26 Days of Kawasaki Disease Awareness: Day 17

To observe the 4th annual National Kawasaki Disease Awareness Day on January 26, 2014, I will be posting 26 ideas on how you can spread KD awareness in your own community and beyond - one idea per day until the 26th.  

Here are the past days:

Day 1: Help make 'National Kawasaki Disease Awareness Day' officially recognized at the local, state, and national levels.
Day 2: Create an email signature to promote Kawasaki Disease awareness.
Day 3: Organize an art contest.
Day 4: Pass out KD awareness posters.

Day 5: Write about your Kawasaki Disease experience.

Day 6: Contact news outlets about running a KD story.
Day 7: Decorate your home and car windows with KD awareness.
Day 8: Participate in a KD Clinical Study
Day 9: Share Kawasaki Disease themed infographics and memes.
Day 10: Organize a 5K run for Kawasaki Disease.
Day 11: Get your community involved in KD awareness.
Day 12: Hand out heart lollipops with KD information.
Day 13: Start or join a Kawasaki Disease support group.
Day 14: Buy, make, and wear KD awareness.
Day 15: Organize a charity golf or mini-golf tournament for KD.
Day 16: Organize a local blood drive for KD and donate blood.

Now let's get to today's idea:

Day 17: Get your child's school involved.

A child's tireless energy, innocent curiosity, and indiscriminate compassion gives them everything they need to be the most successful of advocates.  Children truly want to help because they care about the world every bit as much as adults do.  And what better way to teach our future leaders how to show compassion and understanding for thy fellow humans than by helping to save lives? When you see a group of motivated 2nd graders hatch an awareness idea and zealously see it through to fruition, you are seeing advocacy in its purest form.  

Many of these school children have (or will have) younger brothers and sisters who are still at the age when the risk of KD is the greatest.  Every new parent who learns about Kawasaki Disease is a win for the awareness movement.  Here are just a few of the many ways you can get your child's school involved in KD awareness:

1. Write a one page KD information sheet and give enough copies to the school to send one home with each student.  Add useful information, KD statistics, symptoms, or memorable graphics to drive home your message.
2. Give a presentation to your child's class.  If possibly, use PowerPoint, photos, or videos.  If you like speaking in front of an audience, telling an elementary class your story will captivate them; maybe they'll ask you back to present to the entire school!
3. If your school participates in "color days," ask that one day all the students and faculty wear red for Kawasaki Disease awareness.
4. Ask your child's teacher if the class could do a group project creating posters for National Kawasaki Disease Awareness Day.  These can be hung up around the school or even at different places around town.  Offer to bring in the supplies for this project!
5. Pass out KD lollipops to every child in the school (they'll love you for this one).
6. Put on a class or school play that involves the topic of KD.  

What other ways could we get our children's schools involved in Kawasaki Disease awareness? If you've done this in the past, please share your experience with us.  And come back tomorrow for day 18 of 26 days of Kawasaki Disease Awareness.