Dear RBS Family,
Can you relate to this scenario? A random Tuesday evening, 8:45 PM, kids are (mostly…) in bed, kitchen table covered with plates and glasses, notices piled into a corner, backpacks on the floor, the kid’s hamper by the washing machine overflowing, trash that needs to be taken out, and you (the adults…) are just feeling exhausted from all that’s gone on that day… If this isn’t a more or less universal ‘raising kids’ experience, I don’t know what is! But earlier this school year, it felt like Daniela and I were having too many of those evenings. We tried to think rationally about “why” this was. We’re both educators, we’re both (admittedly, she more than me!) reasonably adept adults – how have we not ‘figured this out yet?’ What we realized collectively is that, as with most of these kinds of things, our efforts to “be helpful” and “spend time with our kids” – which of course are wonderful things and really don’t deserve to be put into quotes, but our ‘being helpful so that we could spend time with them’ meant not having them as directly involved in the day to day work that goes into, well, life.
So we spent February working to revamp our ‘day to day’ to be more explicit about “backpacks go there;’ ‘when the hamper fills up, split it into different colors and then throw a pile into the washer,’ ‘Lucas sets the table and Gabi puts all the dirty dishes into the dishwasher’ – and so forth, coaching up, setting a timer when needed, and yes, taking away a screen or the like when things got, um, “sluggish.” Now, for those of you who have been doing this kind of thing for years, I commend you (and am a little jealous). For those of you thinking, “my kids won’t do that!” – I say “try it.” And see what works for your family and situation. Here’s what I know: first and foremost, we are having less of “those Tuesdays.” But maybe just as important – these days more than ever, our kids need to feel effective, and feel meaningful. Those kinds of things ensure that you’re helping build independence and a sense of efficacy that are the real markers of success as they grow older. And, yes, having fewer of “those days” means – in the long run – that I have more time to spend throwing the football, or playing a game, or just being with my kiddos.
I write this thinking of one of the “April Fools Jokes” we told earlier today: “Why is everyone so exhausted on April 1? Because they just finished up a 31-day March 😊.” It’s true – this is a busy, hectic, sometimes-tiring time of year. As such, I hope that RBS remains a joyous part of your family’s days, as it does for me, Susan, and my whole team. As always, reach out with whatever we can do to help you and your children as we head into the final part of this school year! A few pragmatics:
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Next month, we embark on an especially important task: our thoughts and reflections about next year. A critical part of that as we begin to reflect on our hopes and goals for the 2022-2023 school year is class placement decisions for our students. We know this placement is a tremendously important one and give each part of the process very careful consideration. The goal is the thoughtful creation of classes that are balanced based on academic and social needs and learning styles, in concert with the creation of a thoughtful and positive child/teacher “fit.”
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The process begins in May with our grade level teams creating initial groupings following a careful review and analysis of each individual child’s academic and social needs. We look for the balance described above, and ensuring that students have a combination of familiar faces and opportunities to meet new friends. Your voice is important both here and in the child/teacher fit, and as such, we welcome any written information you would like to share about your child. Please understand that we cannot honor requests for specific teachers, as they may interfere with our ability to achieve the necessary balance across each class and grade level, but all other written information will be carefully considered by the placement team.
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If you have information you wish to share, as some parents have done in the past, kindly send it to Kathy at [email protected], by Friday, April 29th or hand it to her in hard copy form. Our teams use all the information they have gained from knowing your child so well over the past year(s), so please do not feel obligated to submit a note.
A few other quick updates:
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As you saw in a district communication earlier this week, we continue forward on the path towards ‘normalcy’ by upping our cafeteria capacity, wherein all our students will be eating in the RBS café by the end of next week. We’re excited to reintroduce this practice, and will set up with our students new seats, etc., when we return on Monday, and begin the practice later on in the week.
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Another change coming: a heads up that we’ve learned that our student lunches will no longer be free during school year 2022-23 (but will remain no cost for all students through the end of this school year).
May you all enjoy a wonderful weekend, and we’ll see you back here on Monday!
-Noam, Susan, and the RBS Team