Post date: May 8, 2020 2:38:30 PM
Howdy, Ravens! First, since I know at least a few of you are also teachers, I'd like to wish all my fellow "traditional educators" out there a happy Teacher Appreciation Week! I know it's definitely not like what we're used to, but I hope it's been a great one for you none the less! Juggling all the new responsibilities on top of trying to maintain some normalcy all while navigating the craziness of our current world can be overwhelming, but please know that you are being seen and recognized as the amazing, caring people you are!
I'd also like to send my appreciation to all the parents and guardians who found themselves unexpectedly drafted as our co-teachers. I've seen the tweets and memes and heard the stories from family and friends about what it's been like to suddenly be home schooling, so I know it's not been easy trying to switch between all your new roles along with your "standard" parenting role (though is there anything "standard" when dealing with kids, especially middle schoolers?!). Thank you for aiding us in continuing the learning process throughout these crazy times! Hopefully your children have been showing you some appreciation these many weeks, but please know my colleagues and I appreciate all your efforts!
I can't speak on Teacher Appreciation Week without also acknowledging Nurse Appreciation Week as well. I know several of you are also nurses and my hat goes off to you! My cousin is a nurse and I know from her how difficult all of this has been, so I have no words to fully articulate how grateful I am for all that you are doing on the front lines of all this. Please know that you have my heartfelt appreciation! I know you're working longer, crazier hours, so if there's anything I can do to help, please know that I'm here for you in whatever capacity that may take.
Now onto school and class related stuff. In case you missed it, all the lockers have been cleared out at school and items were bagged and are ready for pick up Monday (5/11) or Tuesday (5/12) from 8AM - 1PM. You simply need to drive through the parent drop-off lane and give your child's/children's name and grade level to the staff and they'll bring it to you curbside. If you are unable to make it for the scheduled pick-up times, please contact the school and we'll try to make other arrangements. I believe email is likely the best method of contact since faculty's time in the building is limited/restricted as well, but please feel free to reach out to me if you're not sure who to contact and I'll help you figure things out from there. Spring pictures and yearbook pick-up is still pending delivery to the school at this point, but it's projected to be towards the end of May or early June, so be on the lookout for additional information about those.
In regards to math, we're wrapping up our work on surface area and volume today (check out the "ECCL Math" letter and guidelines). I realized I made a few mistakes in our paper packet while working with students yesterday, for which I greatly apologize. There were some math errors (don't try to "math" late at night! or at least check your work once fully rested) in the volume of cones and pyramids section and I apparently completely lost the entire surface area of cones and pyramids section altogether when I merged the pages into one file so the administrative team could make the paper copies. I've fixed the digital copies of the "paper packet" and I think everything else is good to go from there, but please feel free to email or message if you have any questions.
To all of my students or really any Raven, please remember that you can message me anytime and if I'm free then, I will happily conference with you! If I'm not free at that moment we can message and set up a time we can have a one-on-one or small group conference session. It doesn't even have to be about math class or school in general. I know some of you are missing school (even if you never thought that would be possible) or your sad, scared, upset, whatever and just want someone to talk to about it. As I told you in class, I'll always be there for you! I care just as much (if not more!) about your mental health as I do about your academic progress.
I spent 30 minutes last night just catching up with a student I hadn't heard from directly since we closed and it brightened my entire day! I miss you guys and I worry when I don't hear from you, so do your poor old math teacher a favor and reach out! At the very least, please keep filling out the check-in form each week (bit.ly/raven-checkin). I miss you guys!
Also keep in mind our regularly scheduled math class time and my Monday tutoring time in the 7th grade group. The regular math class is nothing like "normal" math class, so please consider joining us for a little bit of math and a whole bunch of fun (well, fun until someone ultimately beats us all in Gimkit). While the Monday tutoring sessions are meant to be just a pop-in for a quick question, you should feel free to join me online just to have something different to do.
Well, I'm going to close things out here because I've yet again gotten a little long-winded. As always, feel free to email/message if you have any questions or I can help in anyway. I send you all my love and of course hope that you are all staying safe, happy, and healthy!