Don’t be deceived…..my office doors were never locked. Despite being off contract for the last five weeks, I have in fact been working. Emails never stop, phone calls must be returned, and yes, there’s are still meetings to attend. Plus, I have teachers who need to get in to work in their classrooms, because despite those pesky rumors that teachers have summers off… that is just a myth. They work (we work) our tails off during the summer. It’s is all the behind the scenes work that takes place in the summer that makes the magic happen when the kids come in two days after contract starts.
As we prepare for our new year, my kiddos have been on my mind. Some have been on my mind all summer. I have a bunch of kiddos that I keep in my prayers on the regular, and not seeing them daily makes my heart worry. I have a pack of kiddos that get weekly ‘care packages’ because I want them to know that they are still part of us, even when we are off.
As we kick off this school year, I am excited for the fanfare….it is going to be great! I have some special plans (Stay tuned….not letting the secret slip) in place to welcome my teachers and staff back, and some fun things in store for the first day. But truly, this is all the fluff. The things that really matter are the things we do daily: consistency with our PBIS plan, implementation of our curricular initiatives, being data wise, and being a united team that serves our students and families.
While we continue to refine our educational practices with behavior and academics, we will also be looking at really infusing some quality tier one classroom guidance lessons surrounding the zones of regulation, and self calming/coping strategies. We have been working on this in Tier two settings, but with some of the things that are impacting our communities and families, with student ACES scores on the rise, we have to do a better job of helping all students have the skills to get their social and emotional needs met.
As part if this I have some fun stuff planned for staff to help them incorporate this into their classrooms. I have been pinning away- find me on Pinterest ‘From the Principal’s Office’ with ideas and activities to support teachers and students as we work to refine the way we address social and emotional learning. We all know that children who are not behaving are not learning, and we have to address the underlying factors that impact student behavior.
For all of my educator friends out there I am wishing you an amazing year with your kiddos….because I know it is going to be an amazing year with mine!!
