Sunflowers and Sunshine for a Monday

 Principal ponderings...

It was certainly tough to leave the sunshine in the Caribbean and return to snow in MA last week.  I thought we could all use some sunshine inspiration on this Monday after break.  

I came across this beautiful print that was painted by a man named Adam Young from Young Studios in Newfoundland.  He auctioned it off and all proceeds has gone to Voices for Children in the Ukraine. $25,000 was raised. The sunflower is the flower of Ukraine. I wanted to drop in some resources about talking about kids about war. Some of our students will come to school like mine and have no idea about what is going on. We don't watch the news in our house and we try to shield our kids from many things. But they go to school and hear about the news from other kids. Because other kids will come to school having seen or heard news reports. Some may have already talked about what is happening with their parents and some may have lots of questions. Some may be scared because they don't understand what is happening. And as educators, we have to simply be ready for whatever comes our way on a Monday after vacation. If you have students who you need more help with, please reach out to us in the office.

This kids news video clip contains several stories but the first one explains what is happening in Ukraine.

And here is another one that talks about how to talk to kids.  I will be sharing this with our parents.

Here is an article about how to talk to kids about violence, crime, and war.

Here is a toolkit for engaging kids during a crisis.

Lessons about the Ukraine Crisis

Thank you for being a positive presence for our kids to return to today.  

Currently reading:

I was gifted a new picture book before the break by a Mayo family.  It was even gift wrapped!  The brother and sister who gave it to me said that they knew I would like it because it was all about kindness.  It's called Share Some Kindness, Bring Some Light.

I also was sent a new book from Bookelicious or maybe I won it after attending a Principal's Roundtable...not sure.  All I know is I got a new book in the mail!  It is Jason Reynold's new book called Stuntboy, In the Meantime. It's a combo of a graphic novel with more text in it.  But I love that the main character talks about dealing with "the frets" or anxiety. 

Events this week:

Monday - Welcome back! Motoko visiting 5th grade classrooms

Tuesday - We made it to March!  Get ready for Marvelous Mondays in March

Wednesday - CST meeting @ 8:00am

Thursday - Liz in virtual PLT Meeting from 9:00-11:00

Great things I noticed last week:

What if...we had social mentors?  KD and 4V had some special time together before the break!

Check it out:

My good friend Brian McCann is a high school principal who is retiring this year.  He always creates amazing videos with his students.  The perfect one for today...