Episode 40: From the Principal’s Desk: Setting Kids Up for a Great School Year

It’s that time again—back to school! Whether you’re sending a kindergartner or a senior, we’ve got you covered. We’re joined by three principals from elementary, middle, and high school who share what they wish every parent knew. Tune in for tips on how to motivate (but not micromanage) your kids, how to talk with teachers, and why getting involved matters. We also chat about the new no-phone policy in schools and how AI is already changing the game in education. 

It’s not often you get three principals dishing out advice—think of it as your backstage pass to a better school year. 

Meet our Fayette County principal guests:

Jill Angelucci- Principal Squires Elementary

Eric Thornsbury- Principal Winburn Middle

Scott Loscheider- Principal Dunbar High School

thestartinggatepodcast.com

Email us with questions and topics you want us to cover at
contact@thestartinggatepodcast.com

Follow us on social media @thestartinggatepodcast




The content in this podcast is for general reference and educational purposes only. It is not meant to be complete or exhaustive, or to be applicable to any
specific individual’s medical condition. No information provided in this podcast constitutes medical advice and is not an attempt to practice medicine or to provide specific medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. This podcast does not create a physician- patient relationship and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please do not rely on this podcast for emergency medical treatment. Remember that everyone is different so make sure you consult your own healthcare professional before seeking any new treatment and before you alter, suspend, or initiate a new change in your routine.

Transcript

From the Principal’s Desk: Setting Kids Up for a Great School Year

[00:00:00] Before we start today's episode, I would like to quickly read you our podcast disclaimer. The content in this podcast is for general reference and educational purposes only. It is not meant to be complete or exhaustive or to be applicable to any specific individual's medical condition. No information provided in this podcast constitutes medical advice and is not an attempt to practice medicine or to provide specific medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

This podcast does not create a physician patient relationship, and it's not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Please do not rely on this podcast for emergency medical treatment. Remember that everyone is different, so make sure you consult your own healthcare professional before seeking any new treatment, and before you alter, suspend, or initiate a new change in your routine.

Welcome to the starting game. We're your host, Dr. Kitty Dotson and Dr. Sarah Sheets. Two internal medicine doctors who spent years practicing traditional primary care. Over time, we realized something was missing from modern healthcare, a [00:01:00] real understanding of how everyday lifestyle choices impact overall health.

We'll help you cut through the noise of the countless health influencers and their conflicting opinions because no matter who you follow, the basics of lifestyle medicine are at the heart of it all.

Welcome back to the starting gate. We're your host, Dr. Kitty Dotson and Dr. Sarah Sheets. I can't believe we're saying this, but it is already time to start thinking about going back to school. You may have felt like summer has flown by and I think for me, this is the first year I've really felt like that.

Normally I'm like, oh my gosh. Is it over yet? Can we get the kids back to school? And you may be feeling that way too. So either way, we've gotta start wrapping our heads around the fact that school is just right around the corner. So we are so excited today because we are joined by three incredible local principals from Fayette County are going to share their tips for us on how we can make this a successful year for our kids.

how we're gonna ease back into that transition of school, how to communicate [00:02:00] best with your teachers, and then how to be a really good advocate for your child. So this conversation hopefully, will be full of practical advice for all the parents out there and get us back into the groove of classroom learning.

 We have three principals that span from elementary, middle, and high school today. So all of our listeners be on your best behavior. 'cause the principals are listening. I 

really feel like we're gonna get in trouble. It's weird to be with all these principals. You feel like, oh my gosh, I'm in the office. 

Yes, we're in trouble.

Um, we are really excited. We're gonna have each of them introduce themselves, give some information on how they got into education and a little bit about their story and to get us started, we have Scott Loscheider, who is the principal at Dunbar High School.

Mr. Loscheider, can you please tell our guests a little bit about yourself? 

 First off, I just wanna say thank you for letting us come onto the starting gate and representing our schools, Fayette County Public Schools, as well as just giving you a little bit of insight of. Of who we are and what we do.

But yeah, this is year 17 into education 12 in school administration, and [00:03:00] I'm entering year three at Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School, I, , my alma mater. There we go. Go. I'll often say that we're all in on 1600 man war 'cause I want Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School to feel like the dead center of the community.

you'll often see me yelling that down the hallways or on the morning announcements. But yeah, this is year 17. I got my start in Fayette County Public schools as an elementary PE teacher at Dixie Elementary. Then I did nine great years in Clark County as a school administrator at elementary school, preschool, and the high school.

And like I said, this is year three at Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School. And I'll go ahead and say one of the, the hardest jobs, the most physically, mentally, and emotionally demanding jobs. But it's also the most rewarding thing I've ever done getting to lead that school. 

Thank you. And for our middle school representation, we have Mr.

Eric Thornsbury, who's the principal at Winburn Middle. Can you tell our guests a little bit about yourself? 

Yeah. And again, thank you for allowing us to join the starting gate. And, we're excited to talk about the, school year. So this is [00:04:00] my second year at Winburn Middle School as the principal.

But this is my 24th year overall in education. It's hard to believe that it's been that long. I can feel it a little bit, but it is crazy to think that 24 years in this business, my 18th overall in administration short period of time as a LBD teacher and social studies teacher. And there was immediately guided into administration by some fellow administrators that saw something in me that, quite frankly, I didn't see in myself.

So that journey has just taken me to, from a Dean of students at LTMS to an assistant principal for four years, principal at Tates Creek Middle for 12. And then I've landed here on the north side at Windborn Middle School for the last two years. uh, Really excited the work that we're doing.

We're really trying to build that community feel really revive the north side pride. You'll hear Eric, Hale and I at Brian Station High School and myself talk about the north side quite a bit and what we hope to do. And then the work that we're putting in to build that sense of belonging.

For elementary school, we have Miss Jill Angelucci, who is a principal at Squires Elementary, and we're really excited to have you as well. 

Yeah, thank you for having me. [00:05:00] I am starting my 21st year in education my ninth year as a school administrator. I started out as a high school math teacher in the Chicago area, which is where I'm originally from.

then moved into the middle school math world at Beaumont Middle School here in Fayette County. I spent five years in Clark County with Mr. Loscheider a high school assistant principal, and then joined Mr. Thornsbury at Tates Creek Middle School as a school assistant principal.

And then this will be my second year as the principal at Squires Elementary. I also have three girls of my own. One will be starting middle school this year, one in third grade with me at Squires, and one who will be in her last year of preschool. So

That's great. And for you guys, do y'all have kids in school as well? 

Yeah. I've got two kids at Liberty Elementary and I also have a wife who's a curriculum coach over at the deep Springs Elementary too. 

And another connection with us. My wife is a elementary teacher at Deep Springs Elementary.

 works with Ms. Little Schneider and we have a daughter. We just became empty nester. She just finished [00:06:00] her freshman year at Eastern Kentucky where she's also running track. That's been a challenge for my wife and I both as well to get that kids out of the house, sitting at home.

What do we do each and every night now? 

That's different. I'm I, that seems so far away, but I know it happens so fast. So to get our conversations started today, we really just want to start by asking what are some practical ways parents can help their kids transition back to the school routines after summer break?

