Dear Mr. President,
Please reopen the schools. All of them. Five days a week. On behalf of millions of other parents, I’m begging you.
For any parent or family who isn’t comfortable sending their child(ren), I absolutely get it. Let them continue to do virtual schooling. I will never question anyone who is going to do what’s best for their family.
But what’s best for so many of millions of our families, we’re being deprived of making that decision.
Our children are struggling – everywhere! Parents are struggling. Hell, grandparents and caregivers are trying to step up and step in, rolling up their sleeves to figure out how to log into zooms, complete everything virtually when learning has simply become unlearning for far too many.
Working parents are coming home from their jobs finding their children in tears; instead of worrying about sitting down together for dinner, it’s figuring out how to teach them what they didn’t understand all day on a zoom or even worse – from an online app that just gave them instructions on what to do and to figure it out on their own.
Aside from children falling behind and hating “school”, what’s even far more tragic is they’re hating “life”. The suicide numbers are alarming. Depression and anxiety is rapidly increasing.
This pandemic leaves us functioning adults somewhat unfunctionable at times. Yes, this is not normal. Any of it. Trying to function in the “unfunctionable.”
But our children, our innocent children didn’t ask for any of this nor do they deserve to continue to pay for this and suffer daily.
Schools need to reopen. Full time. Five days a week. Now.
As a mother of five and former teacher who spent 10 years in the classroom, I’m begging you to use your office and power on behalf of America’s children. Encourage all governors to reopen their schools to give all families and students the opportunity to be back in the classroom.
We’re coming up on a year of soul crushing chaos.
America deserves better. Families deserve better. But most importantly, our children deserve better.
A few quotes of feedback from parents:
“My 13 year old daughter was a straight A student her entire life. She’s loved school and learning. She’s now getting D’s and F’s as she stopped caring and trying months ago. My heart is absolutely crushed to see a part of her gone.”
“The pandemic stopped the testing process for my youngest for learning disabilities and now we’re halfway through 3rd grade, he’s definitely dyslexic and we have absolutely no help because there isn’t an IEP so they say they can’t give him extra help. Not even the interventions we had in place last year. So I’m spending my whole day taking his notes to re-teach the assignment then I have to work 8 hours and come home and do the work with him that we didn’t finish during school. It’s insane.”
“Kids can’t learn from a computer. The learning gap is huge.”
“The mental health of our children is way more important than whatever agenda they have going on.”
“The struggle is real. My 12 year old 7th grader mental well being is at stake either way I look at it! I am so upset too that one side of town kids get to go to school and my side of town they do not! In a year my daughter has stepped into the school 3 times!! Like are you kidding me?! I get we are in a pandemic but when other kids in the same area get to go and others do not what is this doing to their well being?”
“I hate that the teachers literally still have to prep them and keep up same pace for end of year testing! I just want to cry most days! Finally my daughter will get some in person in the coming weeks but like is it too late? This pandemic has tested my limits of parenting. I feel stressed and never know what I am doing is right or not!”
“This virtual school is a joke, the kids aren’t learning anything. It’s literally a shit show here!!”
“My kindergarten son isn’t even listening to a thing his teacher says! This is supposed to be his most important year to begin learning – what a joke! My husband and I fight all the time as our home has become a fight about distance learning. We all are in misery. “
“I have a child who was a social butterfly who now has anxiety and panic attacks due to the mental and emotional effects of being isolated and made to stare at a screen all day. She’s required to do more work than before with none of the fun. “
“And honestly, this has put ME in a heightened state of anxiety and depression. I am sad all the time for them. I am so stressed at all the emails and missing assignments x4 kids; I am freaking out that 3/4 have grades that keep dropping and horrific attitudes now about school.”
For more on coming together to take back some normalcy for our children, follow The Real Deal of Parenting.
