Happy Friday! Each week I wait... for inspiration for the intro to our staff blog, hoping it's something that you enjoy, or makes you think, saves you time, or makes you smile. I also try to consider questions from staff members- and the idea that if one person asks a question, others are likely wondering, too. With this in mind, I'd like to share a few things about our morning arrival to school and to class.
First, past practice has been for the bell to ring at 8:45 and gates close at that time. From the beginning of the year I've been observing and noting the impact of this practice and two huge things that I noticed were that the office staff was writing SO many tardy slips, even for kids arriving before 8:50. And, the WORST driving happens between 8:45 and 8:50-- cars screeching in the lot, worried about being late, dropping kids in the middle of the lot, and speeding. Stressed out kids and parents. And yet, at this time around our campus, kids are still unpacking backpacks, entering classrooms and starting their day. We sometimes have had kids from the same family arriving in the same car- and one of the kids being marked tardy and the other not- simply because of the location and having to walk farther after arriving. Add to that that the state law with regards to tardies doesn't have any teeth until kids are 30 minutes late. So, yes, we have a warning bell which signals to the kids to come off the playground and duty ends at that time. What is new is that the upper gate DOES close at 8:45. The two lower gates are closing at 8:50 or shortly thereafter. I'm out there until about 8:55, welcoming families and sending kids to class or the office. Do I think it's important that school start at 8:50? Absolutely! But the reality is that between 8:50 and 8:55 many classes are in flux with unpacking and getting started with our day. Not unlike our staff meetings which technically start at 3:30, but we have the soft start to allow teachers to arrive and get settled in a stress-free way. I was reminded of Pernille Ripp's blog post about 5 things we do to kids that would make adults revolt. What if I closed the door for staff meetings at 3:25? What message would that send? How would you feel?
So that's why the change. So for you, not much will change- duty still ends at 8:45, Monday flag raising will be at 8:45-- that was always earlier anyways.
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| From our staff meeting presentation this week |
Related to the end of your day, and Fridays.. one of my personal goals is to leave on Fridays at 3:30. So far I have made this exactly ONCE. But it's still my goal! I encourage you to try to get out as early as you can to get started on time for YOU :)
Have a great weekend!
Dates & Details
Everything you need to know is in the doc embedded below.
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