Weeks of March 13th & 20th

I have never experienced two more diametrically opposed weeks of teaching as these past two weeks were for me and your children. One moment I am spending time in the classroom, hovering over your kids, pushing and prodding them towards academic, social, and emotional success. The following week I have the same goals in mind but am providing guidance and instruction from the 'comfort' of my own home via technology. For the foreseeable future, unfortunately the latter is our new normal.

I constantly need to remind myself that although these children are at the top of our Central food chain, they are still babies in their own life cycle. PLEASE be mindful of what the kids see, hear, and are exposed to on tv and the internet. As 9-10 year olds they are developmentally incapable of processing much of the information and graphics that they are being bombarded with from the outside world and media. Feel free to limit their exposure to material that they cannot fully understand and that is NOT presented in a kid friendly format.

I do want to make sure I THANK you and your child for everyone's effort, approach, and enthusiasm exhibited last week during eLearning. My team and I are already talking about how we can best continue to deliver engaging, curriculum-focused instruction to the kids after break. I can promise you that I will do my part to allow the kids to feel as much a sense of normalcy with their education as possible during these abnormal times. I thought the opportunity to connect visually as a class yesterday was both exciting and therapeutic for each and every one of us, myself included!

I wish nothing but good health for you and your entire family these next few weeks. Have a family board game night, visit a virtual museum or zoo, enjoy a family read-aloud, or experience a virtual gathering with friends or family as I did the other night with my sister in DC. Whatever your choice of activities during break, keep them safe and your family safe as well. Please give your child a hug for me and tell them I can't wait to 'see' them after break.