Lights Out!!

Well, for those of you who made the trip out tonight, thanks for taking the time to come, I hope you made it home without getting too wet in the rain. For those who could not make it, you didn't miss too much as lightning hit something close, and the power went out in the middle of the first video. Seeing as how tonight was about bringing us all together for a chance to see some of the products of the student's hard work, I am way beyond disappointed, but what can we do?

Everything is an adventure, and tonight was as well, but I have to admit that I had hoped to say a few things, and share some of our adventures from the year, but the power failure cut that all short, and I never got a chance to say too much (lucky really for all of you -ha ha).

Thanks to Sophie's dad (Robin) we will all get a cd with all of the video clips and slideshows on it for your computer. He will try to get them all copied for tomorrow or Thursday and we will send them home (so look for them in the collection of things coming home). If any don't work just let me know and we will try to get the files to you (though everyone will have a copy, so perhaps you can copy off of another student you might know).

So all's well that ends well, but since I didn't get to say it in person, I thought I would try to put a few words down in an email as some closure for the year. It was great to see everyone together, both parents and students, chatting and carrying on like members of a community do. To say in advance that this is one of my goals each year is perhaps a bit lofty, but inside that is what I hope to see as an outcome of all that happens from September to June. That is a long span of time, and a lot of hours together(especially when you factor in the previous year together in many cases), so it makes sense that you all should feel connected in many ways. What I try to impart through our annual Movie night, is some of the strong feelings of accomplishment, success, and pride in what your children have done over the course of the year that I feel. From video presentations to the school, to flash mobs, to artwork, to fashion shows, and sharing skits, to a slideshow of our fantastic trip to MacSkimming, we were going to check out a good sample of events from this year that we all should be proud of because your children showed their commitment to hard work, pride in themselves, and strength of character throughout them.

In many ways we took on a lot this year, but the only reason we did so was because of the strengths of the group we had. I have seldom known a group of students with so many hard workers, independent thinkers, caring individuals, and leaders. I started to say tonight (unsuccessfully) that we did a lino cutting project that was somewhat risky in nature, but I knew that we could pull it off because of the nature of the group I had to work with. On any given day I always knew that I could ask them to perform any task, and they would give me 100%, and then some. Frankly that is more than any teacher can wish for, so I felt like my hopes had come true in many ways this year.

It isn't possible for parents to be in class all the time, and I feel guilty for all of the great moments I get to experience as your children have their moments of glory during the year. I know most of you enough to understand how proud you are of your children already, but when the videos come home, please take the time to watch them, and share in the great sense of pride that I have in them as students, and for all of the roads they have travelled with me this year. Know that they rose to every occasion, and that they worked hard as a group to make sure that everyone (including their teacher) was able to feel included and successful.

Lastly, thank you all for the support you gave the class, throughout the year. We couldn't even attempt half of what we do without all of you standing behind us. And thanks for the support you all gave me as well. Seeing as I have become a new parent in the past year many of you have shared a number of warm wishes, kind words, and support to Jenny and I, and I will forever be grateful for that. It has been a wonderful part of what is really a magical year for us.

I hope you all the best over the summer, and in the future. The next two days will be busy ones for us, but if you have time, please stop in to say hello. I will be hoping to hear how our grade 6's are doing down the road. Feel free to send any of them back in High School for volunteer hours (though with this caring group they will likely have no problem filling those hours). Don't hesitate to get in touch with me if I can be of any help to you or your children down the road.

Best Wishes,

Ray