Today I’m grateful for Kindergarten compliments.

11.1.2024

---

Kindergarteners don’t mince words. They are both brutally honest and incredibly loving, which is the perfect combination for the most genuine, sincere, and sometimes off-the-wall compliments. Kindergarteners call it like they see it. No poker face. No forced niceties. Just raw reactions and unfiltered thoughts.

Now sometimes this can hit a little harsh. I once had a student tell me that they couldn’t wait to grow up and have coffee breath like me. And I’ll never forget the kiddo who told me, on a rare day when I straightened my curly hair, “Wow, Miss Wiebel, you look … (long pause) … better.” But even what may feel like a back-handed compliment from a blunt 5- or 6-year-old, is very likely a sincere expression of love and admiration.

I wore a blue and white striped shirt to school today. At one point this morning I picked up a red plastic basket off the countertop. One of my observant little friends shouted out “I like how you look like a mixed-up American flag.” This was met with immediate agreement by at least half a dozen others who all also needed to tell me how much they loved my America look, how I was as beautiful as the flag, how they wanted to say the Pledge of Allegiance again with me standing right next to the flag, etc. etc. etc. I told you … unfiltered thoughts. But also, very, very sweet.

While I am certainly thankful to be the recipient of many sweet Kindergarten compliments, the ones that hit me in the feels today were actually not directed at me. We were celebrating a student’s birthday today in class, and as part of our classroom birthday tradition, we hold a class compliment circle for the birthday child (an idea I stole from my friend Allison (the Kindergarten Whisperer). As child after child passed the talking stuffie around the circle and shared a compliment with today’s honoree, I couldn’t help but smile. “She makes me laugh when I sit by her at lunch.” “She plays safely on the playground.” “I really like her shoes.” “She works hard in class.” I get all mushy inside each time we do this. I can’t help it. Their compliments to each other never get old.

So the moral of this story … if you’re ever feeling down on yourself, visit a Kindergarten classroom. If you spend more than 10 minutes there, someone is bound to tell you they love your toenail polish or that you have a beautiful elbow. But be prepared, you’re also very likely to leave with a slightly softened heart and a little nudging to go speak some love into someone else’s life too. 5-year-olds, man. They’ve got it figured out.