Hawley Elementary School began its annual Kindness Month celebrations with a visit by Westport author Karlin Gray on December 3, and throughout the month, the school will focus on learning about kindness and completing kind acts.

Resident Joy Hoffman, art and yoga teacher from The Joy of Art and The Joy of Yoga Nidra, arranged Ms Gray’s Hawley visit. Ms Gray is the author of Nadia: The Girl Who Couldn’t Sit Still and An Extraordinary Ordinary Moth. Her next book, Serena: The Littlest Sister, will be published in May by PageStreet Kids. During her visit on December 3, Ms Gray read to students and spoke with them about the importance of perseverance and love.

Hawley language arts consultant Patti Vitarelli is organizing the Kindness Month this year, and she shared this year’s Kindness Month theme is “Self-Kindness.” Students and staff will have the opportunity to participate in activities that support self-kindness, according to an announcement for Kindness Month. A “Kindness Cart” with books and activities will be shared between classrooms, and students will participate in a Self-Kindness Day, scheduled for January 18. As part of the month’s efforts, a Kindness Assembly will be held on December 21, ahead of the school district’s winter break.

“We hope this month is a time to reflect on the effect self-kindness has not only on ourselves, but also on our relationships with others,” the announcement for Kindness Month reads.

More information about Ms Gray is available at karlingray.com.