Tharptown Elementary School

That is the million dollar question right now! As you all know, our country is navigating in uncharted waters and decisions are changing day by day or even minute by minute for that matter. Our president, governor, and superintendent are making the best decisions possible to make sure our students, faculty, and staff are safe and protected and I trust them to make those decisions for us. It is going to take the help of all of us to work smoothly together to make this situation as best as it possibly can be. So what can you do to help right now?

1. Remain Calm! This is a highly uncertain time, which creates a lot of anxiety in children as well as adults. However, in school, the best thing we can do as a professional is simply remain calm. The more anxious we become, the more anxious our students become. We will do our best to address one problem at a time, but not all problems can be solved at once or at the same time. Do your best to go through your regular schedule and keep students busy and engaged.

2. Be Patient! There is so much information being thrown out right now and with how rapidly things change, we all must be flexible and ready for a change of plans at any moment. I can assure you that I will push out information to you as soon as I know and have been given permission to share. I know there are a lot of unknowns right now, including field trips, report cards, state testing, trainings, and the list goes on and on. The truth is...there are no answers at this time. Before we begin to reschedule all of these activities, we must see what the next few days and weeks hold. Once we know the timeframes for sure, we will be able to make plans, reschedule events, and move forward. However, at this time and with all the uncertainty, we are unable to make decisions on many of these things. Please be patient as we work to navigate all of this.

3. Keep your classrooms/areas clean and disinfected! Continue what you have been doing by disinfecting and wiping down desks, door handles, light switches, computers, and any other common areas that students touch frequently. I have asked our custodians to clean outside door handles at least twice a day and to disinfect our common restrooms frequently. The better we disinfect, the greater we reduce our chances of transmitting viruses and illnesses.

4. Be careful about what you share outside school! Many times information is shared with teachers to keep them informed and prepared. Some of this information can change very quickly and is also intended for school personnel only. Often, incorrect information gets circulated to parents or others outside the school, which can result in confusion and frustation. Anything that needs to be pushed out to parents about this situation will be sent out through webpage, Facebook, letters, or School Cast messages unless otherwise noted. We will work very hard to keep you informed and prepared, but please be aware that not all information should be immediately pushed out to parents.

5. Pray! We are all dealing with difficult times right now. I encourage all of you to pray for our president, governor, and superintendent as they make decisions that will impact all of us. Pray that people will use this time to socially distance themselves from each other so the virus can be stopped and as few lives as possible will be impacted. Pray for our students who will be at home for several weeks in all kinds of circumstances without the love and support of their teachers.

Just a thought....This weekend, I had a community member ask me to encourage teachers to take the time, while school has been cancelled, to call your students or write them a letter/card and tell them what you appreciate about them and that you miss them. How much would that mean to your students?

Thank you for all your help and support. Your help makes this situation much better and easier to deal with!