HEADLINES……December 14, 2012

Today there was another school shooting.  This time in Connecticut.  Reports are still sketchy, but it appears that there were many victims, including many children.  We are all in a state of disbelief.  How can this happen?  What could possibly drive someone to commit this kind action? 

For us, the question of how we tell our children also emerges.  Our children are all at different places in their development so there is no right answer for our whole school. Our students will not be told about this news at school today.  We ask that parents, after the facts become clearer, use some time this weekend to talk with your children about this tragedy if that’s appropriate for your child.  We urge you to limit their screen time this weekend. TV and video images are especially powerful for kids, and they absorb the images and words that come at them electronically, often without having much time to process what they see and hear.

 What will be most important to our children is our reassurance that they are surrounded by adults who are committed to keeping them safe. Even as we grieve for the families in CT, try to keep your children’s weekend as normal as possible. (How you explain the thousands of extra hugs they’ll get is up to you.) We’ll join with you in the week ahead to let them know that they’re in a safe place, and that the adults at home and at school know how to keep it that way.

On Monday, our teachers will monitor things and discuss the situation with individual children if needed. It will be discussed in classrooms only in an age-appropriate manner.  The teachers of our younger grades may choose not to discuss this matter at all, although we will all be available to any child who needs reassurance.  I would also like to remind parents to use discretion when discussing this in the school.  Remember that many parents have different comfort levels of sharing with their children that should be respected.

Finally, I hope that you will join us in holding today’s victims and their families in the Light.

Dan Hendey

Announcements & Reminders:

Ordering Photos: An email will be sent later today with information about ordering school photos. Be sure to take a look; orders placed by this Sunday will receive free shipping for delivery to the school.

Holiday Gathering: Please join us on Thursday, December 20 at 1:45. We’ll gather in the Community Room for some singing and holiday cheer, followed by cookies and some visiting time before dismissal. (Please bring a plate of cookies or other tasty treat to share.) We’ll dismiss at our normal time of 3:20. Buses will operate as usual and our After School Program will be available for those who need it.

Winter Break: Friends School will be closed from December 21 through January 2. Classes will resume on Thursday, January 3.

Admissions & Next Year:  If your family has a younger sibling you hope to enroll next year, please be sure that Mary knows. Siblings receive priority in the admissions process, and it helps if we know they’re on the way.

Open Houses: We’ll be holding a preschool Open House at our Friends Schoolhouse facility at 611 E. Prospect Ave. on Saturday, January 5 from 9:30 – noon.

Our first K-8 Open House will be held on Friday, January 11 from 9:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. (Mary will be looking for volunteer tour guides for this one. Let her know if you’d be willing.)