It’s hard to believe that we are halfway through the schoolyear. Schools have sent out progress reports, but the pandemic has changed how many students, and hopefully parents, view grades. While assessing this semester, students describe living in an odd educational mix of schools moving back to traditional classroom standards while also being more aware of and responsive to everyone’s emotional needs. A high school senior whom I work described his first semester experience beautifully when he said…

We are nearing two years of an alternate school structure that no one could have imagined prior to the pandemic which has clearly been a very challenging time for students and teachers. As we enter the next year with numbers on the rise again, it feels like we are never again going to find a rhythm, a balance that doesn’t cause stress and isolation. This, however, does not need to be what defines this year if we look at how we find resiliency in any situation.

You asked, we listened. We have been asked to develop a parenting course for years and after the pandemic and rough return to in-person school, we decided that now is the time to support parents of children with executive dysfunction in addition to coaching the children. To that end, we have developed a course on appropriate support for parents that we will begin teaching in January,2022.

Our high school seniors have spent the last several months completing applications, taking the last rounds of standardized testing, and writing essays. It’s November 1, the day when all of the college application stress becomes very real; Early Decision 1 applications are due.

Many of you know about our monthly Facebook Live discussion at Essig Education Group's Facebook when we discuss various topics related to executive function. Our October event will be about growth mindset. My coaching team and I will explain the research of Dr. Carol Dweck, a Stanford University researcher and psychology professor.

Having spent 30 years working in special education, primarily focusing on students with executive dysfunction and ADHD, I think I really understand their strengths and challenges. I

I know, we have done this blog before, but we haven’t had a normal school year in a while. While their ads are great for their marketing, those big box stores can be overwhelming. The volume of stuff in the aisles, the glitzy displays that talk you into buying way more than you need, the other shoppers with carts filled to the brim can make you buy way more than your child really needs.

The uncertainty of the 2021-22 school year is looming with us continuing to discuss the educational shifts and what “normal” looks like. Rather than focusing on the uncertain start to the year, we might want to focus on continuing the active engagement that students developed since the start of COVID.

Every year, high school graduation is a time of pride and accomplishment that is mixed with a healthy level of fear of the next step. So often, the undertone of graduation discussions is, “are they ready?”

I grew up in New York and was considered to be a strong student so sat many Regents exams as final exams. These were standardized tests that demonstrated excellence. I was in honors math and expected to take Regents exams which was not a problem until I took geometry and crashed into the math wall.

A few days ago, a student I am coaching started his session with, “I am so happy to be in-person again.” What? He’s never been happy to go to school! Clearly, distance learning has made him appreciate being in school, something that I would never have expected.

We know that there is a vaccine and a finish line, but it seems like the end will never come, and we are the adults. Imagine what it must feel like to have lived all of this as a child or young adult.