OKOTOKS-Some positivity is being offered through podcasts.
The Good Shepherd School’s Wellness Leadership Team – Even if You Miss - formed a podcast group to help and bring a positive message and smiles for students.
“We’re mostly doing this to inspire kids to help out their community – inspire them to make the world a better place and try to change it,” said Good Shepherd School Grade 6 student Aidan Cozens.
The podcast idea got started in the spring of last school year with planning. It took off in September – the school launches a new five-minute podcast every Tuesday.
They used Christmas ideas for the holiday season and they are currently working on Valentine’s Day.
For Cupid’s big day the leaders are presenting Lova, a humourous look at love.
And they aren’t afraid to looking outside the classroom for interview subjects.
Dallas Flexhaug, of Global TV Morning News, was interviewed last week at Good Shepherd School.
“We chose her because she kind of does this and she (talks) about things in Calgary, the province, the country and the world,” said student Taylor Lewis. “She is a good mentor. She taught us a lot of things about how she persevered. How she didn’t know what she wanted to do with her life. She figured it out eventually. You need to work hard.”
The Flexhaug quote that hit home for the students was– and lives up to the podcast's goal –“You have to love the hard stuff enough, to get to the dream.”
The leadership group has an awesome podcast idea for the future.
“We really want to do an interview with Neil Pasricha,” Cozens said of the Book of Awesome author.
The Even If You Miss crew recently did a podcast on positivity which dealt with many of the best-selling author’s quotes.
“We have connected with him through email,” said Jacealyn Hempel, Good Shepherd vice-principal. “He said he is busy right now, but he is very interested.”
A future topic is Peace and the Power of Silence or Peace and Quiet.“It’s about how silence is really important in someone’s life,” said Grade 6 student Rachel Lavery. “Sometimes you just need that moment to yourself to think through your life.”
The creative students used something that would drive the good folks at the Eagle 100.9 nuts for Peace and the Power of Silence – dead air.
“The first line is “Silence” and then we pause for a little bit maybe 15 seconds,” Lavery said. “Then we say: ‘It’s peaceful isn’t it?”’
Silence may be golden, but the leadership team is causing a stir at Good Shep and it is doing more than podcasts. It has also established Recess Club and other ventures.
“Every week we choose a new grade and all of the Grade 6 Wellness committee chooses a game and we play with them at recess,” said Lavery.
It’s not just the students being helped.
“We do a pop-up staff room for the teachers – because we don’t have that big of a staff room,” Lewis said. “One day a week we set up a staff room in the library so they can just eat their lunch and talk to each other.”
The leaders also post inspiring quotes around the school to lift students, staff and visitors’ spirits.
A quote is from which the team got its name. Even If You Miss is from Norman Vincent Peale’s quote: “"shoot for the moon, even if you miss you will land among the stars."
To listen to the Wellness team’s podcast Google: https://evenifyoumiss.blubrry.net/