'cause schools just around the corner, and a lot of times we really don't think about getting ready for back to school until the week school starts.. 

i think this is gonna be particularly hard for high school kids 'cause my kids still have been waking up relatively early 'cause they're young and we've also been doing a lot of camps.

But I'd be particularly interested to know what you recommend for those kids that have been used to sleeping in and staying up late all summer. 

Yeah. I think going back to the old school alarm clocks would be helpful often use our phones as alarm clocks, but we end up [00:07:00] scrolling on those things all night and we don't actually get to bed.

Right. Those are some of the challenges. I think even as adults have, checking those emails or we're scrolling through social media, et cetera. But I think really shutting it down and really trying to go to sleep at a decent time and then setting that alarm and getting into those routines, two, three weeks out prior to school, it's important.

at the middle school level, transitioning fifth to six parents. Sometimes there's a little disconnect 'cause it's middle school and kids don't want that connection. But the importance of having those conversations now about what middle school's gonna look like, the time difference.

a fifth grader transitioning up is used to getting up, maybe getting on a bus at six 30 in the morning, but we our doors don't open until 8 35. So really having those conversations and then getting kids excited like, what are they most excited about? What are you worried about?

And just having those discussions as a family sitting at the house just to start building towards school rather than waiting until the night before. And just saying, you know, Hey, tomorrow morning you're getting up at seven o'clock, getting on the bus. So I think those conversations really can allow the kids to start to adjust and get their minds ready for, [00:08:00] oh man, school's just around the corner.

Like we, we've gotta start thinking about that. 

 I think for elementary, a lot of the things, and it's different because kindergarten through fifth grade is, still a wide range of ages. really just preparing the kids to be independent and what that looks like for each age. So if you've got of the younger students making sure if you're buying shoes that have laces, that they know how to tie their shoes and they feel comfortable doing that or asking for help that they, you talk to the kids about if there's something you're not able to do or if you need help, who they go to for that.

Talking about lunches, if you're packing, a juice box in the lunch or a they need to open, can the kids open that on their own? Obviously there's people there to help do that for them, but that can become a source of anxiety for some kids if they can't open their string cheese or that looks like if they need help with that.

Or just practicing and walking through what their day's gonna look like. some of our. Older kids or even really all of them just being prepared as a family and this is really for kids all ages, but they're gonna be tired those first few weeks back to school and just being prepared to maybe not have a ton of [00:09:00] evening activities scheduled or that's gonna look like as a family to prepare for that coming home from school on those first days.

I'll 

never forget both of my daughters, when they had their first week of kindergarten, they literally got in the car and passed out. So that was something that for sure everyone said they would be tired, but until you experience it, they are exhausted. So it is really important make sure that they are getting enough sleep and working on those sleep routines.

I know when we talked about summertime, we talked a lot about sleep and how to help your kids out with that, but it's really important help. Earlier, instead of waiting just the night before the first day of school to get these sleep routines back in Because it is really hard when you let 'em stretch out over summertime.

Yeah. And if you wanna go back and listen to, if you're thinking about sleep and how important that is, especially for our kids trying to learn, go back and listen our episode with Lauren Whitehurst this summer that we did on sleep. She really talked about the importance of sleep and how to use it to maximize your learning [00:10:00] and your success in school.

And even how to use naps to reinforce learning as well. So sleep is so important. So I think trying to get back on track with that is one of the first things to do. It's just hard And summer, it's hard to tell a teenager to go to bed on time when it's light and they're, friends are out and they're used to.

Definitely doing things, 

but you could also talk about that with like adults too, like with our routines, right? So we've been getting up, going to work, not necessarily having to take the kids to school, but that whole thing adds an entire level of stress too. 'cause now you've gotta get two, three kids out the door.

But walking through that even, as adults, because we set the tone as, and now I'm putting out my parent hat, we set the tone for that kid's success first thing in the morning to how they're woken up, right? Our attitudes towards, go get your shoes on, come on, put 'em on, let's go.

Get out the door. Get out the door to wait into a car lane, we wait in the car lane for 10 minutes, right? Really setting that tone and that, that energy level and that positivity of, hey, this is the first day we're gonna be planned. Not just the students or the child, [00:11:00] but as a family.

We're gonna be planned to get out that door on time every day. 

that's a great point. We don't really think about preparing ourselves as parents, but we're the ones running that morning show, so that's a great point. Make 

time for the back to school photo, right? Yes, exactly. Like you're gonna need building in some extra time.

Yeah. Maybe call the neighbor and say, Hey, will you get up early so you can take the photo? Yes. Of the whole family. Those, you gotta get those things planned out. 

No all of those are really important and I do think sometimes it's just making a plan for it can help a lot. When it comes to about some of this back to school anxiety that kids may have, especially kindergarten, because I know that that is just a big transition as well as sixth grade as well as freshman year of high school, these big transitions.

What can parents do to help their kids deal with some of that anxiety that might be building up in these weeks ahead? 

The first thing is that all schools have transition [00:12:00] weeks. For those kindergarten, sixth grade, and ninth grade transition grades. call 'em Summer Ignite, some call it transition week.

 And it depends on the school, how long it is, but really important too, if you're available and can for those kids to attend those transition weeks and just be in the building, see what their schedule's gonna look like, meet the teachers, meet other kids.

Then also making sure you attend those back to school nights. , Every school has a back to school night elementary's, August 7th. . . And so for families to get in there and meet the teacher, kids can sometimes drop off school supplies, , friends again, or even in kindergarten, just see what the building looks like and meet the specialist teachers and meet, different people in the building that will be there.

So I think those kinds of things can definitely help reduce anxiety on day one. 

Yeah, I think there's importance in, in, I talked about conversation, but framing things in a little more positive light, especially at the middle school level, we always hear middle school is the worst. Everybody says that.

Well, The reality is it's not. When you work there every day, kids that are having the time of their life, they don't know who they are at that point. They're trying to [00:13:00] figure it out. But if home is framing it in a way that it's gonna be a negative experience, we come in with those preconceptions that this is not gonna be good.

So having those positive conversations, talking to the kids. And I'm the only one in the group that has had a kid go through elementary, middle, high and into college. That's something we had to do with our daughter too, is like, Hey, you know, it's a new school, new opportunity. Go in there.

Here's things you can expect and really make sure you're not framing, or that we're not having those conversations, that frame it when they walk in. There's already that fear factor. need to make sure that as parents, we're giving them all of the positive talk that we can give, answer some of the questions.

And then, Ms. Angel just talked about it. If there are reservations that you're hearing from your kid, go ahead and reach out to the school now. We can get you in, walk the building, get familiar. We can introduce kids to the right people so they have a person the first day that's gonna walk up and call them by their name and say, welcome to Winburn Middle School.

You're right where you're supposed to be. I got you from here. I think those conversations at home really can, making it a positive. tone in the conversation helps tremendously. [00:14:00] 

I couldn't agree more with you. Um, Just acknowledge their nerves. It's okay to be nervous and excited.

That's part of this. And then practice the what if situations, right? So like lost schedule, finding the lunch room, talking to new people. Sometimes that comes down to role playing and I know that, depending on the relationship you have with your kid, but like how are those soft skills right before shaking the hand, meeting the teacher for the first time?

Those things. And confidence grows when kids know what to expect. previewing their day will take off that edge. So print out their schedule. Walk it through with them.

