Another school year is arriving, brimming with the promise of freshly sharpened pencils and perfectly pink erasers.
It’s a welcome return to near-normalcy after the pandemic pummeled the once-predictable routines of bus rides and field trips, crowded cafeteria tables and all-school assemblies.
The first day of class is nerve-inducing for many students — and parents — even in normal times. Now, almost everyone could use some help getting their bearings.
Eleven ºüÀêÊÓƵ-area educators shared their advice for parents on how to make this year a happy, successful one for their children.
Read, read, read.
People are also reading…
Jen Hake of ºüÀêÊÓƵ teaches third grade at Shaw elementary in ºüÀêÊÓƵ Public Schools. She preaches to her parents and her pupils the importance of daily, get-lost-in-a-book reading.
“It’s the key to their academic success across the board,†Hake said.
Third grade is a watershed for reading proficiency; it’s when the curriculum shifts from “learning to read†to “reading to learn.†Students who aren’t proficient by the end of third grade are significantly less likely to graduate high school than those who are, studies have shown.
No need to plunk your child down in front of a copy of “War and Peace,†though. It doesn’t matter much what they read, as long as they’re reading. “Everyday reading†— billboards along the highway, cereal boxes at the kitchen table, signs at the zoo — counts, too.
“Let them read whatever they’re into: graphic novels, magazines, comics,†said Carrie Pace of Maplewood, who teaches at STEAM Academy Middle School in Ferguson-Florissant School District.
And check in with them once in a while. “Watching them do the work can be really telling,†Pace said.
Tone down the technology
Lisa Engel of Webster Groves spent most of her career teaching children — and educators — how to use technology, back when “zooming†meant going fast. Screen time had been accelerating even before virtual learning took hold in March 2020, but the pandemic tethered youngsters to technology in an unprecedented way, said Engel.
“It can be a great thing,†she said. “But it can be more negative than positive. You wouldn’t think a tech person would say that.â€
Engel, who will be working for the Special School District this year, appreciates using apps like Kahoot! and Quizlet to punch up lesson reviews. But she is also grateful for the analog joys of recess, when kids invent games, whoop and holler, fight and make up.
“Kids need authentic relationships,†she said. “Parents should not bury their heads in the sand when it comes to technology.â€
If your kids have a phone — Engel’s own children got them in seventh grade — go bare-bones at the beginning, she said. Enforce limits, and make sure they know Mom and Dad can go through their accounts whenever they want.
Explore extracurriculars
What should your kids do with that newfound free time once they’ve unshackled themselves from phones and tablets? Join a club, play a sport or take up a musical instrument.
“Get them involved in something at the school,†said Scooter Hawthorne of Maryland Heights.
He moderates the at Givens Elementary in Webster Groves School District, where he teaches PE. His pint-sized crew spends months working toward a trifecta marathon: reading 26 books, performing 26 good deeds and running 26 miles.
Extracurricular activities let kids flex their nonacademic skills, make new friends and connect with teachers outside of class.
“The more activities, the better,†said Nick Traxler, a science teacher at Oakville High School in the Mehlville School District. “It shows you how to have disagreements and differences of opinion and still be able to work together.â€
Traxler, who lives in Chesterfield, coaches the varsity boys basketball team — last year’s conference champs. His own children, who attend Marquette High in Rockwood, play field hockey and perform in the marching band.
Beware of over-committing, though, said Sharon Huffer of Ballwin, and embrace an organizing system. The second grade teacher at Green Trails in Parkway swears by family calendars. Prioritize the “must-do’s†and be willing to let some things go.
“This is a stressful time for parents, but also for kids, because it is a time of change,†Huffer said.
Be involved. But not too involved.
Parents of older students sometimes disengage, said Briana Morales of ºüÀêÊÓƵ, who teaches juniors and seniors at East ºüÀêÊÓƵ’ alternative high school. But even 18-year-olds need support.
“Try to be as involved as possible until kids are at the finish line,†said Morales, who lives in ºüÀêÊÓƵ. “They need structure and guidance.â€
Encourage them. Listen to them. Advocate for them.
But first, let them advocate for themselves. Even the little ones.
“It’s part of letting go, part of the growing up process,†said Rachel VanDernoot of Bridgeton. The former kindergarten teacher is beginning her first year as an assistant principal at Armstrong Elementary in Hazelwood.
For teenagers, keep an eye on their grades, “but maybe don’t check them all the time,†she said. “Struggling is part of the process. Struggling is how they learn.â€
Ashley Bengtson of St. Charles has been in the classroom for decades. She sees her fifth graders at Henderson Elementary in Francis Howell blossom when they are given the space for it.
“Don’t do the work for them,†said Bengtson. “Children will become stronger in the long run.â€
Everyone should just give themselves a break
It’s been a tough 2½ years. School milestones were held from a distance or missed entirely. Masks were on, then off, then on again. Test scores dropped, and anxiety skyrocketed. And last school year ended with another horrific mass shooting, in a fourth grade classroom in Texas.
It’s enough to deter even the most passionate educators, and that’s left many districts in a staff-shortage pinch.
The teachers who are still there? They are in it because they love teaching and they love your children, said Britt Tate of ºüÀêÊÓƵ, an art teacher in SLPS.
“Things are not perfect, and kids are different than the way they were,†said Tate, who splits her time between Columbia and Bryan Hill elementary schools. “Please know that we are going to do everything we can to keep your babies safe.â€
That means physically, emotionally, socially and academically, she said: “We’re doing the best we can and just need a tiny bit of grace.â€
Kids deserve grace, too, said Matthew Pace, a lawyer-turned-teacher at Central Visual and Performing Arts High School in SLPS.
“It’s really important to help kids find their balance,†said Pace, who lives in Maplewood. “They put so much pressure on themselves; they need patience, compassion and forgiveness.
“It’s important to remember we’re all on the same team.â€