Dear Parents of Sibylla Kiddle School,
I spent some time yesterday in one of our grade 3 classes watching a live feed of the landing of NASA’s Perseverance Rover on the planet Mars. There was a hushed anticipation for the final minutes as students quietly observed the precarious process unfold along with watching scientists carefully hold their collective breathe throughout the final delicate stages. When the scientist on audio said, “Touchdown confirmed” a huge cheer went up among the students along with similar cheers coming from a few other classrooms.
As I watched the students get excited over the moment, I observed highly educated scientists and engineers cheering, fist pumping and clapping in the exact same fashion as the 8 year-olds in front of me. I got to stand back and witness the joy of accomplishment. That exact moment when hours of work, unrelenting effort and tenacity merge to culminate in pride and jubilation.
It occurred to me, in that moment, how appropriate the name of the latest Mars Rover is – Perseverance. Theoretically, the state of accomplishment is achieved upon the completion of any task, no matter how ordinary. However, we don’t demonstratively celebrate the accomplishment of washing the dishes or walking the dog. Rather, we save those celebratory accomplishments for feats that require significant perseverance. For a toddler we cheer at the accomplishment of a first step. We go wild when our child can finally figure out how to independently balance and ride their bike for the first time. We share posts on social media after hours of tooth wiggling results in their first pulled tooth.
What is your child persevering towards in their learning right now? We can easily forget how hard it can be to learn how to read, to memorize some basic number facts or write our first sentences. The challenge with these difficult and important learning feats is that touchdown is never confirmed in a singular moment. Learning is primarily an accomplishment wrapped up in process, not in product. Take time to understand what your child is learning and to celebrate the smallest of steps they make in achieving whatever they are setting out to accomplish. Cheer them on with wild abandon, as if they just put a rover on Mars whenever the achieve the smallest of milestones. Their sense of confidence, pride and willingness to persevere in learning will be far greater than you could imagine.
Sincerely, Brad Emery Principal
​