Lourdes Secondary School sets pupils a 100-task challenge - including shaving their heads

The challenge has been set by teacher Ali Simpson, of Lourdes Secondary, as one of a 100-strong list of tasks presented to pupils.

They include playing an instrument in a lift; give someone a chest-to-chest heart hug - and shave the letters RAK into the back of your head.

Mrs Simpson has dubbed the challenged RAKtivism - with RAK standing for Random Acts of Kindness.

Residents on the South Side will have a week to get used to seeing odd sights such as youngsters dressed as superheroes and flashmobs on Paisley Road West.

Mrs Simpson said: "No one will be able to manage all 100 tasks but I think they will give it a good try.

"I don't know if anyone will shave their head but when there is a competitive element to something then they tend to really go for it - it remains to be seen.

"Parents tend to go with us and are supportive of our events. We've shared the competition with parents so at least when pupils are asking to come to school dressed as a superhero they'll know it's a real thing."

The idea came to the teacher, who is Principal Teacher of Raising Attainment, after she took part in The Greatest International Scavenger Hunt the World Has Ever Seen (GISHWHES).

Thousands of people from around 100 countries take part each year in the challenge.

Mrs Simpson thought it would be a good idea to create a scavenger hunt for her pupils but narrow the scope of the project to be about kindness.

She said: "GISHWHES was a brilliant thing to do but some of the tasks are weird and wonderful and they aren't solely focused on kindness.

"I thought it would be a good idea to bring it to the school but use it to expand our pupils' circle of concern to get them thinking about other people and how they can help other people.

"They will get the full list on Monday and will have a week to get as many done as they can.

"There are some bigger tasks like volunteering or fundraising and others where we want to get them engaging with the wider community."

Each form class from S1, S2 and S3 is taking part - around 30 classes and 750 pupils and the challenge runs from February 26 until March 5.

Pupils will have to photograph and document their progress to be in with a chance of winning.

Mrs Simpson added: "Kindness can mean a lot of things and I hope they have a laugh themselves doing the tasks."

Here's the list of the 100 challenges:

#1. Get a local bakery/sandwich shop to donate excess food to a woman’s shelter.

#2. Write a positive and uplifting comment on someone else’s social media page.

#3. Make something for someone else.

#4. Plant a tree.

#5. Invite someone you don’t know to join you for a game of football or other team sport.

#6. Volunteer for an hour.

#7. Write a card and tell someone what they mean to you.

#8. Get a grandparent or elderly relative to reminisce about what they were like at your age.

#9. Leave money for a parking ticket attached to the meter.

#10.  Be someone’s rock in a hard time. Write “you rock” on the top of 5 flat pebbles, and “pass it on” on the bottom. Give out to five cool people that you know.

#11. Talk to someone in your year that you have never spoken to before.

#12. Write five positive messages on post-it notes and display in public places eg. “Don’t worry, be happy!”

#13. Make a care package for someone who has just been diagnosed with cancer with a note that says “sending our love from Lourdes Secondary” and drop off at the Wellbeing Centre on the 4th floor of the Beatson Cancer Charity, 1053 Great Western Road (eye masks, scarves, Sudoku, poem, adult colouring books, puzzles, wordsearches, crosswords etc. No products for the skin or anything edible allowed due to infection control).

#14. Donate to the SSPCA: old blankets, washing powder, newspaper, straw, food, toys (SSPCA -125 Kinnell Avenue, Cardonald, Glasgow G52 3RY).

#15. Donate good ondition used books to the school library.

#16. Dress up and do something ordinary in a public place to give people a laugh e.g. Batman waiting at the bus stop while reading the paper.

#17. Make a sign to cheer on a friend at a sporting event.

#18. Thank a teacher at school and explain what they have done for you.

#19. Make someone in your family their favourite meal.

#20. Try something new.

#21. Have a school lunch instead of going out and donate the extra money to charity.

#22. Water a neighbour’s plants/cut their grass/do some weeding.

#23. Sing the chorus of “Thank you for being a friend” at someone you care about https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voNEgCKzves Take a short video and upload to YouTube. Send the link as your submission for this item.

#24. Hand out healthy snacks at break time and say good morning to everyone who passes you.

#25. Make a poster with an inspiring message and put it up in the school foyer.

#26. Donate five items to a local foodbank (collection box in Morrisons).

#27. Write an inspiring post on social media encouraging the world to be a kinder place and get at least five shares.

#28. Arrange to fundraise for Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity…how many sweeties in the jar, sponsored silence etc. What you do is your choice however all monies must be given to Mrs Simpson by MyTime on Monday 5th March.

#29. Organise a food drive for SW Food Bank from your friends, family and neighbours.

#30. Partake in a school beautification project. Think plant/weed/create posters for a dark area N.B. ensure you have permission before you start.

#31. Read your favourite childhood book to someone aged 10 or younger.

#32. Arrange to spend time at Nazareth House or a care home singing for or chatting to the elderly.

#33. Create a free coffee/hot chocolate stand in the foyer. Extra points if there is an opportunity to donate money to good causes.

#34. Show appreciation for someone you think doesn’t get enough recognition at school – janitors, office staff, PSAs etc.

#35. Partner up with another team from another year group and have lunch together.

#36. Create an “advent” calendar with a difference for the next five days – instead of getting a chocolate every day, give something of yours to someone else instead.

#37. Arrange a coat, hat and glove drive with your neighbours and donate them to a homeless charity eg. The City Mission, Shelter charity shop etc.

#38. Forgive someone.

#39. At least 5 members of your team should undertake a litter pick in the local community .

