The US spends hundreds of billions every year teaching children how to read, write and calculate. But what about kindness? In some places, kindness is now a subject in school — and a remarkable free programme is making it possible for educators everywhere.
PTPI's mission has always rested on a simple conviction: that when people connect, understand each other, and lead with humanity, the world becomes a little more peaceful. That is exactly the conviction behind Kindness 101 — and we think every chapter in our network should know about it.
Neil Lahammer — The Nation's First Kindness 101 Teacher of the Year
Neil Lahammer is a third-grade teacher at Burnside Elementary School in Red Wing, Minnesota. For years, he has built his classroom around character, kindness, and the belief that how children treat each other matters as much as what they learn. He runs a Kindness Club. His students describe him in terms that stop you in your tracks.
In January 2026, CBS journalist Steve Hartman surprised Lahammer's class mid-lesson — his students had just started watching one of Hartman's Kindness 101 videos when Hartman walked out of the Smartboard and into the room — to announce that Lahammer had been named the inaugural Kindness 101 CHARACTER COUNTS! National Teacher of the Year. The award was presented in April at a gala at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, and will now be given annually.
"He makes me smarter and he makes me happier. He's my whole world." — A student in Lahammer's class, speaking to CBS News
What Is Kindness 101?
Kindness 101 is a free K-12 educational programme from CBS News and CHARACTER COUNTS! at The Ray Center, Drake University. It was launched 18 months ago with one clear goal: to bring lessons on good character and kindness to teachers and students around the world at no cost.
Each lesson is built around a short, real-life video from Steve Hartman's "On the Road" series. Around that story, the team at Drake University has prepared a complete, ready-to-use teaching package.
"The idea was to develop curricular resources around stories that elevate the best of our country — and we're going to do all this so that educators don't have to pay to get them." — Scott Raecker, Executive Director, CHARACTER COUNTS!
What You Will Find There
Lessons cover topics including resilience, persistence, gratitude, bravery, honour, grit, listening, everyday heroes and many more. Every lesson is adaptable — use any combination of elements to suit your students and your time.
- A short video — real, heartwarming stories from CBS News' "On the Road" series, engaging for students of any age
- A hands-on activity to help students apply what they have seen
- Discussion prompts to deepen understanding and encourage open conversation
- Journal prompts in both K-5 and 6-12 versions for individual reflection
- A Google Slides deck ready to project or share in an online classroom — no preparation needed
- Family Connections — a take-home resource so the conversation continues beyond the classroom
The Six Pillars of Character
The curriculum is built on CHARACTER COUNTS!'s Six Pillars of Character — a framework that will feel immediately familiar to anyone in the PTPI family.
Why This Matters to PTPI
President Eisenhower founded PTPI on the belief that people-to-people connection — grounded in understanding, empathy and shared humanity — was the real foundation of peace. Kindness 101 is teaching exactly that, one classroom at a time. And it is free, globally accessible, and built entirely on real human stories.
For chapters running youth programmes, school partnerships, or community education activities, this is a resource worth bookmarking, sharing with local teachers, and building into your programming.
A Sample Lesson: What Kindness 101 Looks Like in Practice
One of the most-used lessons on the platform is built around the concept of Everyday Heroes. It features a short CBS News story about a 20-year-old who travelled the country to interview World War II veterans before their stories were lost forever. Here is what a teacher receives:
- The video — 3 minutes. Students immediately understand what drove that young person to act
- Activity — students identify an "everyday hero" in their own community and write or draw their story
- Discussion — what makes someone a hero? Does it require a big gesture, or is it something quieter?
- Journal prompt (K-5) — "Who is a hero in your life and why?" (6-12 version explores the idea of legacy)
- Family Connection — a one-page take-home that invites families to share their own stories of quiet heroism
Lessons are available in English. Discussion prompts and journal questions are straightforward enough that chapter leaders and local teachers can adapt or translate them for their own communities — reinforcing the global reach Kindness 101 was designed for.
Explore Kindness 101 — Free for All Educators
Register in seconds. Choose a topic. Start using it immediately — for any age group, in any country, in any language context.
💛 A Message to Every PTPI Chapter
We would love to hear from chapters already using Kindness 101 or similar character education resources in your schools, communities and programmes. Whether you are in Tallinn or Togo, Kansas City or Kathmandu — if you are finding creative ways to teach kindness, empathy and good character, your story belongs on this platform.
And if you know of other free educational resources — for children, young people or adults — that align with PTPI's mission of advancing peace through understanding, please share them with us. We are building a resource library for the whole network, and your knowledge and experience are exactly what we need.
Let us know what you are doing, what you have found, and what is working. Every chapter has something to teach the rest of us.
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