Tiny Hands, Big Moves – Watch This Kid Handle the Situation Like a Pro!

A 9-year-old North Carolina boy is being celebrated as a hero after using a life-saving technique he learned on YouTube to rescue a choking classmate—an intense moment caught on video.

Jayceon Branch was playing basketball with his friends at Raleigh Oak Charter Elementary on March 3 when 7-year-old Donye Moore suddenly began choking on a granola bar. Surveillance footage obtained by WRAL News captured the terrifying moment as Moore keeled over, struggling to breathe.

Without hesitation, Branch reacted. The older boy reached around Moore’s body and performed two swift compressions of the Heimlich maneuver. The food dislodged, and Moore was able to breathe again.

Donye Moore, 7, started choking on a granola bar while playing basketball during recess. WRAL

Jayceon Branch, 9, immediately performed the Heimlich maneuver on his classmate. WRAL

“We were playing basketball, and he ate a granola bar, and we started playing longer until he started choking,” Branch told WRAL.

“I didn’t know he was actually, actually choking, so I just did my thing, which was a Heimlich. I learned it from watching YouTube.”

Branch had been inspired to learn the maneuver after witnessing a teacher perform it on another student in the past. That experience stuck with him—and when the moment came, he knew exactly what to do.

Donye Moore and Jayceon Branch at the North Carolina school. YouTube/11Alive

Parents and teachers are now calling him a hero.

“He was a hero; he just saved a kid’s life,” said Eric Johnson, executive director of the Raleigh school, in an interview with NBC.

Jayceon Branch, 9, said he learned the lifesaving technique on YouTube. YouTube/11Alive

“We teach our kids to take care of each other, so this is really just a prime example of that. Jayceon just jumped into action so quickly. We’re really proud of him,” Johnson told WRAL.

The dramatic rescue shocked Moore’s mother, Aja, who admitted she didn’t initially grasp how serious the situation was until she saw the footage.

Donye Moore, 7, was saved by his classmate, who was hailed as a hero. YouTube/11Alive

“At first, I wasn’t understanding that he had to be given the Heimlich maneuver or anything like that,” she told WRAL. “It was surprising. I’m just thankful his friend was able to demonstrate that on him.”

Following the near-tragedy, the two boys have formed an even closer friendship, their families said.

To honor Branch’s bravery, the school organized a special “clap out” ceremony, where students, teachers, and parents lined the hallways, cheering him on as he walked alongside Moore. The heartwarming celebration was a testament to a young boy’s quick thinking—and the power of a simple lesson learned online.