Roller Skating Perseverance...

 

What does it mean to persevere?  The easy answer is to simply “not give up.”  As you know one of our pillars at Eagle Ridge Academy is perseverance.  On our website we define perseverance as: endure through hardships, focus, don’t give up, and accomplish goals.  We tell students perseverance in action is to: do your best, don’t get discouraged, get extra help if you need it, and ask questions. Many of the people we all admire are those who have stories of perseverance.  

Perseverance is something I don’t often see taught at other schools.  It is natural for all of us to want to rescue children when they are frustrated, but that does not help them learn perseverance or tenacity.  It is easier to start teaching perseverance at a younger age when there are appropriate safety nets in place if a child does fail.  The lesson learned from sticking something out no matter the end result is invaluable in the life of a child.  We try to instill this at Eagle Ridge Academy and truly appreciate all of the parental support in making this happen.  Some way we can work together in this are to:

1.       Praise effort when your child does not give up on something.

2.       In the lower school it is very helpful to emphasize effort. 

3.       Give examples of people who have persevered to make something happen to make connections for your child.

4.       Share or model your own examples or efforts in perseverance.

5.       Make sure you praise the effort rather than the end result and don’t give false praise to make students feel better.

On Thursday evening I saw perseverance in action at the Roller Garden Party.  Students who had never roller skated before were out on the floor figuring out how to make it happen.  They were up and down, but they certainly kept going.  The encouragement given by friends and adults was truly heartwarming.    Thanks to Merry Jo Orr and all of our wonderful PTO volunteers for making the event happen.  Here are some pictures from the party.

This week is Spirit Week at Eagle Ridge Academy.  Here is the list of special days for the week.

ERA Winter Spirit Week – January 22 – 25This week is K-12 Winter Spirit Week! Each day students may either wear their uniform to school OR they can wear what is assigned for the day of the week. *Jeans or uniform bottoms may be worn each day. No leggings, sweatpants or pajama pants. No Hats.

Monday – Jan. 21 – No School (MLK Day & The Presidential Inauguration & Parade)
Tuesday – Jan. 22 – Patriotic Day – Wear Red, White & Blue (in honor of the Presidential Inauguration on Monday -MLK day.)
Wednesday – Jan. 23 – Class Color Day
Teachers & Staff – Pink
Grade 12 – Black
Grade 11 – Red
Grade 10 – Yellow
Grade 9 – Brown
Grade 8 – Blue

Grade 7 – Green
Grade 6 – Orange

Grade 5 – Purple
Grade 4 – Blue
Grade 3 – Green
Grade 2 – Orange
Grade 1 – Red
K – All the crazy colors you can wear!
Thursday – Jan. 24 – College Wear Day
Friday – Jan. 25 – Spirit Wear Day    

The annual Gala for Our Pillars is scheduled for Saturday, February 23^rd at Olympic Hills in Eden Prairie.  Tickets for the Gala are on sale.  Please check out the PTO website for more information: www.EagleRidgeAcademyPTO.org.  The PTO is also currently looking for donations for the event auctions.  The ERA PTO is a 501(c)3 non-profit, which ensures your donation is tax deductible.  You may contact them by email: EagleRidgeAcademyGala@gmail.com.  You may also contact Ann Watanabe, Auction Chair, at 952-300-7482 or Erin Davies at 612-702-5410, should you have questions or to arrange a pick-up of a donation. 

The next Lower School Parent Coffee is on Thursday, January 31^st at 8:00 in the main conference room (space permitting).  Please join us for coffee and conversation.

Have a great week!

Mrs. Baier