Thanks for your comment. I agree about the importance of positive relationships between teacher and student. And at the beginning of the year especially, it's on us the teachers to make our students feel comfortable, secure, empowered, and their voices heard. Some kids, most I think, adjust quickly to a new year and new teachers and can get get right to work. Others, of course, have a lot more going on. I'm not trying to sound harsh in this piece, but teachers are very stressed these days because it really only takes 1 or 2 to disrupt a classroom and make learning virtually impossible. I've seen just about everything after nearly 20 years in the biz. I can totally understand why sometimes you counsel certain students out of the building into homeschool, alternate setting, etc. It's sad and not something anyone wants to do. But it's happening more and more for reasons outside of our control as educators.

Thanks again for reading!