When you think about essentials and who they are, you probably think of that nurse that you know, or maybe that friend that works at the grocery store.
There are so many faces, titles and names that come to mind when we think about essential workers, and just as those workers have helped get us through the pandemic, we, as a community, must thank them for being essential.
Teachers fall gracefully and with great purpose into the group titled essential workers, as they are essential not only to our children, but to the community. Teachers are responsible for educating the children of tomorrow. They work with the utmost dedication to create an environment for young minds where they can learn and grow into the best people they can be.
Schools, like every public place, have changed so much over the past 14 months of the pandemic. Students and teachers alike were asked to work in a completely new and foreign environment. Online learning began as a temporary thing in April of last year. Senior students were graduating and the young ones were finishing up their year online. To say it was different from what most of us had considered 鈥渘ormal鈥� is an understatement.
This recent year has been a year of more chaos and circumstances that never seem to stay the same for too long. Schools transitioned back to in-class learning, then they were online again for a while, then it was back to in-class learning. Nonetheless, the children and teachers have been resilient. They鈥檝e taken all the hits that have been thrown their way in stride.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been different, but it's been going really well. The students have been amazing with the new protocols and everything that has been in place. The staff have been flexible and willing to implement the new changes while still offering really good programming and giving the students everything they need for their grade level.鈥� says Tyler Fehrenbach, the principal of the Carlyle Elementary School.
鈥淢y hope is that we鈥檒l be back to the way we were at the beginning of last year. I mean there will probably be some restrictions still, I don鈥檛 know what they鈥檒l be. My hope is that we鈥檒l be back to normal but I have a feeling we鈥檒l be back to 鈥榤ore鈥� normal with some restrictions would be my guess.鈥� says Fehrenbach, when asked what he thinks next year will look like.
Take a moment to look at your children, appreciate their strength that has gotten them so far and will take them even further yet. Take a moment to think of the teachers who have taken the time to foster their growth and education, thank them for all they have done.
To the students and teachers of today and tomorrow, you are doing excellent.聽