#40. Offer to tidy a teacher’s classroom at the end of the day.

#41. Create a justgiving page for a local cause (e.g. Nordoff-Robbins Scotland/GYIP) and secure at least ten donations from people outside your team.

#42. Go to the beach and write a message of hope in the sand. The larger the better.

#43. There was a hobby or talent you used to do when you were younger that you stopped doing for whatever reason. Do it again. Now.

#44. Give someone a ‘heart hug’. Stand heart-to-heart and hold for two counts.

#45. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Make some pancake art!

#46. Play a musical instrument in a public lift to amuse passerbys.

#47. Many of us have lost pets in our lifetime. Write a poem for your beloved pet as a memorial tribute.

#48. (Side-by-side image). A child’s drawing of happiness. Then, make it happen.

#49. Let’s see what happened with your family’s toys last night while you slept #crazyescapades

#50. Create a short stop motion film about a RAK. Upload to YouTube and send the link as your submission for this item.

#51. Find a new way to play a musical instrument – guitar with a bow, piano with your feet etc.

#52. Create a finger painted mural message. The larger the better. Ask a teacher if you can display it in the corridor somewhere.

#53. In a group of 4 or more, do an activity you like to do outdoors in summer, even though it’s winter.

#54. Shave ‘RAK’ into the back of your head.

#55. Give someone a bouquet of flowers just because.

#56. Go to a library or book store and put the spines of at least 6 books together so they make a silly sentence or phrase.

#57. Get a group of people to sing an uplifting song wearing dental retractors. Upload to YouTube and post the link in your submission for this item.

#58. Make a green smoothie and send us a pic of you with a green moustache after you drink it.

#59. There’s something important you want your local MP to know. Stand in front of something that represents the issue with a sign and tweet them. Submit the image and a link to your tweet to us.

#60. Write something in icing on a cake that you have always wanted to say to someone, and deliver it.

#61. Make a homemade board game and play it.

#62. Get your family to participate in Carpool Karaoke. Go! Upload to YouTube and post the link in your submission for this item.

#63. Bees are in trouble… plant something bee-friendly in your garden (Lilacs, Penstemon, Lavender, Sage, Verbena, Wisteria or anything else you know to be bee-friendly)

#64. Organise a flash mob in a public place. Feel the fear and do it anyway!!! Upload to YouTube and post the link in your submission for this item.

#65. You’ve been putting this off for far too long. Confess to something bad you did that your family/friends don’t know about. Write it on a piece of paper and take a photo of you with a sad face holding up the paper, along with your relative/friend like in a “shaming style meme”.

#66. Use the panoramic photo function on your phone and insert yourself at least three times in a photo. You may not photoshop yourself in. (Hint – you have to run around the person taking the picture every time they pass you in the frame).

#67. Encourage people to take part in a large conga-line at break-time.

#68. Pope Francis set up a laundry station to help the homeless get access to clean clothes. Follow his lead by setting up a ‘Take what you need’ area in a public place somewhere in Glasgow (water, toilet roll, sanitary products, cereal bars etc).

#69. Engage in a tutor group yoga session at MyTime.

#70. Dress up as a superhero and perform acts of kindness on Paisley Road West.

#71. What did we miss? Let’s see five items you think should have been on this list. To get maximum points you need to be writing properly considered ideas.

#72. Complete one of the item’s on your list that you made for #71.

#73. Be tree-huggers. Find some trees. Hug them.

#74. Go on a 20 mile bike ride. Track your progress on a GPS app and submit a screenshot of your route. It can be done over many days or all in a one-r. Extra points if you make a fun shape on the map.

#75. Write a paragraph at the end of the week to summarise what your class have got out of this project. Hint: you can’t submit this item until the last day of the hunt.

#76. Pay it forward. If you buy a coffee or drink, buy an extra and leave it at the café for the next person. Alternatively, give it to a homeless person.

#77. Count how many times you have said thank you today. Write the number on a piece of paper and take a photo with it as your submission.

#78. Make a voucher offering services that can be redeemed at a later date and give it to someone e.g. “This voucher can be used for one night of free babysitting.”

#79. Phone someone you haven’t spoken to in a while.

#80. Write down three things you are grateful for.

#81. Share with someone…food/activity/problem.

#82. Welcome and offer directions to a visitor to the school. Remember to ask their permission for a photograph first.

#83. Teach someone how to do something you can do.

#84. Mass participation in exercise. Go!

#85. Explore. Go with a family member or friend to somewhere you haven’t been before.

#86. Show someone a photo of a happy time you had together. Talk about why it was special to you.

#87. Lend a hand. If you can’t take an image of this, write a few sentences and tell us what you did.

#88. Help a teacher. Do some laminating, put up a wall display, tidy a cupboard…

#89. Let someone else go in front of you in a queue.

#90. Do 5-10 minutes of a meditation app on your phone. Even better if you can do this enjoying nature somewhere.

#91.  Walk or cycle somewhere instead of taking the car or bus like you usually do.

#92. Get up an hour before you usually do and do some exercise. #sweatyselfie

#93. Get everyone in your tutor group to submit a photo and make them into a collage.

#94. Photoshop yourself into a famous painting/photograph. It must look like you are supposed to be there.

#95. Visit a relative/friend/neighbour who is ill in hospital or similar.

#96. Tell me a joke.

#97. Help a sibling or cousin with their homework.

#97. Life is what you bake it. Bake with someone you love.

#98. Make a parent/guardian a cup of tea.

#99. Surprise a parent/guardian by doing a chore without being asked.

#100. Take a younger sibling or cousin to the park.