A crispy air of joys and pains

Dear Families,

We write to you from a crisp room here at 610 Henry, after quite a challenging and unnerving day yesterday.  We know that yesterday, a day that started off with worrisome news from our campus about a threat made over Instagram, was the kind of day we all wish wasn’t part of our day to day lives.  We know, also, that in the world we live in, the moment in time in this late-stage of the pandemic, mental health and emotional well being are continually being tested and pushed to their limits.  

Our city school system has layered supports and strategies in place to support school communities when something goes wrong.  There were hiccups, surely, as every system and every protocol has at its center humans who are all doing their best, but the responses were swift and helpful when we connected with each person along the chain.  NYPD officers, detectives, and an “intel official” were at school to make sure the entire situation was addressed carefully and thoroughly, and it was surely a big sigh of relief when they shared their conclusions that the threat was non-credible. 

At the start of the day, we were in touch with the citywide safety director to find out the protocol for field trips leaving our school building during such a time, and once we were clear, eight different classes left our campus to continue their work out in the extended classrooms of our city.  With the chilly air making its way to a more permanent state, we welcome the flurry and influx of trips and intrabuilding visits as our curricular studies take off.  

Leaving for trips, students eagerly line up with their classmates to board school buses or walk to the train station. Families join classes as chaperones and partner in the learning for the day. Second graders have had their initial swim test in preparation for the swim program’s start. And our littlest ones start to venture out into the building, widening their scope learning about various community members and what they do at BNS. 

We excitedly welcome special guests like author Selina Alko back to the building after the last two-three years of using the virtual platform to connect. Our librarians have organized author visits to return to the library, making tangible the idea of writer and illustrator as a profession.

While some situations require us to caretake for each other in emotional ways, there are also ways we can care for each other’s health – Sandra, our school nurse, shares some tips to help us stay healthy doing the things that we love.  The common cold is back!  As the days become colder, we highly encourage you to have your children wear layers and dress appropriately for the weather. Remind kids to practice good hand washing and support them in getting plenty of sleep to boost their immune system. Consider having your child mask up if they have a mild cough or cold but no fever. And always keep your child home until fever free for 24 hours without use of fever reducers and overall symptom improvement.  

It was a turbulent week full week of school, with some days filled with excitement, and yesterday a day with much worry.  Though the adults managed with a sense of unease and remained on alert, the children were able to continue on with learning and adventure, as we hope each day holds.  We hope our letters in the weeks to come are filled with all the joys of the school day, and less of the events that make our insides cringe, but we know that anything that comes our way is ours to navigate together.

With care,

Diane and Malika