"I'm Not a Teacher"

      This is something I heard from a parent in a different district/building the other day, with regard to Remote/Hybrid Learning At first, it made me a bit crazy. I thought, "Surely, you can help your child with his/her school work." Then I remembered that other grade levels are much more difficult than what I do each and every day.

     I know that last year, when the pandemic hit and our school buildings closed, I tried to make things as easy as I could for the parents. I read my students stories three times a week, asked the families to share pictures from a weekly scavenger hunt, and ask the kids to get on Zoom at three different dates for a class sing-along.  My main goal was to make it fun and educational for the families and not something that felt like a chore. They were dealing with enough. We all were.

     But what about those older kids? What about those families that don't understand the principles of "new math," or work full-time, or lost jobs because of the pandemic? There is so much on their plates and helping their children with school work isn't that high on the priority list. What about them?

     This is why grace and communication are so very important right now. None of us knows the personal battles others are fighting. Show grace in all that you do!