Smile!

I've embarked on a year-long experiment I wanted to tell you about. Dr. Gortych, WPS's director of guidance and assessment, and I were discussing how to help juniors and seniors access our anti-bullying curriculum, since our advisory program is only running for ninth and tenth grade students. What we landed on were a series of class meetings I would lead. Roughly once a month, I meet the entire junior or senior class in the auditorium for half an hour, for a class meeting where we'll explore what it means to be a citizen at Watertown High School.

For our first meeting, I've chosen a TED Talk to show to students. Ron Gutman, an entrepreneur in the field of public health, explores the hidden power of smiles. Watch the video and see if you find it as fun and intriguing as I did.

We can't give students two thousand chocolate bars each day. (I can just picture Ms. Johnson, our food and nutrition teacher wincing!) We do want them to have long, satisfying, influential lives. Perhaps learning to smile a little more is a start.