Monday Memo
Week of April 27th, 2020
Another week complete....
YOU ARE DOING A GREAT JOB!!!!
We are all doing our best. Whether that’s keeping up with work demands while at home, educating our kids while they are out of school, caring for others ‘virtually’ or simply taking care of more responsibilities while trying to create a ‘new normal’ in a time of uncertainty. You are doing a great job.
You’ve heard the word resilience, but maybe you’ve never really thought about what it means. Chris Peterson, one of the founders of Positive Psychology, said it best when he described resilience as the ability to ‘struggle well’. We are more apt to thrive when we embrace the life lessons in our challenges, examining with curiosity, the patterns in our struggles. We can cope...with hope.
This is a time to do a few things we normally don’t prioritize:
REFLECT
Use this time to reflect on what you’re doing well. It may not feel like you’re having many successes each day. You may feel lost or hopeless at times. But, if you spend some time each day reflecting on the small victories (completing a task for work or getting a load of laundry done) you’ll find that you’re making it work.
BE GRATEFUL
Aside from celebrating the small accomplishments, recognize things for which to be grateful. Do you have food in the refrigerator? Are you healthy? Can you connect with your family and friends via phone or computer? Did you smile at least once today?
COMMIT TO SELF-CARE
Self-care doesn’t mean you should take a bubble bath or get a massage. It means you should do the things that bring you joy and give you energy. Do you like to cook? Enjoy exercising? Play an instrument? You may find there is more time for you to focus on things you’re passionate about or start something new.
BE PRODUCTIVE
Even though you may not be accomplishing all the things on your ‘to do’ list, make sure you’re getting done what you can so you can feel a sense of purpose each day. Don’t push yourself (see the second point in self-care), but try to set realistic expectations of yourself.
GIVE GRACE
The main thing to keep in mind during all of this—give yourself a break. You are doing the best you can with the situation at hand and putting pressure on yourself to ‘do better’ can make challenging times even more difficult. And, make sure to give grace to those who may be having a hard time being productive while juggling various challenges of their own. Everyone manages stress differently. None of us know what the other person is going through, so be kind.
I'm so very thankful to be a part of this amazing team. Keep moving forward - one step in front of the other. We've got this!!!!
Jenn
A few photo reminders of why we are doing what we're doing.....
Karina and Pluto learning together
Jacob making a cake with his mom
Eloise matching her letters
Kyrii baking some yummy brownies
Jaxon working hard in his mom's office
Logan reading a story to a special friend
A few other bits of information......
Our First Virtual Spirit Day
Friday, May 1st will mark our first "virtual Spirit Day" for Kawartha Heights - officially "Super Hero Day". Please encourage your students to participate by dressing as their favourite super hero (traditional, or someone that is a super hero to them), writing about their favourite super hero and posting/sending us pictures of how they are participating. I'm hoping this will allow families who can, to participate in something a little fun together - while staying apart.
Overview of Student Engagement
Thank you to those of you who have sent along an overview of your student engagement to date. I'll be reviewing the information this weekend and providing you some feedback as a whole staff about some steps moving forward. Stay tuned!
The Kawartha Heights Hub
Any new information such as memos, meeting notes, etc. is posted to our Kawartha Heights Hub. It's like having all good info on speed dial! Don't forget to use this as your go-to spot...and let me know if there is anything you'd like to see added.
Supporting and Reassuring Parents through Distance Learning
A reminder to please reinforce the message of support and flexibility with your parents when communicating with them this coming week. As much as learning is important, right now mental health and well-being needs to be the number one focus for ALL of us. We need to be vocal in giving our parents and families permission to do what they can, and reach out to us if we can support.
Pedal for Hope
Thanks to those of you who have volunteered to support in our Pedal for Hope "virtual" committee! I'm really excited to get this up and running - there will be lots of great ways our staff and students can get involved. Pedal for Hope will be running from May 4th to June 6th this year. Stayed tuned for next week's Monday Memo as we launch this exciting new event for our school!
Weekly Meetings
This is the week that we have Division Check-ins on Wednesday, in lieu of a full staff meeting. I'll send you an invite, but just for reference we'll be meeting as follows:
Juniors - 9am
Primaries - 12pm
Kindergartens - 1pm
Support staff - please attend the Check-in for the division you work with the most.
Please let me know if there is anything you'd like me to add to our agenda!
Support Staff
Our amazing support staff team has been working hard to connect with many of our families that we're worried about. Thanks to them for being an additional contact, listening ear and shoulder to cry on. A reminder that if you have a family that pops up that you feel could benefit from some additional contact, please just let me know. We are meeting once a week as a team to review needs - so just let us know how we can help.
Parent Survey
Thank you for your support in getting a great response rate to our Parent Survey (48 families!). I am compiling the results of the Parent Survey to share out with families in the Parent Peek at the Week. There are some questions that are more suited for us, than posting out publicly. I've attached them below. It's worth taking a look - we are very fortunate to have such supportive families at our school! Please know that some families have identified themselves in the comments - I ask that you keep this information confidential and not share with the wider community. For the rest of the results, please take a look at the Parent Peek at the Week when it comes out over the weekend. Please remember that some things are out of our realm of control. There are also some comments that I will contact families directly about - and will cc you (for example if they have indicated they need technology).
Just one more thing....
It's not a fancy image or inspiring picture - but it's what I want you to know right now (and the word teacher can be substituted for educator - you are all teacher/educators!).
Jennifer Sampson
Email: Jennifer_sampson@kprdsb.ca
Website: KawarthaHeights.kprdsb.ca
Location: 11 Kawartha Heights Blvd, Peterborough, ON, Canada
Phone: (705)742-7521
Twitter: @KawarthaHPS