 [00:15:00] So is this an app or what 

is this Parent Square gonna be? It's gonna be , however, parents prefer to receive information. They'll be able to get it that way. So there will be an app which you can download and it's very easy to use.

And then if parents prefer not to use the app, they can get the information from email. It'll come that way. So however the teacher sends it out, it will go to each parent, however they prefer to receive it. So if you have multiple kids at multiple schools and you don't want a lot of emails, the app may be better.

But all schools will be moving away from any other communication platform they had before. So if they had ClassDojo, that's going away and everybody in the district is moving to Parent Square. 

 Yay. That 

does sound easier. 

Yeah, it does. I'm so excited. That was a big complaint of mine. I was like, there's too many apps.

Because if you have kids in sports as well, they're on different apps. And then if you have a different schools, there's gonna be different apps. So I'm really excited that Fayette County [00:16:00] is only going to have one app. This is huge. Yes. 

Yeah. And it'll also translate. So if you're a family that prefers information in a different language, it will translate automatically to you based on the language preference.

 So making sure that, like Mr. Thornbury said to get that information, making sure your email's correct. Fayette County's asking everybody to get on Infinite Campus just logging in and you have to just click through. It's really easy. I did it as a parent for both my girls.

It took me less than 10 minutes to do. But just click through making sure your information's correct. If you need a bus, that's how you make sure your bus is there as well. So just making sure you get onto that fcps.net/campus parent to check your information and make sure it's correct. 

 Can you just clarify, 'cause I feel like there's been a lot of information about buses this year.

Did something change that parents should be aware of? 

 At this point, we're asking every student who's gonna ride a bus that they have to go in and register through FCPS website so that there's a big push to get all of the kids registered to make sure we know who's on a bus, where they're supposed to be picked up, and that every kid is accounted for.

There [00:17:00] will be a new tracking system on those buses so parents can track the buses where they are. If your bus is a little bit late, you can log into the app. That's optional, but the making sure you're registered to get onto the bus is important that everybody does that. And then the second piece is getting onto that new bus tracking system, which the schools will be sending information out about that.

And, Ty, this, that's neat. Tying this back together, and I think we've touched on this, is the importance of preparing for the school year as the parents and the adults and, we have to make sure we're taking care of our part and not just putting that burden on the kid. The last thing we want is the 12-year-old to come home and go, mom, dad, aunt, uncle, grandpa, you haven't registered me for the bus yet.

We don't want that. We want to get ahead of that so that the student can just do their part, which is get up, get ready for school, get on a bus, and come in and let's learning. 

 On that topic of communication, 'cause it seems like we're having some good changes to promote communication.

, What is the best way for parents to communicate with teachers? How do we [00:18:00] make sure we can talk to them? We also don't wanna be that, annoying parent and have the, not wanna hear from us. What's your recommendation on that? 

I'm a big fan of having parents involved in their child's education.

It's important, that kid better than anyone else in the school system. So I think it's important that partnership is there. I often talk about US co-parenting. You'll hear that sometimes that it is a true partnership with home and school and it's dependent on communication.

 as a principal going into my third year, I want parent involvement. I want the feedback. And I think if I had to speak for the teachers, I think come from a place of understanding some teachers are getting 24 to 31 just in their classroom, maybe at the elementary levels, middle school, that that starts to expand.

at the high school, you know, they could have 140 kids for that semester that they're trying to build strong relationships with. And not only with the students, but with you as well. So just being patient with it know that every single day we're doing our very best.

For your child and it is a true partnership. 

Yeah, I talk a lot. One of my [00:19:00] core beliefs is carrying the banner and making sure that we're representing our school in a positive light. we often talk to our families about coming in, assume good intentions. We're not doing something to harm your students.

So come in with that good intention, understand why we did, and let's approach it with curiosity rather than coming at us with criticism. As a parent come in and go, okay, what's going on? Why did this happen? What that, what are the details? 'cause things get lost in translation between the adult and the kid, and then the adult, the teacher, the kid, then the family.

So really be open to coming in and sitting down and having that discussion or on the phone if that's the, if that's the best way to communicate. But always come in with that open mindset of, okay, let's really figure out what happened. And then how do we, how do Address that and then make it better.

, I'll speak for every principal. Our number one thing is to make kids that are in our building feel like that they belong, that they know that's the place they're supposed to be. And when there's tension with families or a family a lot of times that becomes a harder for us, that creates a barrier.

 My advice would be simply come in just being open-minded, positive, again, curiosity [00:20:00] versus criticism, and let's figure out exactly what's happening, why is it happening then how do we move forward to make it a better experience for your child. 

Yeah, I'll echo a hundred percent that, that this is a partnership and we need, we families to really make sure that we're addressing the needs of all of our students.

the elementary level, a lot of times our students have a hard time advocating for themselves. Or as a parent, you might see, something you feel like your kid needs, or you wanna explain a situation to a teacher that maybe the student wasn't able to explain. And You definitely need to reach out to those teachers and let them know, because I always say what we don't know we can't fix, and what we don't know we can't help with. So a lot of times kids will go home and tell families something that we didn't know about or maybe a different version of what happened.

And so just making sure you reach out, if something doesn't sound right to you, then just reach out. And like Mr. Thornbury was saying, you approach it with curiosity because if it doesn't sound right, then there's probably something that needs to be discussed. And so we're always open to families coming in for, in-person conference.

Phone, conferences, phone calls, whatever it is. Even [00:21:00] just a quick email if you're like, I'm not sure what color they're supposed to wear tomorrow. Or at elementary, we have all those fun dress up days. So it's always okay to reach out. I think a lot of times teachers will send home like a back to school, get to know your teacher flyer and just making sure you read that, see what the best way for them is to communicate.

just reach out anyway. Parents Square, email, phone However's best and teachers and school administrators are always eager to talk with families, 

Can I in real quick? You know what I love? I love it when a parent calls and is like, we had a bad morning. 

Yeah. Get the heads up.

We had a bad morning. It was a, It was a rough start or, last night something happened and it was pretty tragic. And we're trying to work through that as a family. We're gonna be there, we're gonna be late. That gives us the opportunity to get supports before that kid walks in the door. 'Cause the last thing you want 'em to do is come in, be reactive, and then now we got a much deeper situation we gotta address.

Or there's something that happens into the community, [00:22:00] usually spills into school. And what happens in school usually spills out into the community. So anytime we can get those heads up it's not tattle talent on yourself as a parent. We're all working together here.

So who do you ask for?

So if I were to call, 'cause we had something going on, I just call the school's main number. Then who do I ask to talk to? 

A lot of times our front office secretary will take that call and she'll relay it. if you're comfortable with that person, I know a lot of our families are very comfortable with our front office secretary and they'll tell her and then she'll let, who needs to know?

No. You can also ask to speak with a guidance counselor you really want it to be. A little bit more private, you can ask to speak with the principal., And they may not be able to talk to you right at arrival, but they'll give you a call back as soon as they can.

or the teacher, I think any of those, whoever, always tell the kids to find a trusted adult in the building. Whoever they're most comfortable doesn't have to be their homeroom teacher. It can be another adult, same as adults. If there's a person in the building who you feel most comfortable speaking with, they're most likely gonna have a [00:23:00] relationship with you.

