During the COVID-19 pandemic, schools across the country have been trying new approaches in their communication with multilingual families. As a result of that outreach, many schools have discovered new tools and strategies that have strengthened their engagement with families of English-language learners (ELLs) during this challenging time.
Category: Guest Blogs
Successfully Communicating with Multilingual Families
Simple Ways to Build Connection with Staff and Students
As human beings, we are hardwired for connection. We chose to be educators with the intention of impacting the lives of our students through the relationships we build. Yet, as an assistant principal, I often find myself buried in my never-ending to-do lists, which has unfortunately led to missed opportunities to connect with my staff […]
Building Community Partnerships Begins with Relationships
When I became the leader of Northwest Rankin High School (NWRHS), I inherited a very positive school culture, characterized by strong relationships with students, staff, and the community. But one thing was missing: partnerships between the school and local businesses and other organizations. Developing a formal relationship with the local Chamber of Commerce helped. It […]
Before the Bell Rings: Four Ways to Stay Balanced
August. The month for educators of excitement, anticipation, and the start of a new (school) year. Many of us left our classrooms and schools in June with a list of books to read, conferences to go to, and big ideas for the next school year. If you are like me, June, July, and August are months […]
How to Promote a Safe Return to School
I am a pediatric infectious diseases physician at Washington University in St. Louis and St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Throughout the pandemic, I have spent time evaluating COVID-19 transmission in schools and advising schools on the best COVID-19 mitigation practices.
Onboarding Students and Forming Personal Connections
As a new school year begins, it feels good to reconnect with students and meet new families in our community. As the assistant principal at Vail Academy and High School, a K–12 public school of approximately 475 students in Tucson, AZ, one of my responsibilities is to focus on onboarding new students and guiding them […]
‘Monday Musings’: Building Communication, Inclusion, and Cohesion With Parents
At Pewamo-Westphalia Middle/High School, we believe our three stakeholder groups—students, educators, and parents—determine the overall success of our educational experience. We use the analogy that successful education is a strong, solid, weight-bearing “three-legged stool,” with each leg representing one of the stakeholder groups. We have confidence in and rely upon each leg of the stool […]
Four Ways to Anchor Yourself as a Leader
I still remember the shock on March 13, 2020, when we sent students home to complete the year online. Looking back, these last 16 months have been beyond stormy—just one wave after another as we battled to support teachers, support our school community, support our students, and somehow find something that supported ourselves. Throughout this challenging time, […]
Inclusion Beyond the Classroom
Establishing a culture of inclusion across the building and beyond the classroom not only benefits the students being included, it also helps build a positive culture for everyone in the school community. As is typical in most schools, we’ve worked to maximize the inclusion opportunities for our students with developmental disabilities. Over the last several […]
National Student Clearinghouse Research Center Executive Director Doug Shapiro and NASSP CEO Ronn Nozoe Discuss the Impact of COVID-19 on Students
Listen to Their Conversation and Attend the Clearinghouse’s Session at the 2021 NASSP National Principals Conference During a webinar earlier this year, Doug Shapiro, Executive Director of the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, and Ronn Nozoe, CEO of NASSP, shared their thoughts about two important Research Center reports: The early look at fall enrollment as it pertains […]