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Dear Parents,
Contrary to popular belief, I’m not a Boomer, having been born a mere 23 months too late to qualify. I’m among the oldest of Generation X. Recently, a Facebook post about older GenX’ers stuck with me. Most of it covered the usual: drinking from garden hoses, roaming outside until the streetlights came on, and very little parental supervision. But it ended with this: we weren’t just told we were strong - we gained confidence because we were handling things on our own.
Today’s world isn’t as safe as the 70’s and 80’s, and kids can’t roam the way we did. Still, solving our own problems taught us how to handle adversity, work together, and accept the consequences of our actions. Looking back on raising my son, now an older Gen Z’er, I know how tempting it is to clear away every obstacle. Sometimes I gave in to that urge, but the times I didn’t, when I let him make his own mistakes, helped him the most.
Seeing your child unhappy is the hardest thing in the world, and our instinct is to protect them from every discomfort. But when we do that too much, we also shield them from growth, resilience, and responsibility. Children can’t learn these lessons by running free in the neighborhood anymore. We saw that reality this week when police activity due to a domestic disturbance in close proximity put the school on lockdown, and our annual Law Enforcement Drill with a full lockdown is next Wednesday. Still, children can learn responsibility, problem solving, and resilience in other ways. Parents today must be more intentional in their conversations with their children, asking questions like “How can you solve this problem?” or “What have you learned from this experience?” Problem solving opportunities may not happen every day, but parents can turn ordinary moments into opportunities for growth. We have amazing students here at St. Patricia, and our goal is to help them grow into amazing young adults.
Next week our Student Council has planned some fun activities in honor of Red Ribbon Week. Monday is PJ day when students may wear their (school appropriate) pajamas to school. Tuesday is team day when students may wear clothing representing their favorite sports team. Wednesday is red day when students may come out of uniform wearing red. Thursday students are asked to be in uniform, but they may bring a stuffed animal from home. Friday we will be celebrating Halloween, and students may come in costume. Grades PK through 3rd will be participating in our annual Costume Parade in the gym at 12:30. Parents who wish to attend the Costume Parade are asked to enter and exit through the gym doors. What an exciting week!
God Bless!
Mrs. Dawn Dion
Principal
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