McKernan's Notes

Students are excited today.  Prom weekend at Nemaha Valley High School.  Many people think school begins to wind down in the spring.  In reality, it one of the busiest times of the year.  There are many activities, teachers trying to finish up lessons from too many snow days, and not enough time in the day and week to get everything done.  Kids will tend to get themselves over-extended and that is where the parents and school need to step in and help with some guidance.  These days, from April to May seem to fly by.  Sometimes we just need to slow down to enjoy the green grass growing.

The staff at NVHS and a few selected NVEMS staff had the opportunity to listen to two dynamic speakers today. Larry Deaton gave a humorous and interesting presentation on birth orders. This was relevant on many levels for our staff including, and most importantly, how we interact with students and how their birth order in their family can affect our relationship with them. I am 3rd born in a family of 4. This may not mean a lot to some of you but may help explain to the NVHS staff why some decisions are made and the philosophy behind those decisions. Very good information for working with kids.

The second presentation of the day, by Alan Beam, Principal at Shawnee Heights High School, dealt with the Generation Y or the current group of students in high school today. Again, very relevant information to help us educate our students. We also talked a little about Generation X parents, which most of us are, and how we communicate and work with the school. There were plenty of Ah Hahs sighed in the audience. I am willing to share any information you would like about the generational differences. I am not expert, just an enthusiast on this topic.

Teachers are never too old to learn new tricks. As stated today, we have to change with the students. We have to be willing to take educational risks and support each other in those risks.

This is our 3rd day in row out of school.  I think most of the kids would even admit, this is long enough.  The first semester has flown by and this will make it seem even shorter.  We will be very busy when we return with only nine days of school left before the Winter break.  The annual alumni tournaments are coming up on Dec. 18-19.  I like this event and from past participation, many alumni enjoy it also.

November is here, and the weather forecast for this week says it is going to be beautiful all week. We have completed almost 11 weeks of school and the year is going smoothly.

The HS staff spent some time last week revisiting their curriculum, what they teach, when they teach it, what the state expects us to teach among other things. With our enrollment getting a little smaller every year, we are studying our curriculum and looking at areas we can enhance. We want to continue all our programs and offerings we currently have even though our class sizes may be getting smaller.

Our sports teams have completed the Fall activities seasons. All our teams compete and play hard, it is always tough when you don’t reach your ultimate goal.

Our Scholar’s Bowl team competes this week and the All-School Play will be held in 2 weeks. One thing ends and another starts. Even though it gets hectic from time to time, I like the pace. I like to stay busy and even though we all need some down time, I think most of the kids like to stay active as well. Stay busy but make sure you stay healthy as well. Staying healthy seems tougher to do than it use to.

Come and gone, quickly. We are through a full five weeks of school. I would like to thank those parents who took time out of their busy schedule to attend Parent/Teacher conferences. It is important for the parents and teachers to communicate about issues that are important for the well being of the students. Parents, keep checking Power School to see how your child is doing. There are e-mail addresses available so you can contact your child’s teachers. Keep in touch!

Many activities are starting this week. Students were in the building last night for play tryouts. All the VB teams play Thursday night and the FB team plays on Friday night. CC has been training for their first meet on Saturday at Marysville. I know the students are going through the first phase of quizzes and tests. I have seen more books being carried out of the building. Seminars seem to be quieter now that AR books are checked out, teachers are getting to the meat of their curriculum, and students have been in class for almost 2 weeks now.

We are just about over with firsts for the school year.  A student was joking with me and said hey Mr. McKernan this was my first Monday of the new school year.  So maybe the message is that there are a lot of firsts but it is also time to get in a routine.  We have had a great start to the school year due to hard work of staff and students.  I don’t want to leave the parents out because I know in my own house it has been a struggle some mornings to get the kids up.  So thanks to the parents as well.

Our seniors have a  great opportunity to attend service learning training in St. Joe, Mo on Monday August 31.  I think most of them will enjoy the experience. We will eventually plan and complete a student driven service learning project in the community.   What better lessons can we teach our youth than to be active, participatory members of their communities.

Since we have a block schedule the teachers and students have had two first days at NVHS. We have such great kids at NV. I told them in the opening day assembly I was proud to be their principal and I am very sincere about that. Students were excited and I think glad to be back in school. I hope this enthusiasm lasts until May 26th! Homework should be coming, everyone will be getting busier than usual.

You might have thought we had school today.  I pulled in the parking lot and found about 50+ cars at 7:00 am in the morning.  Football and basketball practice for the student-athletes started early.  The teachers began arriving about 7:30 am to begin their first day of meetings and work time in their classroom.  The custodians, cooks, and secretaries were all working to help get ready for the first day with students.  We have another busy day tomorrow but I am sure all the staff will be happy when the students show up on Wednesday.  I think everyone is ready to come back.

(Mr. McKernan’s new blog site) Feel free to hook on, add your comments, etc.  I do have editorial privileges and do want to keep the site school appropriate.

The 2009-2010 school year begins next week for Nemaha Valley High School students.  Our enrollment is up from last year as expected.  Our incoming freshman class is larger in numbers than the 2009 class that graduated this past May. Many people have asked how this will affect our KSHSAA classification.  We really won’t know until October 1st when classifications and enrollment numbers are released by KSHSAA.

I am looking forward to a great year with students, staff, and parents.  We have a lot of positive programs and activities for students.  I ask all parents to encourage their child to become involved and engaged in the whole school.

We have a great school community at Nemaha Valley High School.  I look forward to working with all of you this year.

Sincerely, Patrick McKernan