others who may feel lonely and excluded.

Some of the students of the K-2 and members of our “Positive School Environment Team” created a video clip of the superpower “Compassion.” Compassion was demonstrated in this video using our very own student actors and actresses and the “Buddy Bench.” The video can be seen by visiting, http://www.perucsd.org/Page/5144. This video is posted on our web-site for students and their parents to view and reinforce the initiatives at home as well.

Since the roll out of the “Buddy Bench,” students consistently share their stories of compassion, often referring to playing with someone who was sitting on the “Buddy Bench.”

For more info, please contact the Elementary K-2 House at (518) 643-6100.