STUDENTS NATIONWIDE CALLED TO COMPLETE KIND ACTS IN CELEBRATION OF 17th ANNUAL RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS WEEK Dara Klatt, Discovery Education240-662-3043, Dara_Klatt@discovery.com New Kindness Generator Launches to Serve as Online Resource for Students, Educators and Families to Track and Inspire Kindness Worldwide DENVER, February 9, 2017 – High tech meets high touch, as the Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) Foundation enhances 2017 Random Acts of Kindness Week #RAKWeek2017 by launching an online Kindness Generator, which will serve as an online rally point for activities worldwide this year. With the Kindness Generator, classrooms everywhere can find inspiration for kind acts to perform during RAK Week and create weeklong challenges for their schools, communities or even themselves. Additional kindness-focused lesson plans and classroom activities are also available through the companion Discover Kindness in the Classroom initiative, in partnership with Discovery Education. RAK Week, which will be observed Feb. 12-18, 2017, is an annual opportunity to unite through kindness. Formally recognized in 1995, this seven-day celebration demonstrates that kindness is contagious. It all starts with one act – one smile, one coffee for a stranger, one favor for a friend. It’s an opportunity for participants to leave the world better than they found it and inspire others to do the same. Since inception, RAK estimates that millions of schools, celebrities, businesses, and partners have participated in these weeklong celebrations. The new Kindness Generator also will serve as a central repository of challenges from RAK partner organizations and a newsroom, which will tally acts of kindness in real time and call out how many people globally are participating in challenges. The Kindness Generator will allow users to even track challenges by location. RAK anticipates at least 50,000 people will launch challenges through the Kindness Generator in recognition of the 17th annual RAK Week, including top name celebrities and entertainers. To accompany the Kindness Generator, classrooms can also utilize resources available through, ‘Discover Kindness in the Classroom,’ a recently launched initiative by RAK and Discovery Education that offers standards-aligned resources for grades K-8 that teach important social and emotional learning skills. Available at no cost, these materials are designed to stimulate thoughtful conversations between educators and students about the importance of kindness in their daily lives, and include lesson plans and activities that highlight concepts such as compassion, respect, and fairness. “The ‘Discover Kindness in the Classroom’ program makes it easy for educators to model kindness for students,” said Kristen Davis, first grade teacher in Santa Rosa County, Florida. “I am incorporating this program in my classroom everyday. My students have become so much more aware of how kindness affects others because of the lessons we have done in our classroom. Their inspiration has rubbed off on other students through their positive outlook and change in mindset.” WHAT: 17th Annual Random Acts of Kindness Week WHEN: Sunday, Feb. 12, – Saturday, Feb. 18, 2017, with National Random Acts of Kindness Day designated as Feb. 17, 2017, in the United States WHERE: Random Acts of Kindness Week is observed worldwide. HOW: Commit to participating in 2017 RAK Week by signing up at www.randomactsof.us and either add a challenge to the Kindness Generator or pledge to take part in a kindness challenge established by another person, educator or organization. Use #RAKWeek2017 on social networks to spread the word. About Random Acts of Kindness FoundationAn international nonprofit, The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation, believes that kindness is key to making the world a better place. This nonpolitical, nonreligious organization leads the way by reminding people that they have a choice to be kind and provides them with free tools to make kindness common in their everyday lives. Learn more at randomactsofkindness.org. About Discovery EducationDiscovery Education is the global leader in standards-based digital content for K-12, transforming teaching and learning with award-winning digital textbooks, multimedia content, professional development, and the largest professional learning community of its kind. Serving 4.5 million educators and over 50 million students, Discovery Education’s services are in half of U.S. classrooms, 50 percent of all primary schools in the UK, and more than 50 countries. Discovery Education partners with districts, states and like-minded organizations to captivate students, empower teachers, and transform classrooms with customized solutions that increase academic achievement. Discovery Education is powered by Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), the number one nonfiction media company in the world. Explore the future of education at www.discoveryeducation.com. # # #