Dear Students: I know there will be tears tonight as you say goodbye to summer fun. But this year you will learn new things; you will grow in ways you cannot imagine; you will discover new things about yourself and your friends. Do not shy away from the struggles you encounter – lean into them and listen to what they are teaching you. Never doubt that there are people all around you cheering your every step no matter how big or how small.
Dear Teachers: I know there will be tears tonight as you stay up late making changes to lesson plans. But this year you will shine a light for someone who has existed in darkness; you will bring new understanding to someone who has only heard one version of a story; you will discover new things about your students and yourself. Do not curse the challenges you encounter – lean into them and listen to what they are showing you. Never doubt that there will be at least one child for whom YOU are their only cheerleader.
Dear Students: you can do hard things. You can take on the challenges ahead of you and emerge with new skills that will take you to new places. Do not listen to the fear and doubt that may swirl around you. Try….then try again…..and again, if necessary. You will learn. Maybe what you learn is that a particular activity or subject does not appeal to you. That’s okay. But, please, don’t stay away from that activity/subject. Come back to it another time and try it again. You will be different in a year’s time and you may find it’s not so bad after all.
Dear Teachers: you can teach hard things. You can take on the students in front of you and show them how to build new skills that will take them to amazing places. Do not listen to the fear and doubt that may swirl around you. Try….then try again…..and again, if necessary. You will reach those students who seem disengaged. Maybe what you will show them is that they learn in unconventional ways. That’s okay. Please don’t give up on your tried and true methods. Different children learn in different ways. You will have new students in a year’s time and you may find you can recreate another way to reach them.
Dear Students: Remember that your classmates experience life differently than you. Be open to their stories and try to imagine life through a different lens. Not everyone struggles with math, some people don’t like gym, and being an only child or one of many siblings each has their own challenges. Be unafraid to ask questions. Lead with kindness and be unapologetically you.
Dear Teachers: Remember that your students experience life differently from each other. Be open to their various perspectives and help them all imagine life through a difference lens. Some students organize their work differently, some students are cautious to speak up, and different family structures can bring their own challenges to education. Be unafraid to allow questions. Lead with kindness and be graciously you.
As so many of you – students and teachers – return to school this week, please know that I am cheering for you. I will cheer BIG for little wins. I will give a quiet thumbs-up for those who don’t want recognition. I will write in an imaginary sky for those who need the world to see them. I will praise a hard-earned 40% as much as a 90%. I will sit with you as you cry for the child you haven’t figured out how to connect with yet. All of the hard and wondrous and messy and exciting bits of this school year should be celebrated for what they bring to our lives.
Teaching and learning are the most important things we experience in this world. It is more than lesson plans or test grades. It is not about homework or classroom participation. It is how we build relationships: learning how to live in relationship with others; teaching each other how to be in relationship with us.
Neither of these tasks is easy. It is about taking apart our assumptions and adding to our understanding. From both sides of this equation it is about trusting and doubting, and about questioning and accepting.
Wishing us all a year of learning to be a better version of ourselves and teaching the world that we deserve to never be doubted.
All 4 Us 
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