Why You Shouldn’t Underestimate the Power of a [Core] Day

The scene is a high school gymnasium. The room echoes, the way it does when 120 students and staff are buzzing with curiosity, nervously laughing, and repeating chants of “hey burrito,” led by a passionate adult on the mic. At one point a tarp is brought out. There is a challenge. We see the world’s largest jump rope.

Within minutes, the students are having conversations with classmates who were once strangers but are somehow now friends. “What did you have for breakfast?” “Do you like raisins?” “Who is one person you admire and why?”

To an outsider walking by, it looks like an exciting day. At first glance, a whirlwind of activity - chants, challenges, and camaraderie. But for the students engaging in the gym, it's a pivotal moment of realization:

Friendship doesn't have to come in the form of a best friend.

What might seem like a fun day of out of class is actually an experience that will significantly influence these students. The hard-to-explain feeling will stick with them for the week. Maybe change their year. Though the activities are light-hearted, the purpose is powerful: give students permission to let down their guard, build relationships with other students, and try something new with the peers they’ve known for years. Practice compassion. Experience connection.

You may be thinking, How does one day of compassion make a difference? Won’t students just go back to the way things were before Core Day?

Perhaps, there’s some truth to that. Character development is a long process that continues well into adulthood. But the real reason we shouldn’t underestimate one day of compassion is because intentionally practicing something is how students get started—how they get better.

Practicing compassion is how we transform poster phrases like “spread kindness” from a cliché into a part of who we are.

The type of school culture administrators and teachers dream of doesn’t happen overnight, but the best chance for change is by being intentional and strategic. Here are three reasons why one intentional day of compassion is a strategy that begins to transform culture:

1. It will create a new compassion pathway in the brain.

Just like learning to draw, extending compassion is a skill. When students are invited try something new, like saying hi to someone they don’t know very well, the brain realizes it’s capable and is more likely to repeat that skill. Something like a “brain highway” is formed, and it becomes easier and easier to go down that road in the future. The next time students are faced with a decision about how to interact with someone, they now have an experience and a neural pathway to follow.

2. Lonely students will be seen.

Teenagers are experiencing unprecedented levels of loneliness. For a teenager, there's perhaps nothing more devastating than seeking connection with others, only to be ignored, unheard, or unseen. It's not exaggerating to say that a single moment of connection amidst a sea of isolation can profoundly impact someone who has only known loneliness. Breaking the cycle of isolation can happen in a day, in a few hours, or in one conversation.

3. Students will set aside differences.

Students report that the number one reason they aren’t friends with someone is because they don’t have anything in common. But typically, those commonalities are based on obvious traits—things like the sports they play or the clothes they prefer. Students quickly realize we are a lot more alike than we are different with questions like, “Have you ever experienced the loss of a loved one?” or “Who can speak more than one language?” Giving students the opportunity to go beyond the surface increases empathy and builds unexpected friendships.

In a world where kindness can sometimes feel like a rare commodity, Core Day offers students a chance to try something new. It's a reminder that compassion is not just a sentiment but a skill that can be cultivated.

Learn more about bringing Core Day to your school and introducing a culture of compassion.