I am rather surprised (and mildly disappointed with myself) to see that I have not posted yet on a wonderful program: Roots of Empathy.
The "Roots of Empathy" program is based on a simple premise: babies bring out the nurturing instincts in humans, and thus interacting with them is a useful tool for battling bullying in schools. As discussed in this New York Times article, it's quite effective: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/08/fighting-bullying-with-babies/
The article describes how the interaction with the infant has a tremendous affect on the students, drawing out their nurturing instincts and making the class a calmer, kinder place -- and this from just one day a month of interacting with an infant.
There are many lessons we can take from this program. As a few suggestions: humans are not meant to live in age-segregated isolation; humans have a natural tendency to care for others when in a natural setting; babies are awesome. Whatever you take from it, though, one thing is certain: interactions with young children and infants is extremely beneficial for those people (children, adolescents, and adults) who care for them.
To end with a question: Should programs like "Roots of Empathy" be more widely used in schools?
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