Building Up or Tearing Down
By Dr. Jane Stavem, Superintendent
When we care for our babies, we focus on their basic needs, and our entire lives are consumed with feeding and sleeping schedules. I often looked back and wondered why it was so hard to get something done when my children were babies when all they did was sit in one place and smile at me!
When we reach the toddler stage, we deal with busy hands and feet that require constant monitoring to keep children safe from power outlets, falling objects, and eating dog food. Well, maybe the dog food was just at my house! There are tantrums in the toy aisle, bargaining over candy in the grocery store checkout lanes, and the continual need for reteaching and redirection as we train children about what is right and wrong.
Finally, children are ready for school, and the focus shifts to helping them learn, dealing with friendships and social settings, and learning accountability and responsibility through activities and new challenges.
At last, independence arrives, and worries shift to safe driving, safe choices, and hoping they don’t head down a path that leads to failure or hinders their adult trajectory.
My youngest child graduated, and I felt this overwhelming relief. We had run the gauntlet and come out on the other side. Now I had to worry about my children from a distance. I would no longer be able to monitor their daily life, and it was time for them to be responsible for their adult choices.
When I think about the community of Sioux Falls and the Sioux Falls School District, I am continually amazed and reminded of so many things that have been put in place to support children and families through the journey of parenting and school. From essential resources to awesome activities, we live in this fantastic place where the focus is on helping families thrive.
As we look to the future, there are new challenges and opportunities, and for me, there is a clear line for determining what should become part of our Sioux Falls life.
- Does it build kids and families up or tear them down?
- Does it make it easier to be a child in Sioux Falls, or does it make it more difficult?
- Does it help families thrive or create new avenues for challenges?
Every day, thousands of people come to work in Sioux Falls to make a difference in a child's life. It has never been easy work, and it never will be. Let’s make sure we’re doing everything possible to increase those things that make parenting and working with children better and reduce and eliminate obstacles to that goal whenever possible.
Our children depend on us for a bright future!