Educators often talk about cycles in the school year – the fresh start of a new school year is the honeymoon period, the week of progress reports is where the rubber meets the road, and the end of a semester or of a school year is the time of gratitude and appreciation.
Right now we are in the hard work phase where routines are expected to be internalized, assignments and tests turned in, and feedback gets real. Our artist scholars may be settling in or they may be struggling to adjust. My word of advice? Don’t panic. Even if your child is questioning their passions or feels unsettled, remind them to take a deep breath, hang in there, and put in the work.
We learn from our arts the value of practice and the discipline of putting foot to slipper or pen to page or brush to canvas even when we may feel uninspired. We also learn to love feedback for the way it helps us adjust and builds community as we take time to see and hear each other’s contributions – even if we are unfinished in our process.
The first progress report of the school year will be in AERIES for parents to view by Thursday, Sept 30. I hope all of our artist scholars are feeling more settled and in practice than not in ALL their classes including math and english and science. But also be patient – we are still in a pandemic and its impact continues to take a toll. No matter what the subject and how our kiddos are adjusting, know that our team is here to partner with you. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to your child’s teachers if a little more feedback or practice will help your child feel in sync with school these days. I’m also here to be your partner and support students from exactly where they are at.
To growth and embracing the spirit of emerging in this no-longer-new school year!
Warmly, Michelle Cortez