It’s the week before school starts and D93 teachers and staff are already collaborating and learning ways to make the school year as successful as possible.
“The training has been amazing,” said Woodland Hills Kindergarten Teacher, McKall Scott. “Honestly, I’ve been in such a funk over the summer and so this is just what I needed to get rejuvenated and get excited about school starting and so it’s been a really good, positive experience for me.”
The goal is to create a jumpstart to help ease the transition back to the classroom but D93’s Director of Learning and Instruction says it’s important to light that fire without overwhelming the staff.
“It’s that fine line of they’ve got a lot of things they are thinking about,” said Jason Lords, Director of Leaning and Instruction for Bonneville School District 93. “They are thinking about their classrooms. They are thinking about their students. They are thinking about their class lists.”
The training begins with D93’s four cornerstone values; integrity Learning and literacy, teamwork and positivity.
“I think it’s been really beneficial,” said Shanna Spencer, Second Grade Teacher at Mountain Valley. “I think the most important thing we’ve been learning is just building relationships with our kids, making sure they feel safe and secure coming back to school this year.”
One area of emphasis going into the school year will be the social and emotional well-being of students and staff as we move forward through the pandemic.
“We have Tara Brown here and she’s been talking about social, emotional learning and just really building those relationships with students and also taking care of yourself,” said Jason Lords. “I think that’s been for teachers coming back. We always hear a lot about testing and data, all of those things and I think it was refreshing for them to hear you know what, we want you to take care of yourself and take care of the students and make sure they feel safe, cared for and connected.”
McKall Scott started her teaching career in another school district and says she appreciates that D93 provides this opportunity for teachers and staff.
“I actually don’t recall going to P.D. training like this,” said McKall Scott. “So, to have this experience is absolutely wonderful and it’s very beneficial to myself and many other teachers.
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