As our team worked all summer on the opening of school, our medical advisory board cautioned that we would be lucky to still be in school by Thanksgiving. As we turned the calendar page from November to December, we dared to hope that we could stay in school through winter break. December came and went, and we returned to school in January and continued counting up to our 100th day.
The 100th day of school is a big deal when you are in kindergarten, first and second grade. The 100th day is always filled with fun counting and estimating activities. Starting in September, students count each day as a part of their classroom morning meeting; it is exciting to see the days increase from 70 to 80 to 90 to 100!
This year, it wasn’t only the students who were eagerly counting, but also the faculty and staff. Each day has been a leap of faith, a learning experience and a journey. My faculty and staff are passionate about what they do; they are talented teachers and they love working with children. That being said, they have never been front-line workers, until this year, when coming to school meant putting the needs of our children first.
There is no course or chapter on how to teach during a pandemic, or run a school during a worldwide public health crisis. We have banded together to support one another in ways great and small. There have been moments of uncertainty, frustration and anxiety, but we have faced them together and come to the 100th day that much stronger, prouder and connected to one another. We can proudly say that our students have been in school five days a week with continuous, uninterrupted learning.
In honor of this major milestone and the upcoming holiday of Purim, when we are commanded to be happy, I’m sharing an acrostic poem (silly and serious) written just for this moment:
H is for health—our No. 1 priority.
U is for unflappable—our teachers continue to teach creatively in socially distant ways.
N is for nasal swab—we all know how to do those by now.
D is for dedicated, which describes the soul of each and every EHS faculty and staff member.
R is for ready—our teachers need and want their shots already!
E is for eager, which describes how our students feel about coming to school each day.
D is for deserving—our teachers and staff members have been heroes since March 13, 2020; they deserve a cape and an A+ in flexibility and commitment.
T is for testing—we are grateful to have access to many free and fast sites.
H is for hand sanitizer—we’ve used a lot of it!
D is for double layer—a must for your mask!
A is for aerosols—something we’ve all learned a lot more about this year.
Y is for YAY, we made it to the 100th day!
Our 100th day kicks off Adar spirit week at EHS. There will be Crazy Hair Day on Tuesday, Sports Fandom Day on Wednesday, Wild West Rodeo on Thursday, and Friday culminates with our in-school Purim celebrations. I hope you can find some happiness too this week. Chag sameach!
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