Pushing Forward

Let me start with THANK YOU!!

You’ve made it, we’re more than halfway through the longest haul of the school year!  This 11 week stretch is an exhausting time that wears hard on teachers.  I know many of you have battled, are battling, or will battle colds, flus, and just general exhaustion.  The kids feel it too but it manifests in a little different way.  They become restless and antsy.  They seemingly forget all about why they come to school.  With the end of Quarter One and parent conferences now in the rear view mirror, students no longer feel a sense of urgency and often times lose focus.  All of these things combined make this the most grueling 11 weeks of the school year. BUT, like I said, you’re more than halfway there, thank you!!

In order to get you to the winter break in one piece I’m asking you to do a few things this weekend and for the next few weeks:

1.  Take care of yourself.  Eat well, get some exercise, and take a step away from school and enjoy the beautiful autumn weather we’ve been having.  If you’re not well, stay home and get the rest you deserve.

2.  Take care of each other.  I want to say thank you and congratulate you all for being so amazing to each other already!  Everyone who has stepped up to cook for others, bring them medicine, be someone to lean on, supported the musical/sports/MUN/ASAs; you are all immensely important to this community.  Without everyone’s support and passion this school/community wouldn’t be as amazing as it is!

3.  Smile.  Take a few moments to reflect on the amazing opportunity that we all have.  Canadian Thanksgiving has passed and the American version is just around the corner but there’s no reason that you can’t stop and collect your thoughts in order to appreciate the wonderful lives we have.

4.  Read (and watch if you have a VPN) this poem.  This is from one of the most well-known poets to come out of the poetry slam movement, Taylor Mali.  If you’ve never heard of him before…be warned, his stuff is awesome!!!

http://www.taylormali.com/poems-online/what-teachers-make/ (Read)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGKm201n-U4 (Watch, with a VPN)

Thank you again 🙂