And I think it's okay to ask to talk with anybody at that point. 

And when you were talking about communicating with teachers, is this something on those back to school nights? As parents, we should ask our kids, teachers, Hey, if I wanna communicate with you, what is your, preferred way of communication, whether it's email, this new app,

yeah, I think that's absolutely the best thing to do as a family and as a parent, is to ask that specific teacher. 'cause we're all different.. So I think to have that conversation with our teachers, what's the best way we do ask that they respond within, I say 48 hours.

I think that's more reasonable than 24. But we ask that there's some kind of response to that. But I do believe that it's really good as a parent to engage with the teacher. What's the best way to communicate with you? to create that relationship with them. And all it does is make the teacher feel, alright, this parent really wants to know that, it's not just a random question, like you really wanna be involved.

And they feel that when you ask that kind of question. 

Are you able to request conferences outside of those normal parent teacher conference set times? [00:24:00] Absolutely. 

Just schedule them. Yeah. Okay. The best conferences are the ones that are gonna be scheduled. You come unannounced and sometimes. Parents get frustrated and they need to come up and they wanna meet with someone that's usually, at that point it's an administrator.

And then we'll get conference scheduled. I just want to set the tempo that if you come up same day looking for a conference and sometimes that happens it most likely will not occur. So setting up conferences? Yes, a hundred percent. We do that all the year. Yeah. Sometimes it's with a counselor and a specific teacher or a school administrator.

Those go on every single day. There's a parent-teacher conference going on, but it's best to schedule. That's 

what about. So the last two years, I've not had to worry about this 'cause my daughter's teachers have been so communicative and we have gotten this email every week, really explaining what they're learning.

But I've also had some years where felt like I had no idea what she should know and what for sure they were learning. Also, my daughter was starting kindergarten back right after COVID, and so I'm sure that [00:25:00] contributed to it too. But I've had wide varieties in teacher communication as far as what they're learning, what I feel like I need to be making sure she knows at school and working on at home.

So if you do have one of those teachers that you feel like you're not getting that feedback from on a regular basis, what's the best way to go about trying to get that without being annoying every week, being like, hello, teacher again, please send me more information.

 I'll say and Mr. Loscheider talked about this earlier. We have teachers 130, 140 kids, seven classes a day that they're teaching. So sometimes that communication does break down. It becomes another thing that they feel like they have to do.

again, establishing how are we gonna communicate Our job has to be how are we communicating with families and where can they find that information? Like we have to make sure we have a system in place that makes it really easy that question comes in, just allow us to go, Hey, if you check right here, you'll find everything you need to know done.

So our job as a school is to create a system or structure that, that will have that in place so that we can point a parent or family in the right. So anybody can do that. [00:26:00] It shouldn't just fall on that one specific teacher. I will say, and if we do run into those issues, I think to communicate with the principal or the guidance counselor is easy.

Hey. I'm not hearing from them. Can you help me out and take that kind of approach with it instead of, again, going to the criticism part of it and let us try to figure out why it's not happening. Is there something else going on where we can get that information to you work with the family?

What's the best way to get it to you? Maybe I've got it posted over here in Canvas, but you never get on Canvas to look at it. So how do I need to get that to you as a parent so that it's better for you? 

So on the Fayette County Public School's website, there are family learning guides for every grade level from preschool through high school. if you're concerned, like you had mentioned about that, you're not sure what they're supposed to be learning, you can check there and it will tell you different subject, areas and they're translated into different languages.

What they're supposed to be learning if you need like a benchmark for that, if that's a concern. But like Mr. Thornbury said, I think it's always appropriate to reach out to the teacher to say, can you gimme an update on their academics? I'm just a little concerned that maybe they're not [00:27:00] reading where they're supposed to and they may wanna set up a conference.

We're always taking pulse of where kids are at, and so the teacher will know that it's just a matter of if they're not communicating that it's definitely okay to ask at the. Higher elementary and then middle and high school. Infinite Campus is another great place to check for grades and assignments.

What's been turned in, what their assessments are looking like. , I know we start that at Squires in fourth grade, you'll start to see grades on Infinite Campus. Other schools might look a little different than that. 

And what about if your kid has more needs, like if they need more time for testing or they're dealing with A DHD or other things that may impact their learning?

you have particular advice for them on how they can best advocate for their kid? 

I think starting with the teacher and having those conversations with the teacher, in with a plan with those teachers, they'll have tier one, tier two, tier three levels of support that they'll be working with you on.

like, so this is what we're doing at school. This is what we need to do at home. Collecting data uh, with the guidance [00:28:00] counselor well. And then also meeting with the school administration to come up with a plan because there may be a situation where there is a suspected delay or disability.

And then going through those channels together as a team 

and just being aware that process takes time. There's some guidance we have to follow on there. So we always start with interventions. We don't jump straight into an official IEP.

And so if it is an academic issue that we're looking at, there's always, we wanna try to see if something else is gonna help first before we jump into our most restrictive plan. So just being patient and asking questions. school has a school psychologist that does the testing and walks through that process.

And so if you're not sure or it doesn't sound right or if you're confused, it's always okay to ask questions clarify. 'cause a lot of times we do these a lot and so we talk, quickly or we talk through them as if. We've done them before and I know a lot of families, it's the first time and it's it's totally okay to say, wait, I'm not sure what you meant by that.

Can you explain that in a different way? And make sure you feel comfortable with the process and what's happening [00:29:00] with your student and making sure that they're making the progress that you're wanting them to make. 

I think educators could be just as guilty as doctors. Sometimes we get stuck in the educational lingo, very similar to doctors and the lingo and the abbreviations that come out.

Like Miss Angelucci said, it's always okay to just stop, ask a question, be like what does an IEP mean? What is that acronym? And then working through that with each other. 

I made a note on this. And just communicate early and with clarity of what exactly are you seeing at home? What is the concern about you?

You referenced A DHD, so let's talk about that upfront. Don't wait for a problem to arise before you come in. Like communicate, Hey, this is what we've seen at. For us at the middle school level, what worked at fifth grade. Don't wait until the problem happens to come and tell us what worked. Let's have a plan.

We may not have to execute that plan. We might be able to provide the supports to allow your student to be successful. But at the same time, let's know that if this happens, we're gonna be ready to respond in a way that was effective in their previous setting rather than that problem to [00:30:00] occur.

, We talked about that communication. Now we've got a problem that we have to address rather than us being proactive. And there's always opportunities to come in and say, Hey, at elementary, this is what worked. This is what was going on. When this happens at home and there's so many variables outside of school that impact the kid coming in.

Just to be clear and communicate that with us. That way we can have a plan. Then that phone call to you as a parent is, Hey, this happened today. Thanks for giving us the heads up. We did what you said and it worked. Thanks for working with us, being a partner in what we're doing. And we will make those phone calls and say that.

Just to let families know, Hey, we need you to be a part of this. And it worked 

 That's great advice. Now, when we are trying to support our children in meeting their academic goals, what are some advice that you all have for parents general? Not becoming too pushy of a parent We don't wanna cause like 

too much pressure and make them have anxiety about their learning. How can we, push them to succeed and to try hard without making them feel overwhelmed [00:31:00] or they're in competition with their peers and, and that kind of stuff. 

