FROM THE VOLUSIA COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD
story about these colonists feasting with 90 Native
Americans, sharing their respective harvest and deer,
remains integral to the way Americans celebrate
Thanksgiving.
Giving thanks and sharing what we have with family,
friends, and with those who are in need is part of our
American culture. Thanksgiving presents a wonderful
opportunity for parents to teach children about how
to be appreciative for what they have. This is a great
time to tell stories about people helping other people.
Children need to learn these values at home and the
holidays are a perfect time to teach.
A
m I alone or do you agree November is just a
feel good month? When we reach November,
the holiday season is about to begin and another year
is about to end. Perhaps, this is the best time to reflect
on what has occurred this year and what are the
prospects for 2020.
One thing is for sure, children love the holidays.
This time of year, there are many fun filled activities
happening at our schools. Some of these will take
place in the classrooms and others in the form of extra
curricular concerts, plays, and other events.
As we get nearer to Thanksgiving, stories about
pilgrims and Native Americans will prevail in
elementary classes. In secondary schools, social
studies classes may include more depth on the history
of the first Thanksgiving, in 1621, at Plymouth Colony.
While only 53 out of 102 colonists survived the
Mayflower trip and made it through that first winter
with the help of the local Wampanoag tribe, the
We are all grateful Hurricane Dorian spared our
community. I know students, teachers, and parent were
happy to learn the school district did not have to make
up the days lost to the storm, which would have been
the three days before Thanksgiving. The reason for this
is because the District had included extra instructional
time within the 180 day schedule. Whew!
As the Chair of the Volusia County School Board, I
wish all parents a very happy Thanksgiving and hope
you will share the meaning of the holiday with your
children. This is a time to reflect and be grateful for
everything and everyone we have in our lives.
Sincerely,
CARL PERSIS
CHAIR, VOLUSIA COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD
VIS IT U S ONLI NE AT WWW.PARE NTM AGAZINE FLORIDA .COM
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