Passion for teaching early childhood kindness

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We are looking for passionate creative volunteers who will commit to helping the Children's Kindness Network (CKN) become a major organization reaching young children with kindness values. Our ambassador of kindness is Moozie the Cow who children love. Moozie connects with children in a special way. Society's greatest asset is our young children. Moozie captures that. Just as SMOKEYBEAR is known for fire prevention, we want Moozie to be known for kindness.

CKN has much to offer as you will see by the enclosed research.

We are looking for individuals who can see the potential for having a Moozie to reach children. Moozie reaches children as a puppet, or costume, or robotic. She has books and orchestral music scores wrapped around her two books-- played by orchestras such as Nashville Orchestra and Atlanta Orchestra --children's concerts.

It is hoped as you become acquainted with Moozie, you will see the unique potential Moozie has for making a difference. We are looking for strong creative, innovative volunteers with a passion for young children and kindness. Visit www.moozie.org

Following is Moozie's research report from BrainHealth.

Center for BrainHealth Kindness Enterprise Kind Minds Research Study

Objective: Kind Minds research study aimed to understand how kindness can be a potentiator for brain health by engaging parents in an online curriculum. We aim to encourage parents to engage in practical, brain healthy interactions with their children that aid in better understanding of one another, relating acts of kindness, and empathizing especially during times of stress.

Methods: We developed and produced a series of online interactive modules that teach parents about the four Moozie applications of kindness - kindness to others, themselves, animals, and the earth - and provide exercises to practice with their children. Thirty-eight parents (ages 26-46) of preschool aged children completed the Kind Minds curriculum. Half of the group received additional brain science education explaining the why behind the exercises in the modules. Core neuroscience areas included neuroplasticity, empathy, perspective taking, and resiliency.

Hypothesis: Parents in both groups who engage in the online curriculum and practice the exercises with their child will increase resilience and observe increased empathetic

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behaviors in their child. We predicted the group that received additional brain science education would show additional gains in resilience.

Results: Parents in both groups showed increased resilience (P<.001) and reported higher levels of empathetic behavior in their child (P<.001) after completing the Kind Minds curriculum. There was no significant difference between groups.

Discussion: Results support the notion that kindness is a powerful brain health booster that can increase resilience and empathy. This research study was timely and relevant for parents in light of the myriad of stresses brought about by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Study findings serve as a model for leveraging neuroscience-based online curriculum to empower parents with strategies to combat stress that has been exacerbated by the pandemic. There are broader public health implications for equipping individuals with tools to take a proactive and preventative approach to their brain health.

Future Directions: Next steps could include pairing the kindness curriculum with cognitive training to see how that may further enhance resiliency in parents of young children. Additionally, future studies should incorporate more diverse populations (ex: account for race and socioeconomic status).

Impact of Kindness

This work furthered our mission to expand awareness, adoption of kind habits, and scientific discovery of the impact of kindness on the well-being of individuals of all ages and our communities.