Believe it or not, we are in the homestretch of the 2015-2016 school year. Just today, I counted how many days we have left of school – 25. I am not sure how this year has flown by so quickly. As I visit classrooms and observe children in the hallways, I notice the many ways in which our students have grown. Some of our youngest children had trouble ascending and descending the stairs on their own in September. They now practically hop down one step at a time, with confidence and ease. I have witnessed great growth in reading – students who were distinguishing letters from numbers in the fall are now blending sounds to make words. Students who were just starting to make words back then have graduated to reading books on their own. Our 2nd Graders amaze me day after day. They have become such leaders at Harbor – helping with dismissal, hot lunches, and as reading buddies – that I often have to remind myself that they, too, are young children.

Twenty-five days of school. (That’s roughly 75 preschool hours, or 150 primary school hours.) In the blink of an eye, the last day of school will be here. As bittersweet as that is to me, I can proudly declare that our students will be 170 days more confident, more independent, and more grown-up than they were in September. In fact, to be specific, they will have been immersed in the true value and meaning of our anchors – love, independence, respect, creativity, and caring. We have spent the past year nurturing these “anchors” in our students and I am proud to say that I can see it in their actions and interactions.

Let me stop being so misty-eyed – there are still 25 days left of the year for me to spend with your beautiful children. By the way, I would love to spend the summer with them as well…have you signed up for camp yet?