Palmer High February
Principal's Post
The Key to Success- Learn to Fail
This last weekend my son entered a big mountain free-skiing competition. The skier has a section of the mountain that they have to travel down with the freedom to choose what line they want to take. The competition is scored by a panel of judges to determine which skier has the best run. For most parents, this involves the type of risk-taking that we don't want our kids to be involved in. The kind that leads to injury or getting themselves in trouble. I had that uneasy feeling and thought, 'what if he gets hurt'. I had to rely on knowing that he has the skills and ability to navigate the course safely.
In the end, I learned that the real risk for him was the risk of putting himself out there to be judged by the panel and his peers, and failing in front of them all. That takes courage. He did not win the competition and did not do as well as he could have or wanted to, but what he did learn is that it's okay to fail. I listened to him and his friends and they all learned a lot about themselves from the adversity of the event. They all grew from the experience and that made the risk a valuable life lesson.
What does all this have to do with education? Well, the experience had me contemplating risk-taking experiences and helped me draw parity between life risk-taking and academic risk-taking. They both take courage and they both help us to grow. The fertilizer for growth occurs as a result of failure. I often talk to teachers that get frustrated with students that are not willing to take an academic risk because they fear their GPA will suffer. Taking risks should be a part of life and although it may come at the risk of failing, we learn and grow from the experience.
To clarify: failing is being used in the context of not doing their very best. In other words; a student getting something other than an "A" on school work, or winning a competition.
Academic Awards Cerimomy
ACT District Testing for MSBSD Juniors
MSBSD is partnering with the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) to offer the American College Test (ACT) on February 20, free to all MSBSD juniors, for a second year. ACT District Testing provides students, parents, and schools insight into students’ college and career readiness.
The test will be offered on February 20th during the school day. Reach out to our guidance department for additional information.
Palmer Hockey State Tournament
Parent Teacher Conferences
To work around families work schedule we are flexing teacher work scheduled to provide time in the afternoon-evening on Monday. Tuesday there will be a dedicated time in the morning.
Monday, February Conferences: 12:00pm-4:30 (Lunch 4:30-5:00) 5:00-7:30pm
Tuesday, February Confernces: 7:15am-10:00am (10:00-2:45) professional developement time.
*If you cannot make conferences the best means to communicate with teachers is via email.
To access teacher emails visit our website: https://www.matsuk12.us/phs
Go to the staff tab and it will give staffing list in alphabetical order.
Visit Palmer High's Facebook Page
Email: paul.reid@matsuk12.us
Website: https://www.matsuk12.us/phs
Location: 1170 West Bogard Road, Palmer, AK, USA
Phone: (907) 746-8400
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Palmer-High-363754610660424/