Take a deep breath! These are historic times for which none of us could have prepared. Your patience and care for one another is phenomenal, even as each family juggles so many new challenges. There’s no rule book for this. And while it feels urgent to try to keep up with academics, we might suggest a different approach.

Educators know this truth: Your kids are amazing! We miss them greatly, and we are doing all we can to thoughtfully connect with them and provide continued academic engagement. We miss the ways they inspire and challenge us, the ways they make us laugh and grow, the ways we used to connect. Like you, some of us are working hard to figure out what it means to teach our own at home and there are some lessons that we’ve learned from that experience...lessons about supporting one another, investing in relationships, and what truly matters. Relationships are at the heart of what we do each and every day.

Use this time as a gift to get to know your child(ren) on a different level, to slow down with one another, to enjoy a different kind of face time, and to appreciate how amazing they are. They may have some fascinating things to teach all of us about how to be resilient in challenging times, how to explore ideas in a less structured way, how to own their learning and motivation. It’s ok for them to take time to process, to mourn the loss of this school year and special events, to email and chat with their friends, to take a meandering walk, and to ask difficult questions. We wouldn’t expect them to have a tightly scheduled day full of academic engagement. Everyone in the nation is taking a collective deep breath, unsure what to make of our situation. Your kids are no different. They are looking to you for a calm, assured approach.

Together we can use this time to be more mindful of what matters most. History assures us that this will be a blip of time that we will remember, but that will leave us better off because of the lessons we will have learned. That’s not to take away how challenging and difficult these days might seem, but rather to offer hope that we’re stronger together. Although this year has been disrupted in a remarkable way, this group of students will grow up knowing how deeply we care and, while we may be separated by time and space, our educator hearts are with them. We care for them. We love them. We want each and every one of them to be successful individuals. With the care and support from their school community and their families during this unpredictable time, we are confident they will become successful individuals.

We believe in you and trust that, together, we can and we will help our students thrive!

Sincerely,

The District Office Leadership Team

Matt Blood Jen Haberling Chris LaHaie

Ken Simon Scott Smith Stacie Voskuil