Did you know that you have an “invisible bucket” that you carry with you everywhere? When someone does something nice for you or you do or something nice for another person, it fills up. However “bucket dipping” can happen when someone is unkind. They think they can fill up their own bucket by dipping from someone else’s, but that’s not the way it works. The only way to fill up your own bucket is by adding drops to the buckets of others.
These are some of the words one might use to explain bucket-filling to young children. Retired Worthington guidance counselor, Joanne Zwick, would begin each school year with my first graders by sharing a book about bucket-filling and having the kids draw what they thought their “invisible bucket” might look like if they could see it. When Joanne first taught this lesson to my students, I was thrilled because I had already been introduced to bucket-filling as an adult through leadership training and knew that its application to children would be quite powerful. And it was. The lesson included an adorable song “Fill a Bucket…” that the kids would sing to her each time she came to visit. This bucket-filling lesson set the stage about how to treat each other and we were able to build on this concept throughout the year.
I am blessed. I am surrounded by bucket-fillers everywhere I go. My office is full of evidence of bucket-filling! Early in the year I walked into my office to see a most adorable Mickey Mouse scarecrow that was a gift from the office staff. They knew I was a Disney fanatic and wanted to “fill my bucket” by adding some cheer to my office. Bucket drop!
My son, Colin, often comes to school with me. One day, he used paper scraps to punch out this message from the die-cut machine. 
Bucket drop! I will often find a really nice note in my lunch or text on my phone from Colin. He is one of the best bucket-fillers I know! A couple of weeks ago, I received a beautiful planter with flowers from my administrative cohort group (COPS) offering me encouragement when my dad had open-heart surgery. How sweet is that? Bucket drop! And just this week, I received a very kind, hand-written note from a district administrator about my transition to Granby. Bucket drop! I added it to small collection of other bucket-filling cards I have received from a variety of friends and family and it will eventually be added to my collection of professional “bucket drops” along with another note I received from that same person a couple of years ago.
Each day at Granby, my bucket is filled to overflowing as I am stopped for a hug, given a beautiful picture made just for me, have a great conversation with a child or adult, or just get a friendly smile or wave. One of my absolute favorite things to do at Granby is to stand at the end of the sidewalk as the busses pull out at the end of the day and wave the kids off. Certainly not because they are leaving (as I can’t wait for them to return), but because their smiles and waves tell me that they have had a great day of learning and are going home with full buckets because of how they have been treated by their fellow Gators. I’ll even get a little honk from a bus driver every now and then. How great is that!? 😀
In Worthington, we get it. We understand that bucket-filling is important. It’s a part of the culture at Granby and across the district. We know that students who have full buckets are more engaged and ready to learn. We know that staff members who have full buckets are more productive employees and provide the best they have to offer our students. We know that parents and community members who have full buckets are more open to collaborating with us and making great things happen for kids.
Never underestimate the power of the bucket drop. How full is your bucket? Bucket-filling…. a fine, fine practice in a A Fine, Fine School! Whose bucket will you choose to fill today?
(Want to send someone a bucket drop? You can do it from your computer @ http://strengths.gallup.com/116275/Drops.aspx. Give it a try!)
A Fine, Fine School! 