One of the benefits of public education is that students can come to school and see people from different cultures, maybe a few who speak different languages. It’s their first time in a more public place where they experience diversity.
Every family doesn’t go to the beach every summer for vacation. Some families have only one child and some families have six or eight children. And the exposure to differences in the human population, I think, is one of the greatest things.
One of the actions I would like to see more parents take is to communicate with the school in positive ways.
Parents are heard by the school administration, and when they keep calling just to report problems, then you get the feeling that there’s only problems, and that’s not the case at all.
If more often parents would say, “Oh, I really love that you did the project with the butterfly lifecycle, and my students got to watch the caterpillars hatch into butterflies,” or, “I’m really happy that you planted flowers with my student and let them bring them home. And now they planted the flowers in my garden”…
I would like to encourage parents to communicate their joy, not just their frustration.
School is not just subjects that you do, but it’s everything all about life that’s joyful.
–Carolyn Albright
Kindergarten Teacher, Northampton Area School District
Walnutport, Pennsylvania
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