Someone once said, “In the deepest winter I found within me an invincible summer.” This quote speaks to the resilience we must all have during this time. In public education we must also strive to teach resilience to our students.
At Doddridge County Schools we are committed to the education of the holistic child. This not only means that our students learn Reading, Writing, and Mathematics, but that they also learn to take their place as an adult after twelve grades.
Having our students back in the schools has brought this home to me. Our mission as educators, as coaches or art or music teachers has always been to train our students to function in the adult world. The term “holistic child” just puts a fancy name to a concept as old as public education itself. Our returning students have weathered nearly a year of disruption to their routine. Some have experienced illness and death in their family. None have been spared the interruption of normal life.
By using the term “holistic child”, we can become more intentional in our curriculum and more steadfast in our understanding that a student’s education is dependent upon the child’s nutritional, mental health, and emotional wellbeing. Students are not little computers that just need to be programmed with information that gets spit back out on tests.
The past twelve months has only emphasized the need for our Holistic Child Department. The anxiety, uncertainty, and isolation that many of our students have felt cannot be ignored. Over the past year our Holistic Child Department has made hundreds of phone calls, home visits and other interactions with our students. Our Child Nutrition Department has ensured that every student that needs food receives nutritious meals. Our principals, teachers, and counselors have connected with students to ensure that they have the educational resources appropriate for their circumstances. The entire district has rallied around our students to provide what we can for their educational, nutritional, social, and emotional development.
The students I have met at school have shown remarkable resilience. I am hopeful that our students understand that not only our school system cares for them, but that our community does as well. Much like children that grew up during the Great Depression, it is my hope that students that have grown up during this pandemic will discover an invincible summer within them.
Adam Cheeseman
#UnitedToMakeADifference