I’ll be the first to admit I’m pretty naive to situations that happen in our country. Me before 2/14/18; “Oh that happened there. That happened in that city. That happened to that school.”
But now it happened here. It happened near our city. It happened in our school system.
Yes, we can make smarter voting decisions. Yes, we can make our schools safer. We can keep the kids inside, behind bullet proof windows, protected by armed officers. But that’s not all we can do, not even close.
I’ve worked in the public school system for 10 years and here’s what I can tell you. Not every child goes home to a family waiting for them. Not every child gets a home cooked meal at night. Not every child is told they’re loved or that they matter or that someone cares about them. Not every child is taught about managing anger or expressing emotions appropriately. Not every child’s life is sunshine and rainbows.
The teachers, we try our best to make up for what’s lacking at home. But gradually over time they made us spend less and less time working on social-emotional skills and focused all our energy on….you guessed it, testing.
I recently met a boy who has been to 7 schools in less than 3 years. He’s 8. He has no stability. He’s witnessed terrible violence. He has no role models, no mentors, no family checking in on him. He’s angry, he has strong emotions he doesn’t know how to control. He needs someone to guide him, listen to him, show him kindness. Yes, teachers do these things but we need more man power.
We need people to volunteer in our communities. I know you’re busy. I know you work. I know you have families to take care of. But we need help. We need people to be involved in the upbringing of our future. We need people to eat lunch with our students. Ask how they’re feeling. Start after school clubs. Become a mentor. Volunteer at the Boys and Girls club or youth centers. Read with our the next generations leaders. Bottom line, we need more people to tell our kids that they’re loved.
We need you to help us lessen the mounds and mounds of testing, so we have more time to check in with our students. We need you to show up and speak up. Ask about mental health programs. What is the state doing to help these children? Vote and take action.
We need you to help us spread kindness. We need you to be a bearer of light in a world of darkness. Join us in making a brighter, more peaceful future for our children. We’re all in this together. #msdstrong
