Time with Kids

Every week feels different and for whatever reason, this week seemed long. We are in the homestretch of our state mandated testing and we have less than 30 school days left this year. Our kids have been in person since day one and our kids and staff are tired. It has been A week.

Although the week has been long, there are always some positive take aways we encounter and should remember as we move forward. Today I was manning the "waiting" room for state testing. Kids that were waiting to go test or kids that got done early were spending time in the library with me. Traditionally, they sit around the library and read, work quietly or do something on their computer. For a reason that I am not sure of, a couple kids were standing at the counter I was sitting at, with their computers on various sites. In a normal year, I probably would have had them go back to sit down, but I needed some kid time today, so I let them stay. It was fun to listen to their conversation, hear about the newest rapper and see what sites peaked their interest. Sometimes it is important to put everything aside and just "be" with kids.

Since I had a captive audience, I took advantage and asked for some opinions of the students that were with me. We are looking at a couple ways to provide kids with books for the summer and I was designing a potential gift to every kids to hold their books. Of course they didn't know the details, but at the same time they agreed to not tell anyone that I asked for their input on my secret project. They gave me feedback on my design and offered thoughts about the interest of other kids too. It was like my own little research focus group. I thought about taking a picture, but I decided to just enjoy the moment.

I also had the opportunity to talk to a student that returned to us recently, while we were all in the waiting room. I failed to diagnose the issues he was having with his computer, but I was there to offer support when he realized Mother's Day is coming up and it will be the first without his mom. Kids aren't afraid to share what they are thinking and in this situation, I wasn't afraid to repeat my student's statement when he told me that Mother's Day is going to suck this year. We continued to have a conversation about how he can remember and think about the great memories he has with his mom.

We are on the eve of May 1, and our work continues to be challenging. It always will be. But we can, and should, remember that nothing is better than time with kids.