Blackbird Buddy groups, which meet regularly throughout the school year, offer young learners the chance to make friends and develop their capacity for kindness, compassion, understanding and care.
Blackbird Buddy activities begin with a school-wide assembly, often with students singing the Alma Mater and other songs related to school-wide efforts to build positive relationships, including the BIRDS (Be Inclusive, Responsible, Determined and Strong) motto. Blackbird Buddy group projects also pair nicely with the Second Step social-emotional learning program on bullying prevention that all students, grades K-8, participate in.
After the assembly, students are assigned to groups led by VES faculty and staff. The groups are a mixture of students representing all grades and classes.
The November gathering centered on building relationships with others from around the school, on kindness, and on being inclusive and respectful.