Patrick Henry Post

In recognition of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., St. Louis Public Schools and many businesses and schools have the day off. Since 1986, MLK Day has been a federal holiday. People celebrate Dr. King's legacy in many ways. At Patrick Henry, though we are not together as a school, we encourage our staff and students to use the day off as a day of service to those around us in our community. Using Dr. King's example as a model, we know that service can take many forms and have many impacts, both seen and unseen. We hope you use this day as an opportunity to honor a man fundamental to changing the status quo, fighting the injustice around him, and serving those who needed him most. Dr. King's impact is still felt on a daily basis in St. Louis, and we know there is still a long way to go in the fight against injustice and inequality. Leading by example, Dr. King showed us that there is no time like the present to stand up for what you believe in, and to fight for communities on the margins. Thank you to Dr. King for his service to our country in the face of severe adversity, and thank you to all those who fight against injustice.

For more resources on how to celebrate this special day, please see the articles below:

Teaching and Learning About MLK with The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/15/learning/lesson-plans/teaching-and-learning-about-martin-luther-king-jr-with-the-new-york-times.html

National Service on Making This a "Day ON," Rather than a Day Off: https://www.nationalservice.gov/serve-your-community/mlk-day-service

NBC News, Meaningful Ways to Celebrate MLK Day with Kids: https://www.nbcnews.com/better/lifestyle/meaningful-ways-celebrate-martin-luther-king-day-ncna960351

Though we only had a four-day week last week, we still made some wonderful memories. Students just completed their second week of the spring semester, and we are finally back into a routine once again. It feels exciting to be back at school after such a long winter break, and we are ready for the challenges of this semester, particularly given the immense growth we saw in our reading scores at the end of first semester! More results will be shared next week, but for now, I want to say congratulations to all of our young readers for challenging themselves immensely in the area of reading. We are so proud of you, and we know you will only grow more as this semester unfolds!

Pictured below, our fifth grade students lounged in the Reading Room as they explored our new books. I love these pictures that show off that this room is truly for all of our grade levels. The books we have available to our students are of a large age range, and our students are encouraged to find books that interest them. They might be attracted to a book for the cover, the pictures inside, the content of the story, the characters, or it might even be a favorite author from their childhood. Students are able to browse freely in this space and make themselves as comfortable as possible while they read. We want to instill in all of our students a love of reading, and the Reading Room is the perfect space to curl up with that perfect book!