So I think you need to focus on progress and not perfection.

Have conversations with your students when they get in the car. Knowing my mom, she's gonna be listening to this podcast. 'cause she knew I was on it. And every day she would get on, I'd get in the car and she'd go, how? How's your day? And I go, it's fine. What'd you learn? Nothing. But eventually we start having those conversations and, take those times in the car, those end up being like, the most precious moments you have with your kids as they get older, you lose that time with them is either dropping 'em off, picking 'em up, taking 'em to a ball game.

Take that time to ask those questions, talk about their progress, not the perfection. Praise the effort, not just the grades. I just feel like when parents encourage growth over results, kids will still stay motivated and they'll still be resilient. 

Can you give us some examples? I'm gonna give, I'm gonna really pull on this because [00:32:00] I feel like this is a hard thing as a parent, like you might be able to tell that your child is so smart and has so much potential, and then you may see that they're not pushing themself or really taking the time to fully understand a concept.

They're just trying to get it done. And so what would you recommend parents do to try to not just get it done, but actually understand, learn and take that knowledge with you through life? 

 So grading could be an entirely different podcast for me. I have a lot of firm beliefs in the way that we grade but to the students failure's, okay, while you're doing the task, we all fail.

You're gonna edit things outta this podcast that didn't sound right or work. To make it the best it can possibly be. So failure is okay as long as you're making growth towards where you're going. And a lot of times we get tied up into the a, it's the a. So with kids, a lot of times they don't have to apply themselves a lot to get that A, so they don't need to conceptually understand it because if I just do the this part, I'll get an [00:33:00] A with no problem.

And that becomes what they really strive for is the a, not to understand the concept and process what they're learning. So we talk a lot in my perfect world and at Tates Creek Middle School, we separated behavior, meaning academic honesty. Are you turning things in on time? Are you completing the work?

We separated that into a different grading category, and then we just had what are you learning? So the assessment was, are you learning what you're supposed to learn? But then we also monitored all of those, 21st century skills so we could sit and have a real conversation. Look, your kid is. But man, they do not do anything.

They cannot complete the work in class. They're always late with everything. So we have to shift our focus to how do we get those life skills in line? Because eventually it's gonna catch up to you, whether it's high school or college or in the work environment you can't manage time very well, meeting a deadline is gonna be really hard for you.

So we have to make sure we build in that at that time to do it. So I think as a parent to understand that it's okay. It doesn't mean they're gonna [00:34:00] get a failing grade, but it's okay for the kid to struggle and have that. But it's gotta be a productive struggle. we have to be willing to challenge that student differently.

'Cause they're all unique. We have to be able to do things different to challenge that kid to want to do it. 'cause if they're bored, a lot of times they'll just hurry up, get it finished. And like you said they won't apply themselves or push themselves to, to get to that next level of the concept.

Yeah, I'll add on. I think it's like Mr. Thornbury said each kid's unique and it's so different. And I have three different girls at home and so knowing how to push your child in a way that's not gonna be counterproductive for them.

I have one who, if I question anything is gonna shut down. And so I know that that's not what I need to be doing with that one. One who is gonna need a little bit of push and is gonna take that on and take on the challenges just in a different way than her sister. it's important to reach out to the teacher too, because children at home may look like they're rushing through something, but then you may get a very different report at school that they are really working hard and that they are excelling and that they ask [00:35:00] questions and they, I have this, this isn't my situation where it feels like there's not a lot of work being done at home.

And that, and I'm. If I question, it's going to not go well. But when I talk to the teacher, she is questioning, she is working through her work. She's, they say she's a very hard worker at school. And so I back off at home with that because I know that she is meeting her goals and Mr.

Los Schneider said she's growing. I think it's also important for us to take a step back and especially at the elementary level, a lot of times we wanna say we want them to read to us at night or we want them to show us what they know. But they're tired too. And it's okay for us to still read to them.

There's still a lot of positive outcomes to us still reading to them even in fifth, sixth, seventh grade at night if they'll let you do it. And they don't have to necessarily always be the ones showing us what they know. We can work together on that. And I think just really knowing your kid and knowing how to push them, when to push them, and then really kind of taking in what this teachers are saying.

At school is happening. 

I'm going to [00:36:00] jump on that a little bit too there. I love great analogies. So I'm gonna, I'm gonna put two of them out here for this topic. Someone once told me that we're all kinda like popcorn kernels, in the microwave at the same temperature, We're coming from the same crop of kernels, But we all pop at different times and sometimes they pop as soon as you take it outta the microwave or they pop in there, right? And that's the same thing with kids. Like it's gonna click when it's gonna click for 'em. I also heard someone had explained life to me in this way is that you're not gonna get straight A's in life.

You gotta understand that. And that could be for the day, like physically, I'm probably a B minus right now, or emotionally I'm a c plus today. Or as a school administrator, I'm an a plus. When I went home today, I was probably a B minus as a dad, right? But every day we're striving for our best.

We're striving for our best, not the person next to us. And I think when we, talk about grades, right? And we talk about like getting straight A's, we're not getting [00:37:00] straight A's in life either, right? We're all doing our very best. Sometimes those are honest failures and we gotta work together. 

I love all of this talk mostly because the starting gate this podcast, we talk about this in people's health and lifestyle related endeavors, is we really need to quit thinking of things in perfection because that, most of the time is only counterproductive.

So I love hearing all of your voices, promoting students learning to enjoy the process and the progress, and not focusing on the perfection. Because I always joke about that I'm a retired perfectionist because. Not until you give away that desire to always be perfect, can you really reach your full potential?

And I love hearing educators talk about this, so this is making me very happy. 

 Sarah and I both said we have elementary school age kids, but I can imagine when they're in high school and looking at getting into colleges and, can they get any money?

 I feel like that sense of perfection or getting the grade might [00:38:00] feel even more important. Is there anything in particular for high school kids thinking about that that you would say 

it's gonna be okay? I think that's the most important thing, is it's gonna be okay. And there is that pressure because GPA can lead to scholarship money, right?

Getting into certain universities, a CT scores, SAT scores all of that matters. But if you don't have your mental health. Or your physical health. None of that matters. And I think that's something that we really need to continue to maintain a focus on too, is back to my analogy, is not all about the straight A's, It's about living a balanced life. And, And I know it's hard and there's that pressure of being the first one in your family to go to college. There's that pressure not coming outta school with $150,000 in debt. But it's also okay if you don't go to college. Careers matter too, straight out of high school.

One of the things that the state of Kentucky, specifically Fayette County Public [00:39:00] Schools has done, has put a, an extraordinary effort and focus on technical education, making sure that these kids walk away. From their experience at Fay County Public Schools with a trade, with something that they can immediately go into the world and make an impact on.

I'm the son of a college administrator. Uh, to college was, a non-negotiable, which is fine. I, I needed to go to college. But it's important to realize that all kids don't need to necessarily go to college. Do they need to continue their education? A hundred percent Trade schools learning a skill, a hundred percent.

But need to get away back to doctor. Schuetz comment about, that's striving for perfection. It's important. We need to wake up every day. We need to have accountability. We need to have a grind. We need to have a goal. But it's okay. 

