Service Learning in Action: Why Doing Good Is Part of Learning at UFS

Each year, as we honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., our school community comes together for a Day of Service. While the projects themselves take place in a single day, the learning behind them stretches far beyond it.

At United Friends School, service learning is not a one-time event. It is woven into how children come to understand their place in the world, as capable, compassionate people who can notice needs and respond with care.

What Service Learning Looks Like in Our Younger Grades

For our youngest students, service begins close to home. On campus, children engage in hands-on projects that allow them to experience the joy and responsibility of helping others in concrete, age-appropriate ways.

This year, our prekindergarten–3 students remained on campus and worked on a variety of service projects, including:

• Making handmade cards for others

• Assembling toiletry bags

• Baking brownies and cookies to share

• Creating art with the intention of giving

Through these activities, children practiced cooperation, patience, and follow-through. They saw how small actions, mixing ingredients, decorating a card, packing a bag, can come together to make something meaningful for someone else.

Just as importantly, they began to understand why they were doing the work. Service learning at this age is about building awareness: noticing that others have needs, and recognizing that they themselves can help meet them.

Taking Service Beyond Campus in the Upper Grades

As students grow, their service learning grows with them. This year, our fourth- and fifth-grade students and our middle school students took their Day of Service beyond campus, spending the day working with the Mennonite Community Center (MCC) in Harleysville.

These off-campus experiences invite older students to think more deeply about community responsibility, equity, and connection. They also challenge students to adapt to new environments, collaborate with unfamiliar partners, and reflect on how their efforts fit into the larger work of serving others.

By engaging directly with a community organization, students can see service not as an abstract idea but as something rooted in real relationships and shared responsibility.

Learning That Connects Head, Heart, and Hands

Service learning is powerful because it brings together reflection and action. Students are not simply told that kindness matters; they experience what it feels like to contribute, to work alongside others, and to see the impact of their efforts.

Over time, these experiences shape how children see themselves. They learn that service is not about recognition or charity, but about relationship and responsibility. It becomes part of how they move through the world.

As Dr. King reminded us, “Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve.” At United Friends School, service learning helps students discover that truth, not just through words, but through practice.

Families who want to learn more about how service, reflection, and community are woven into everyday learning at UFS are invited to explore our programs, visit our campus, or reach out to start a conversation. We welcome families seeking a school where children are encouraged to grow with purpose, empathy, and a sense of responsibility toward others.

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