March 2015
This past weekend I had the
privilege of observing my own son pushing himself beyond the limits as he was
being tested to earn his black belt. Outside of the pride I felt as a mother,
it really refocused my attention to our conversations and work with GRIT! Grit
is perseverance and passion for long-term goals. In today’s instant
gratification and 24/7 societies, we as parents, educators and coaches of the
next generation, sometimes fail to let our own struggle enough to develop this
grit. Grit is one of the most powerful indicators of success, even more
important than intelligence. Grit means things are tough and they get tougher
before accomplishments occur.
We worry, I know I do about
all the kids in my care, that this will hurt self-esteem, that we need to
support and guide more, but sometimes this is at the detriment of all of our
children’s long-term success. Struggle is one of the greatest gifts to develop
grit. When we let our own struggle with a problem, social situation, or personal
interaction, we are empowering them with the attitude that they can solve it,
conquer it, and rise above it! There will not be an immediate fix that we did for
them.
I urge you to continue to think about letting
your child struggle and work hard, and even be unsure. At school, we will also
work to continue to balance support and plan for struggle, putting a focus on
affording our kids the opportunities to, not have all the answers, deal with
the social situation on their own, with all of our support and guidance, but allow
them to achieve themselves. In all work with children, everything we do has
vast impact. Our greatest pride as parents and educators come from this, as do
our biggest fears. These things matter. The way we ALL work with our children
matters and we know it!
March is a busy month at NPE
and hopefully one that affords us a more typical schedule than the cold month
of February. I hope to see you all at the PTO meeting at 6:30 on March 3rd. I
will begin by addressing redistricting and discuss the upcoming assessments,
NPE events and some of the educational topics that have been flooding the
media.
Together, we will all
continue to grow and reflect and the impact on each and every child at NPE will
be a powerful one!
Warm regards,
Dana Ziegler
Principal
March Reminders
3rd- PTO Meeting
6:30 pm
6th- ½ Day
Parent-Teacher Conferences
13th- Report Cards
go home
19th- Kindergarten
Registration
PTO Denny’s Fundraiser
20th- No School-
Superintendent Conference Day
31st- Math Night
for Grades 3-6 @ 6 pm
