We are grateful for our partnership with Anheuser Busch. On May 12th and 19th, Anheuser Busch sent volunteers to our new building to pull staples, clean furniture and paint and decorate classrooms.
Thank you to all the volunteers and Anheuser Busch for helping to prepare our new building for next year’s students!
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On Saturday, May 12th, the Grove is hosting Tour de Grove, a series of professional bike races in the Grove. The course goes right down Sarah St.
There will be bike races all day, including kids bike races at 2:30 pm, and a 5k run starting at 9 am. Don’t forget to register for the races!
SLLIS is hosting the Children’s Activites tent, along with a table in the Health Expo. Other Grove organizations and businesses will be open and hosting fun events.
See you there!
What types of educational programs dramatically change the lives of students, their families and cities?
There are many models set up to educate children. Some respond to the natural curiosity and eagerness to learn with which our children start school. When the interest, culture and motivation of students is encouraged and built upon we can maintain the love of learning that typifies many early learners. Like sponges they absorb the intellectual stimulation of the environments surrounding them.
I taught first grade for nineteen years, out of all those years it was rare that I had a child who did not want to learn or who felt he/she could not learn. One reason I stayed so long with that age group was the fulfilment I received from watching the light of learning turn on for students.
Obviously, using the opportunity to build on youthful enthusiasm is wonderful. There is still hope for older students as well. These are the one called, “At-Promise.” Why “At-Promise” and not as is commonly known, “At- Risk?” It all goes down to potential versus results. When we marginalize students by giving them labels that highlight deficits, we limit what can be done. By opening up higher aspirations for greatness, we allow meditative, positive thinking to elevate outcomes. Surely, we need to be more proactive in our pursuits, positive in our attitudes and seek out a greater arsenal of weapons to fight negativity and low expectations.
Maya Angelou said, “Education helps one cease being intimidated by strange situations.” In the lives of some students they have to battle for the simple things in life. To give them the power to change this we need to give them skills and knowledge, which will afford them control over their destiny. Helping them to recognize strengths and potential will show them hidden Giftedness. When we gift them with engaging their minds, spirits and hearts in the learning process we let them discover the joy of shedding insecurities and developing capacities. Warm expressions of affirmation and confidence go a long way toward building the self-esteem needed to press forward through difficult experiences.
Some people have called me, “Pollyanna,” and criticized positive thinking as “Touchy-feely stuff.” Some feel it is too much work to pull up mental and active energy sources to address the needed inspiration and motivation to move students to high intellectual performance. They prefer to blame, whine, bemoan and belittle. I say, like begets like. If we want children who are moving to excellence we need to be people ready with the attitude, desire, effort, achievement- focus and personal and community responsibility to make it happen. We can draw on our heritage, traditions and stories to exemplify courage, persistence and commitment. “Children learn by seeing people doing things. If all they see are people who don’t try, it’s going to be difficult for them to try.” -Faith Ringgold
As we design educational programs to help change the lives of our children we are also changing ourselves and our communities. We can then free ourselves to work with more joy and enthusiasm because we see the good results of our efforts.
Bertha Richardson, Ed. D.
CAO, A DEAR International
Posted in Introductions
Tagged at promise, community, Dr. Bertha, positive thinking
Facilities
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Posted in Board of Directors, The French School, The Spanish School
Tagged board of directors, charter, community, Facilities
