Due to the COVID pandemic, many things have changed in a short amount of time. As we move into the 2020-2021 school year, we have a new term to grapple with, Social Distancing. Human beings are instinctively social in our daily lives and we use this natural instinct to develop relationships and help us educate our students. For years, educators have relied on various types of social interactions as teaching tools in our classes. Teachers would greet students at their doors with high-fives, fist bumps, and smiles; now, we monitor our distance apart, we sanitize our hands frequently, and masks cover our smiles.
Social interactions are vital to students’ emotional and intellectual growth and they serve to boost the well being of all of us who interact with them. As educators, we must ensure face to face contact with our students, even if it is virtually. Lakes faculty and staff will serve our community in this way until it is safe for us to return to the building. That face to face interaction provides us with the assurance that our students are both physically and mentally healthy. These interactions also allow us to engage our students in discussions where we can model appropriate, caring, and enthusiastic exchanges; we provide a forum for students to build upon information to enhance their understanding of the world. Our hope is that our students will feel that they are valued members of our community at Lakes Community High School. I just wish they could have termed it physical distancing!
David B. Newberry
Proud Principal
Lakes Community High School
