A Week of Firsts

Monday we welcomed the class of 2022! 134, four and five year-old students entered our doors for their first week of school. There are very few things I remember from my days as a Kindergarten student. However, writing helps me relive some of the profound events that happened during that year.

When I went to Kindergarten we only went for half days. We played blocks a lot. Ronnie Jenkins jumped out the bathroom window and ran home. I was the tallest student in my class, and at 5 years old was almost as tall as Mrs. Glickman, my teacher. My mom would have triangle cut peanut butter and jelly sandwiches ready for me when I got home from school, and by the way, we walked to and from school, uphill both ways, and in 6 feet of snow (I'm from Buffalo), it was really 30 below zero with the windchill.

Back to the point. Our theme for this year is Structure, Consistency and No Excuses. Many of the children that populate the class of 2022 will have significant challenges. Many will have resource challenges, some will have language barriers, many will come from broken homes, some have been through trials that the grown ups in our buildings have not seen before. We have a choice to make; 1. Make an Excuse or 2. Open new doors. The law of attraction states "if you truly believe in your success and what you will be, it will happen." You've heard this from me before, and you will hear it again. We cannot make excuses for our students, we can not allow our parents to make excuses for their children. We must find a way for each child to experience success.

This week our students will have their first taste of success in reading, their first collective cheer for problem solving in math, the first celebration of publishing their first written word, their first expression of creativity through dance, or drama, the first creation of a masterpiece of art that will surely make Mom and Dad proud enough to hang on the fridge for all to see.

To me this is one of the greatest opportunities and adult could ask for. The opportunity to be the first person to introduce so many exciting new things. I get emotionally charged when I read the drop out rates for students in school. I wonder where or when it was that this young man or young woman realized that dropping out of school was better than enduring the challenges of adults who want to open the doors of success for us.

This week; let's open that first door! Welcome class of 2022!