4th Grade Teacher Goes Viral for '30 Seconds or Less' Kindness Philosophy: 'Your Words Have Power' (Exclusive)

Natalie Ringold has been teaching her students the buzzy lesson about how to treat others since 2019

• Elementary school teacher Natalie Ringold posted an Instagram Reel teaching her students a lesson about kindness with a simple philosophy and a tube of toothpaste

• As Ringold explained in the now-viral video, her students should consider whether someone can change something about themselves in "30 seconds or less" before making any comments

• The educator spoke to PEOPLE about how she came up with the message, which has impressed millions of social media viewers

Natalie Ringold is spreading kindness in her classroom, and she's sharing her teaching tricks for the world to use.

The Minneapolis-based teacher posted an Instagram Reel recorded during one of her 4th grade lessons in June. In the video, Ringold, 29, explains a simple yet profound way for her students to think about how they treat each other.

"If somebody can't change something about themselves in 30 seconds or less, then you shouldn't be mentioning it to them," she begins the video, speaking to her classroom of kids. She explains that it's appropriate to tell a friend that their shoe is untied or that they have "a little fuzzy" on their clothing.

According to Ringold, it's even okay for the students to politely inform their peers, "Hey, your pants are unzipped. I wanted to tell you privately because I didn't want you to feel embarrassed, but it happens to all of us."

Related: Why One Mom Washes Her Kids' Shoes Instead of Buying New for Back-to-School (Exclusive)

These types of comments are fine to say, because "if you tell someone something like that, they can change those things in 30 seconds or less," Ringold notes in the now-viral video, which has more than 1.8 million likes on Instagram. "But if you comment on someone's hair color or hair texture or hairstyle or body, they cannot change that in 30 seconds or less about themselves."

She continues, "Your words have power. If you say something that someone can't change in 30 seconds or less, you say those things."

The video then sees the teacher squeezing toothpaste onto her desk, making a mess that she futilely attempts to push back into the tube: "You try to fix it. You try to apologize. You try to take the words back," she says with fingers covered in toothpaste. "But it's something they couldn't change about themselves so it's very messy. You can't totally take those words back. You can't totally fix it."

The educator tells PEOPLE that she's been honing this specific philosophy for years, making it what her students have dubbed a "Ringold Special" because of the way she's "continued modifying and editing and almost perfecting the message."

Related: Man, 83, in Tears After He Surprises 22-Month-Old Neighbor for First Day of Preschool Sendoff (Exclusive)

"I first did this lesson when I was teaching 5th grade, so that would've been in 2019, and the lesson has completely transformed since then," she adds.

But in some ways, this Ringold Special has been in the works for far longer than five years. The Minnesota native says she's wanted to be a teacher since she was in 3rd grade. She used to transform her childhood bedroom into an imaginary classroom so she could "play school" with her family and friends.

"So throughout my entire life, even as a 3rd grader, I would be thinking about my future students and my future classroom and what I wanted to do," Ringold tells PEOPLE. "Whenever I came across an idea of something that I wanted to replicate or implement in my own classroom, I kept a mental note of it, or even sometimes a physical note actually ... to remember those things because I knew I wanted to use them."

During high school and college, Ringold collected thoughts on how she would someday lead a classroom, filling binders with ideas for when her dream came true. The toothpaste metaphor, she recalls, came from a post she saw on Facebook, and while she's not sure where she picked up the "30 seconds or less" concept, it was natural to combine the two sentiments.

Related: A Bride Wanted to Get Married at Her Childhood Home, Her Dad Works for a Year to Turn It Into Her 'Dream Wedding Venue' (Exclusive)

She's been amazed to witness her students apply the lesson to their own lives, and she's even heard them repeat the message verbatim while interacting with each other. By sharing it online, she hopes other educators can bring it into their own classrooms, but the video's viral impact has proven that its value extends beyond young minds.

"The audience grew from just teachers to everyone," Ringold tells PEOPLE of her Instagram Reel, which has reached more than 37 million viewers. "It exploded in a way where there were so many other people who weren't even teachers commenting on the post, saying like, 'Adults need to hear this message. Everyone who is joining social media needs to hear this message.' "

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.