Saturday morning arrived quiet and pale. Most of the students were still half asleep when they remembered “Mission #03 – Help at home without being asked.” It sounded simple enough, but as the day went on, it turned out to mean different things for everyone.
In one home, Emma tied on an apron and helped her father peel potatoes for dinner. She usually avoided kitchen duty, but this time she stayed until everything was ready — even wiping down the counter afterward. Her father looked at her, surprised. “You didn’t have to do that,” he said. “I know,” she replied, “that’s kind of the point.”
Jonas, meanwhile, grabbed a vacuum cleaner without warning and started on the living room. His mother, coming in with laundry, stopped mid-step. “Feeling guilty about something?” she joked. Jonas grinned. “Not today — just… mission work.”
For some, it wasn’t chores at all — it was making a sibling’s bed, clearing the dinner table before being told, or feeding the family pet early. Little gestures, unnoticed at first, but they made the house feel lighter.
That evening, as parents quietly shared stories in the class group chat, Ms. Larsen smiled at her phone. Her plan was working — the lessons of The December Project were beginning to leave the classroom and make their way into real homes.