Hiawatha Middle School
307 S. Morrill Avenue
Hiawatha, KS 66434
785-742-4172
(Fax) 785-742-1744
Lonnie Moser, Superintendent Ben Kettler, Activities Director
Kyley Gatz, Principal Kim Krauter, Counselor
April 17, 2020
Dear Red Hawk Parents and/or Guardians,
It’s hard to believe that we are experiencing snow once more after a day of seventy degrees last week. This snowfall reminds me a bit of our current situation, where we are all tasked with effectively handling uncertainty and fluidity throughout our day. Regardless of presented challenges, I have no doubt that each of you are doing your very best for your families.
This past Monday during professional development, teachers collaborated with one another while preparing for the weeks ahead. They were engaged in ongoing team zoom meetings, holding professional dialogue on how to best help families and students. Each grade level team worked together to create student/family check-in lists, where all educators committed to continuing our efforts in maintaining and strengthening our relationships with our most important assets—our students.
As I prepared for the ‘meat and potatoes’ of this message, I felt it might be most helpful to leave you with a few tips on how to best help your student during this time:
*First and foremost, communicate that you love them, you are proud of their efforts and encourage their presence in your household (family conversations, activities, chores, etc.).
*Acknowledge that learning will not look the same. Trust in yourself and the process. (Every family operates differently.)
*Educational opportunities exist inside of your home…these are real-life and relevant!
*Help establish a schedule and routines while empowering every child’s voice.
*Identify a work station in your house where your student feels comfortable, yet also productive!
*Offer choices and flexibility.
*Enlist help—older siblings can be of great assistance with academic tasks!
*Encourage and plan for “fresh air”—we can all benefit from going outside.
*Ask your student to summarize his/her daily academic tasks and offer time for an end-of-day summarization of completion.
*Stay in active communication with your child’s teachers. Remember, you can be added to your student’s Google Classroom account as a guardian and receive e-mailed Google Classroom summaries.
*Lastly, know when to call it a day! We all reach the point of extreme frustration. Sometimes, the best approach is to simply walk away for a while. (All teachers are willing to help and offer flexible deadlines. Our primary expectation is participation and effort.)
Best Regards,
Mrs. Gatz, HMS Principal
The mission of Hiawatha Middle School is to provide all students with life-long learning skills and opportunities for academic, personal, and social growth in a safe and orderly environment. The educational program is designed to enable students to become productive citizens in an ever-changing society.