June 7, 2020
Hello Harding Community,
Well, we made it, but not really. We are still in a pandemic and another emotional peak in the struggle to end racism. The 2019-2020 school year has ended and we still have a lot of work to do. The good news is that we have this caring and committed community to move forward with on taking action.
The Harding Instructional Leadership Team met last week to map out our initial actions: 1) Apply teacher learning and family feedback to improve teacher communication, grade level alignment, delivery of instruction, and parent supports for distance and/or in school building learning. 2) Create a social justice curriculum to embed into morning meetings and social studies reading and writing units of study.
If you didn’t have a chance to watch the CNN Sesame Street Town Hall, please find time: https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/06/app-news-section/cnn-sesame-street-race-town-hall-app-june-6-2020-app/index.html. Children’s books and videos like this will help you navigate hard topics with your children, keep the conversations and learning going, and identify action to take. My hope is that we maintain this current momentum for lasting change, especially with educating for and modeling being antiracist.
Last week the state issued guidelines for reopening schools and the district formed a task force for planning how school will look next year. This task force will meet next week. Their goal is to have a plan drafted by the end of the month.
In the meantime, take care and stay safe.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Takimoto