Impact
The LearnKind Curriculum makes kids kinder and happier.
LearnKind was built on a simple idea: kindness is a powerful skill which can be practiced, strengthened, and measured. Grounded in scientific inquiry, the LearnKind curriculum has been evaluated through rigorous research to understand how kindness education impacts kids’ social, emotional, and academic development.
What the Research Shows
Kids are 12% more prosocial
[Compared to the control group] Children in the LearnKind group were kinder, more helpful, more generous, and showed greater consideration for others.
Kids are 9% happier
Children were happier after using the LearnKind curriculum.
Kids are 14% more attentive
Children in the LearnKind group were less restless, distractible and impulsive, and had fewer difficulties concentrating and paying attention.
Kids were 7% better behaved
Children in the LearnKind group broke fewer rules and showed less aggression, fighting, lying, disobedience, and loss of temper.
Kids were 5% better at math, and 4% better at reading
Children in the LearnKind group achieved higher grades in maths and reading.
Kids have 6% better peer relationships
Children in the LearnKind group had fewer difficulties with their peers, including instances of loneliness, bullying and social isolation.
Our Reach So Far
500,000+
Students Served
8,000+
Educators Participating
83
Countries Reached
All 50
U.S. States Participating
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A kinder classroom is a stronger learning environment.
Kindness shapes how we learn, how we lead, and how we connect. It influences the way students collaborate in classrooms, navigate challenges, build relationships, and contribute to the communities around them.
But kindness is not simply a personality trait or something children either have or do not have. Like any skill, kindness can be practiced, strengthened, and developed, and research increasingly shows that intentionally teaching social and emotional skills can support healthier, more connected learning environments.
Kindness is teachable. Kindness is measurable.
To better understand the impact of kindness education, LearnKind was evaluated through a rigorous randomized controlled trial during the 2022–23 school year. In this study, classrooms were randomly assigned to either implement LearnKind immediately or continue with typical classroom practices. Researchers measured student outcomes before the curriculum began, and again after implementation.
The study examined more than whether students could define kindness; it explored how kindness education influenced the whole student experience. Researchers measured changes in kindness, happiness, emotional well-being, behavior, attention, peer relationships, prosocial actions, and academic outcomes to understand how building kindness skills can shape classroom culture.
With LearnKind, kids become student scientists.
Students who participated in LearnKind demonstrated meaningful improvements across measured outcomes compared with students who had not yet received the curriculum. Findings showed growth in kindness, happiness, peer relationships, prosocial behaviors, and classroom experiences, along with improvements in emotional and behavioral outcomes.
These results suggest that when students are given intentional opportunities to learn and practice kindness, the impact extends beyond individual actions into the broader learning environment. While many SEL approaches help students develop skills like self-awareness, empathy, and relationship-building, LearnKind is unique in making kindness the central skill students investigate, understand, and apply. Through scientific inquiry, students explore why kindness matters, examine its effects, and practice turning knowledge into action.
Kindness is a skill that helps students thrive.
LearnKind’s findings contribute to a growing body of research demonstrating that social-emotional learning can play an important role in supporting student wellbeing, relationships, and success. Across research on SEL and positive development, the message is clear: students thrive when they feel connected, supported, and equipped with the skills to understand themselves and others. Teaching kindness is not an “extra”; it’s an investment in the environments where people learn, work, and grow.