And I'll add having worked in high school for most of my career that the, something that we work on in middle and elementary is really getting the kids ready to advocate for themselves and taking on that responsibility themselves [00:40:00] and trying to get parents, like you were mentioning before, how not to necessarily be over, one who's doing it for them.

Because at that point, you really start to do a disservice when you're doing that at high school and you're questioning and you're calling teachers to ask about certain things. And it's a hundred percent okay to do that in the right circumstances. But when you're talking about kids planning for their future, really teaching them to advocate for themselves and for them to tell their teachers what their goals are.

If they're worried about an A in their class, then they need to be the ones to communicate with the teacher. You I really, I'm working on making sure my GPA is this because these are my goals and working with the teacher and us, teachers are there for the kids and they want the kids to be successful.

And if a student is being open and communicating with them, they're gonna do everything that they can to help. But sometimes kids, it's a hard lesson to learn. If they go in on that last day and they say well, I need an A and there's all these missing assignments, they need to learn those, themselves.

As a parent monitoring and helping them learn those skills [00:41:00] to advocate and to monitor their own progress so that when they do go off into college and into the real world, that they're able to do that themselves. 

At the middle school level, I think it really falls on our shoulders to teach kids how to productively struggle and that it's okay.

And again, we talk about just the emotional growth from an 11-year-old to a 14-year-old that can happen in middle school. It's really getting that skill so that they know that, okay, you struggled. It's okay. So how now, let's reteach it. Can we give it to you a different way? Can you demonstrate it to us in a different way?

Maybe pencil and paper isn't the easiest way for you to do it. Can you construct it? Can you create a diagram? Can you build a model to show us that you understand that concept? But we have to really instill that it's okay to productively struggle. Don't quit. And that's where a lot of times you were talking about the overachiever, like a lot of times that's what happens.

I didn't get it, and then I shut down and I melt down. We have to tease them, okay, what happened? Where was the breakdown? And then how can we just start at that point? And then it's okay. Like he, Mr. Loscheider [00:42:00] said it's okay. believe it or not, a lot of times we don't hear that from parents that it's not okay yet.

Every day in our walks of life we fell every day and have to take a step back and go, what just happened there? And it's not life ending or career ending. It's okay what went wrong with that? And we go through that process of, okay, let's study what happened. Let's analyze it. What do we need to do different to make it better the next time?

We have to be intentional. About making sure that our kids understand it's okay, but we're not gonna quit. We're gonna instill that drive in you to want to continue to get better. 

And I think that's for us too, for teachers, for administrators, we're trying to bring it every day. And there's days we fail.

There's days that we fail as teachers or as administrators are not necessarily failing the whole day or we fall short. But we've gotta, we gotta take a deep breath, own it, learn from it, and grow. 

These are very wise words. I know. Yes. Great.

I do wanna switch topics here because I know this one [00:43:00] is a hot topic right now because of some things that have changed and that's just related to technology and schools.

Just let the parents know what should they expect in this school year that is different. 

Yeah. At Winburn what we did last year was in December. So we did some evaluat. It was my first year there, so we did some evaluating the first, quarter or first two semesters, and we realized that cell phones technology was an issue.

Kids communicating with each other. Conflict was starting, all of these things that were transpiring when they should be learning. So we put into place a pretty clear system that phones had to be put up outta sight. We don't wanna see them at all. So we made a very clear procedure .

If you got caught with your phone out, we actually had purchased these pouches so that it went in the pouch and it was locked up the rest of the day. And then obviously if you repeated that progressively it, it got worse. But what we were amazed with was, we probably had 95% compliance.

Our kids were kind of thankful that it was being put up. Parent support was [00:44:00] through the roof. it. They were great. We didn't hear that stuff. I paid for the phone. You can't take it. Yeah. It was very clear that your kid gets to carry the phone with them all the time is gonna be locked up in a pouch.

They can't use it we did that and we saw a decrease in. A lot of things social, emotional we saw fewer conflict, peer conflicts that escalated simply because of a text. And, there's no tone in text a lot of times. If I'm having a conflict with a friend and they send me that message during math class, I'm having a meltdown.

A lot of that stuff started to go away simply because they couldn't have them. We took it away in the cafeteria. You couldn't, use it there. And it was amazing to watch kids start to have conversations with each other, which just wasn't occurring. I mean, Put on headphones, eat lunch by yourself, basically.

So we, we saw significant progress socially where we got to. Our kids were interacting in positive ways and far less of the negative stuff was coming into play. 

Oh, this makes me so happy to hear. I know. That's been one of my biggest worries about middle school and phones being more available for use and more kids having them [00:45:00] and interrupting their day.

So I love hearing that in a short period of time, you already saw great progress. That's amazing. 

So is this gonna be all Fayette countywide now? Is that the plan? 

Yeah, so there was a new bill passed in the last session banning cell phones during the instructional time at school. So Fayette County is grade six through 12, students will not have access to their phones at all during instructional time.

And each school will have different policies surrounding what that looks like if they do have that like Mr. Thornbury was talking about. So that's something to look at the school level. But district wide, the cell phones will be not available to students during their instructional time in grades K through five.

That's also the case. They're not to be available, it's not as big of an issue at school, but we do know that some kids as young as third, second grade are bringing their cell phones or their watches to school. And I just would urge families to really think about, the necessity of that in elementary school.

They do have, I know that some students are walking to school [00:46:00] and they might want 'em then or but just really having the conversation with your students, that is a privilege to have that device and that it's not being used. It's not to be used at all during the school day.

It's just so much distraction to the students. And they really don't need it. Their students can, oh, if you need to reach your child during the school day, in any K through 12 situation, you can call the school and we can get ahold of that student at immediately. So, really making sure that you're having the conversation at all grade levels about the responsibility of that device when the school has a rule that is to be followed for their own social needs, for their own, academic needs it's for them is why those rules are in place. 

Yeah. What I really like about this law coming from the high school's perspective, is that we're really gonna be protecting that instructional time. I think as a society, we get those cell phones and and thieves of time.

 The next thing you look up and you're like, oh man, I've been scrolling emails for 25 minutes. I, I need to be more present. So I'm hopeful that that will encourage and protected [00:47:00] instructional time, but also hear what Mr. Thornbury said, who's done this for a year already, and the amount of peer conflicts that's decreased.

I think in general, when we get back to communication, it's always good to have a face-to-face conversation, especially when we're having to deal with what did you mean by that? Nothing no conflict ever got resolved in a text message, ever. You gotta have that face-to-face conversation.

Yeah. I'll add too that just because they're. banned during the school day. Just making sure that you're really following up on what your kids are doing on those cell phones after school and at night. That we see at all grade levels, things that come into the building that happen the night before at two in the morning, and a text thread.

that students that you may not even know have access to Snapchat or to social media platforms, they found a way to do it. And they are on those platforms. And I'm not saying that to scare anybody, but just to also think about when the appropriate time is to hand those devices to your, But I know mine feels like she's the only one without a phone and I she's not, but she she's not, one can let her know [00:48:00] I've seen too much, feels the same way. 

One thing with that, and this is gonna be me being the old man in the room, pre COVID, there was all this conversation about screen time, way too much screen time.

phones. It was really easy, that's all we had. But then post COVID, we give every kid. A computer or a Chromebook and phones are now more readily available, and then everything we did was on a Chromebook or on their phone. And we're seeing quickly in three or four years from that just the impact that it has on the school environment.

