Meet these northern Ontario kindness ninjas

The idea of kindness ninjas started at Larchwood Public School in Dowling, ON with kindness elves leaving small challenges, such as a suggestion to smile at someone.

That was fun says kindergarten teacher Natalie Miller, but then one day, the elves gave the class a whole bag of Smarties and one the children suggested they share the candy with the entire school.

That led to bigger acts of kindness like making Jello for other classes, leaving positive notes on cars in the community and making kindness bracelets and sticking them into backpacks.

Now, Miller says everyone in the class is a full fledged kindness ninja donning their red headbands.

To earn their headbands, the kids had to do 200 acts of kindness. She says they did it in no time.

"They would do a kind act at home, the parents would send in one of our kindness hearts, we would celebrate it, we would put it up," she said.

Now they take the kindness ninja pledge everyday.

Hear the Kindness Ninja pledge these children make every morning in their kindergarten class at Larchwood Public School in Dowling, Ont.

6 years ago

Duration 0:38

The Larchwood KINDergarten Kindness Ninjas are making a difference in their community with random acts of kindness.

They keep coming up with new ideas says Miller and now they are fundraising for toys for children at the local hospital and food for the animals at the SPCA.

"They are taking pride, and it is increasing their self-esteem and their positive thoughts about each other and themselves," says Miller.

She gets emotional when she thinks about how the children have embraced the idea.

"I could literally start crying about it, it's amazing, like honestly, it's been huge."

Miller says sometimes people think a small school can't make a big impact, but her class has shown that you can. They've send kindness packages all over the country and the world.

"Every act of kindness can count."

The point of ninjas are to be sneaky says Miller. 

"Sometimes they'll sneak in a corner and watch someone take the bracelet out of their lunch bag so they get to see that person's reaction and that is all they need."

Kindergarten student Austyn Viianen explains what a kindness ninja means to him.  

"It's a ninja what doesn't hurt people and goes around the world and give them kind packages to strangers." 

All the students agreed that being a kindness ninja makes them all feel happy.