The Morris Minute
April 2020
Welcome to The Morris Minute!
Email: andersonb@bfschools.org
Website: bfschools.org
Location: 700 Garfield Street Southwest, Bondurant, IA, United States
Phone: 515.967.6361
Twitter: @BonduMorrisJays
A Note from Mr. Anderson
Well, here we are in Week 4 of our Extended Days at Home Schedule. I wanted to make sure that I let everyone know how proud I am of the #MorrisJays family. Everyone from our families at home, to our teachers at home, have really done a fantastic job of sorting through this as best we can.......TOGETHER! Education has always been about a "village mentality", and we are seeing it right now. It takes everyone together looking out for one another at this time, and we are doing just that!
On Mondays, we have been sending out one communication to each grade level with optional learning opportunities for families to try. Again, we are not expecting parents to become teachers and teach new things to students. We recognize that life is happening in many different ways in many different homes. Most of our teachers have families and are trying to balance life in this situation as well. It is hard for all!
We are continuing to send our learning opportunities via email each Monday. Secondarily, we are offering a printed version of the Monday email for those that do not have devices, internet, printing capabilities, etc. These printed versions are nothing different than what is in the email. What we are sending is trying to limit the need for paper to be a major part of the daily plan. If you have no other way to access these optional activities at home, please reach out to your teachers and we will let you know where and when you can expect to find those printed forms. It will most likely be the High School lobby area by the Auditorium at a set time that will be communicated later. We will need to be able to get these lined up as our buildings are closed, and we will need to have staff come in and make them, as well as get them to the appropriate place to be picked up. Please be patient and understand that this won't happen, most likely, on the same day that we send the optional activities home, but likely a day later.
Another new communication that will come home this week will be a link to an online "hub". This will house each grade level's learning choices, related arts choices, online resources, and other quality information all in one spot. We will send that out as soon as we know it is up and running. We have had some fantastic people behind the scenes making this happen, and I believe it to be a great place to find what you may be looking for in a "one stop shop" kind of way!
Me? I miss the students and staff like crazy! I know our teachers are working hard and doing their best to make the most of this situation. I check in with them regularly. But I will also tell you, it just isn't the same. I really enjoy seeing the smiles and the interaction between our students and staff members every day. I can promise you this, I am unbelievably proud of our teachers and staff at Morris! I am incredibly proud of our community! There is no better place! I have this great expectation that this will only make us better. This will only make us stronger. Our relationships are the most important thing we have, and not being able to forge them in a manner that seems real on a daily basis hurts. I won't be taking the time I get with kids for granted when this is over. Not that I have before or anyone else has either, but the time back with them will be special, extremely meaningful, and something to cherish.
I miss all of our #MorrisJays. I can not wait to see the halls filled with smiles, hugs, high fives, and fist bumps again! When that day comes, it is going to be hard to contain the smiles, the laughter, and maybe even the tears. Until then, please be safe. Please reach out if you need help. If you don't know where to turn, turn to us. We will find a way to make it happen! Be strong everyone.
Sincerely,
Ben
Check our school Facebook page to keep in touch!
Mr. Anderson does live announcements each weekday at 9am (if he has to change the time due to a meeting, he will make a note of it earlier in the day.) We loved checking in with so many of our families during our Virtual Spirit Week - feel free to post pictures to let us know what you and your #MorrisJays are up to during our extended stay at home.
A few notes from Ms. Jen
I could NOT stop smiling after the parade - thank you to everyone who made signs and came out to wave as we all drove by - it was just what we needed to get us through. We still miss the students terribly and hope our efforts to flatten the curve have made an impact. We hope for continued health for everyone and some sense of normalcy returning to our lives at some point soon. We are all in this together.
Love and electronic hugs (for now) - jen