And we could see that coming, giving a Chromebook to a kid that they can have access 24 hours. What's gonna happen with this? How are we gonna manage what's happening at two o'clock in the morning on a Chromebook?

We weren't even thinking about the phones at that point. Then you had the phones onto, you know, you've got kids that, there are days that I'll come to the building and there are kids sitting out front getting school wifi on their Chromebooks so they can watch YouTube. That's a Saturday afternoon.

So in some ways, I think an unintended consequence of going to more online platform, we actually put kids in front of that screen more. [00:49:00] And like I said, luckily we're responding to that a whole lot quicker than we. I think anybody thought we would, and we're taking that away and trying to go back a little bit and get that thing outta your face.

Yeah, both of them. 

I do see a swing both at the school level and just in my own personal life of families wanting to wait longer to give those, or if they need it for the walk home, that it's just a flip phone or it's a watch with a phone number. But access to the internet is just something that maybe they don't need at that age because they their brains are not fully developed and they're not quite ready for that.

And I don't think we're anti phone. We're just, we gotta be pro focus, if that makes sense. We We need to get away from not being present. 

 Speaking of that are changing in the world of technology, how are you seeing things like chat, GPT and AI influence how kids are doing their homework?

How do you know they're not just putting all their homework into chat GPT and getting the answers?

That is a big challenge at the middle school level. in all honesty, kids are moving a lot faster than some of us are with it. Yeah, I think they do. Yeah. So they're getting access and figuring [00:50:00] it out and, and Apple AI now, and again, on their phones, it's all right there. So there's all of these things that they get to do.

we stress the importance of we have to know our kids. So when something comes across the desk that doesn't look right, that's when we ought to, now we explore and it goes back to that we have to teach our kids how to appropriately use it. I'll be honest, I'm learning how to use it.

 , I will never sit down and go, don't ever use GP I'm on there. Gemini is something that our district provides for us that we're able to use. And it's, we have to continue to educate our students how to use it appropriately, but we also have to know them enough to figure out when an answer comes across the like, was this say I generated or not?

And I go back to that curiosity, don't. Judge immediately, let's figure out if that's what they use. But at the, we saw it increase significantly last year because it was more available. The availability of it was there. 

it's a tool, right? It's, very similar to how we're using cell phones, how we're gonna be teaching that is knowing when to use it and when not to use it. Use it as a tool. You're not gonna use a. A chainsaw to hammer [00:51:00] a nail, you've gotta, you gotta know when to use that tool and I think that's what we need to teach them. 

Yeah. And I will say Fayette County's being very proactive in training us as principals, training our staff, offering opportunities for them to learn how to use it, how us to use it in our own jobs, but then how to trickle that down to the students.

 at Squires, I've seen several really amazing lessons where the kids are on different AI platforms and creating images and creating different texts but how to use that appropriately and when the time is. So I think there's, there is a lot of interest in it and there's a lot of training that we're getting to help us navigate that.

I think tying it back to grades, a lot of times you see that kid that's struggling they use it to get the grade. That's the driving force isn't to understand how to do the work. It's, if I don't do this, I'm not gonna get the grade. And that's where we have to take the focus off of that grade.

You get caught. You used it. Okay. Sometimes I'll be like, I'm proud of you for taking the initiative to go in. Like you had to type something in the prompt to get the answer that you wanted. [00:52:00] So now let's teach how to do that. But again, a lot of times we see that it's grade driven.

They're not using it as a shortcut. They're actually using it. I don't do this. I'm not gonna get to grade. So it's really grade driven more than it is. I wanna beat the system, I don't want to have a f and that's where we have to change that mindset about grading as well.

teach 'em to use the tool rather than worried about getting that A or B on the assignment. 

So you mentioned earlier about kids needing to not just focus on grades, but think about being involved in different ways. And so for kids that maybe let's say are not.

Great at sports or not gonna make a JV or varsity sports team, or, they're not great musicians. And you've talked a lot about sense of belonging. How do you encourage those students to find their niche and really feel like they belong somewhere? 

So just to hashtag all in on 1600, there is something to be all in on at Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School.

There are tons [00:53:00] and tons of clubs, organizations committees, not only for parents, but for the students to be involved in. And, from like student sections to technology clubs, to book clubs Dungeons and Dragons clubs, you name it, there's a club for it. And it's getting that opportunity to get involved.

And then as parents providing that space. To let them get involved as well? 

Yeah from my standpoint as a leader, and this isn't elementary, middle, or high, this is just me personally. I feel like it's my job to create that opportunity. At Tates Creek Middle, we had a very simple process that we taught the kids, if there's something you wanna do that we don't have it, come to me.

Here's the process. I made them, basically do an application, but then they came and met with me and have to give the purpose and I never declined them. If the kids want it, I feel like it's my job to make it happen. we're doing the same thing at Winburn. We're trying to create their culture where if we're not offering something that our kids [00:54:00] need and notice, I say we need, most of the times they want it, but really that they need that.

That's gonna be their way to be involved. We have to create it. So no. Typically when there's a student that wants to do something, no. Doesn't come outta my mouth at all. It said, how do we make it happen? give a great example. We had an eighth grade student last year, and she wore me out all year.

Because I was slow at responding to her. But she wanted to do a mentor group. So we met one day I walked her through the process. I made her create a plan, like a business type plan. She created that. She came to me, then I went with her to meet with teachers so that she could implement it. She was a eighth grade student, wanted to mentor sixth and seventh grade kids.

So we built it within the school day. It cost her absolutely nothing but her time. And it empowered her and five other students to go mentor sixth and seventh grade kids. And it was all student led and our teachers got on board with that. And it was just simply something She told me she wanted to leave a footprint at that point, okay, how do I make this happen for you?

So we just sat down and work through it together. And that's something that I'll remember for her. Anybody that calls me for a reference, I'll [00:55:00] be able to go initiative. Boom right there. Did she complete it? Absolutely. was she successful at it? Yes. We saw gains from the students they were working with socially and she wants to come back.

And be a part of it as a freshman in high school, she wants to come back and help train other eighth graders this year to model that. So us as leaders have to be willing to give that opportunity to our kids when they need something. 

The power of student agency. The power of student 

agency. 

I 

think even at elementary level, if you're a parent and your student is not involved or you feel like they're not connected to the school, really talking with them about what maybe a club they would wanna start and if this, teaching the student to reach out and ask about it.

But if they're not comfortable doing that, , offering that support to them. Like maybe you go together to ask that. Or maybe you just ask your, would you be okay if I emailed your teacher or the principal and suggested this club? And I think everyone's gonna be open to those conversations and both have said before that we're there to support kids and we're there to create opportunities for them, but If there's an idea that they have for sure, share it and let us [00:56:00] know, because we wanna make sure that those opportunities are there for them. 

 It's not a starting gate show without us talking about nutrition, and we just wanted to just touch lightly on this subject. But is there anything specific that you would want parents to know about preparing for the school year, whether it comes to breakfast or lunch, or even simple hiccups that happen a lot that maybe parents aren't even aware of that they should be talking to their kids about at each of these levels to make sure that they're getting enough food and nourishment to be able to do their best in their school day?

Food insecurities is a real thing. It's very difficult to learn when you're hungry. Paul and Dunbar High School, we have a family resource center. And when we talk about communication, and sometimes it can be humbling communications from parents when they have to come to us and say, Hey, look, things are hard.

We're here to support you. So not necessarily on the nutritional aspect, but on the aspect of making sure basic needs are met. We are here for you and confidentiality is number one in those [00:57:00] situations. So communicate to us so we can help fulfill those needs. 

Yeah, I would just say to parents, especially those that that are in need, don't be so prideful.

You, you won't ask for help. Our job is to do those things we partner with, with businesses that we get backpacks of food on the weekends. Like There are things in place where we can give you what you need outside of school. But also, and I'm not the picture of health by any stretch of the imagination but, drives me crazier than at 8 35 when the doors open.

The kids walking in with, with and a Mountain Dew. talk to your student, talk to your kid about what, you can have that, but probably not. The best thing to, to start your day with at 8 35 is to load up on that, especially when lunch is just around the corner with that.

So, you know, And that, that may fall on us a little bit to educate families a little bit more about what is or what isn't. But, a lot of times at the middle school level, I cannot speak to the high school, but man, our kids will come in with bags of just junk food to start their day. And typically what happens after they, they go, they share it with [00:58:00] 5,000 kids, number one, which isn't the healthiest thing in the world.

then if they scarf it down, it's not long before they're, they're either tired or lethargic or their stomach's hurting. And typically we can tie it right back to you ate four bags of Takis this morning and drank a Mountain Dew. Like it, it was 8 45 and that was your breakfast, 

Sarah.

Nose 

heads are spinning. 

I would just say as at all levels, just know your child's schedule for the day too. So I know our kids come in and it's early when they get into school. doors open at seven 15. So if they can't have breakfast before they leave the house because it's too rushed, talk to 'em about getting breakfast in the cafeteria.

Some schools have free breakfast, some it's pay, but all schools have breakfast options for the kids. sure they know that our last lunch ends at 1230, so if they get there at seven 15 and then don't eat lunch till 12, that's a long time. talking with your kid about do you need to bring a snack?

talking with the teacher about that. if your child's coming home starving every day, just thinking about what that looks like for your family, . We also can work with families on [00:59:00] providing snacks. I know our kindergartners all get a snack break because still need that.

looking at what their schedule's gonna look like, talking with the teacher, making sure you feel comfortable with what that looks like for your family. 

know it's helpful talking to your kids about nutrition and trying to teach them because you're not there to help them pick out their breakfast or lunch unless they're packing it and taking it with them.

But it's always a great opportunity as a parent to be able to go on and teach some basic principles of things that your kids should think about eating so they're not eating, talkies and drinking Mountain Dew that hey, maybe they should consider eating a piece of fruit or having some protein and just trying to learn to teach your child these basic skills as well, because it will help them in the long run.

Yeah. I've found with my daughter, I can point things out like, she does eat just cereal for breakfast and then she'll say, I was so hungry at lunch. And then, if she's had a breakfast where it's been some Greek yogurt and berries or something, I'm like, were you starving at lunch? [01:00:00] Oh, no, I wasn't.

don't, don't have to villainize any particular food, but just say like, how did this food last you today? Did you feel like you were crashing or did you feel like you could focus better try to encourage them to notice it, to try to make the choice themself of something that might be more helpful.

So as we were wrapping this up, I would love to hear some closing thoughts from each of you all that you would provide of how to best succeed this school year.

Y'all have provided lots and lots of tips and ideas,

 So at the elementary level, I think it's just really important to, to just to have a really good start to the school year to get them excited. The kids are naturally so excited to be back at school and we love when they come back into the building.

And being prepared by, making sure you know what school supplies they need, how to get those if you aren't able to do that coming to those open houses, being involved as a parent is gonna really help make it a successful year. And that looks different for every family. So whether that's you communicating with your student's teacher that's you being able to come to family nights, [01:01:00] whatever that looks like for you, just being involved in the school and making sure that not only does your child feel like they belong, but that you as a family feels like you belong at that school too.

Yeah, I think I'll piggyback that as well is from the parent perspective, I think that sense of belonging. Whatever that looks like, it's gonna be different by each family. But what does that feel like? Did did you feel like the door was always open for us? So the feedback I'm looking for at the end of the year is what did our families really think about the experience that their kid had in our building?

really looking for that sense of belonging. students you're gonna hear me not talk about grades because it's not about that. I want our kids to walk out each and every day knowing that they were seen, heard, and that there's somebody that can go to bat for them.

So if they're walking into our building every day when they leave at the end of the year, they don't want to go home. usually can sit back and go, okay we've, what we're supposed to. They want to be here. 'cause if I can get them to want to be there, everything else can happen. So it's really at the end of the year, it's did we create that culture that we wanted to create from principals to teachers, to other staff, to students, and then to parents?

everyone feel that [01:02:00] they were a part of that? And that sense of I can't wait to come back. So we really, really focus on building that. So it's not just about grades. It's gonna be socially, it's gonna be emotionally, it's gonna be parent nights our culture nights that we do anything that we can do to make sure that our families are out there saying, man, this has been a, this has been a great year.

maybe they can't pinpoint exactly what it was. That's a success because what happens, and I was gonna bring this up earlier, at our desk, I probably get 20 negative conversations to every one good thing. So my entire life, every day is really grounded in, here's a problem, here's a problem, here's a problem, here's a problem.

So sometimes I walk out going, man, I, that's bad. And to hear the good things. And typically it's the end of the year where that starts to really show itself is at the end of the year. And you can step out and go, man, all of the struggles that happen this year, man, we're walking away feeling really good because our kids, they know they're supposed to be here.

They're right where they're supposed to be in our families. They're saying, man, this is, this has been a really good. Year.

Yeah. So back to school's gonna be a total family reset, right? Be mindful of that. Remember that [01:03:00] you set the tone when you drop your kids off at school.

that this is a true partnership between home and school and we all want what's best for your child. 

Yeah, I think that's great. You guys have given us so many great tips today. I feel excited about going back to school. I know. 

Hey, I also think for our listeners, we should send some positive emails to our principals just this school year hearing this.

So I'm gonna put a little plug in for us to do that as big thank yous. 

And you know, Sarah and I love having a positive mindset for things involving your health, but I really feel like that's what I've heard from you guys. And I think what I've taken away from everything you've said today is about things upfront.

Have good talks with your kids and make sure they know what to expect and go through what might be hard or might be problematic for them. But as you go through that with them, put it in a positive mindset. Don't just bring it up as, oh man, this is gonna be so hard. Or you're, you're gonna fight with that friend again if you're in the same class.

And [01:04:00] instead just bring it up as what opportunities are we gonna have this year at this school with everyone involved? And I think that's a really great way for us to think about it and to try to get our kids to think about it and then to really be thinking about progress instead of perfection. So I think our kids are gonna have.

A great year. 

. Be sure to you. Tune in next week and we're gonna start talking about gut health and everything related to our gut. I know this has been a topic that a lot of people wanted to hear about.

We have a special guest, Emily McLoan, who's gonna talk about our nutrition and how it impacts our gut flora. So I know you all are excited to hear about this, so be sure you tune in next week for that. you next time.