Principal For a Day

Originally posted March 23, 2006

Today I got to be a "principal for a day" at a local elementary school. I didn't really know what to expect from this experience, so I went with an open mind.

This annual event was put on by the education foundation in our area, which invites local businesspeople to participate so they can gain a greater understanding of what our children are being taught in school today. It also shows the children and schools that local businesses support and care about them, and gives the kids an opportunity to meet us.

The school I "principaled" today has the only dual-immersion teaching program in the county. That means kids learn in English and Spanish at the same time. They also have a number of bilingual programs, a specialized reading program (in both languages), four pre-schools and a garden program, among others.

I was amazed to observe kindergartners spelling in Spanish. They helped their teacher write a paragraph about what plants need to survive. She sounded out the words, and they spelled them in Spanish letter by letter. It seemed very advanced for 5-year-olds, and they were rocking it. I observed sixth-graders learning pre-algebra, which is in preparation for a state test. I also saw fourth-graders learning "expanded notation" of numbers. (498 = 400 + 90 + 8)

Being there brought back a whole flood of memories from elementary school. Four-square, soccer, running around at recess, learning new things...I miss those times when things were so much easier. The kids asked us questions like, "Is your job stressful?" It was so great to be answering those kinds of questions for a change. They were excited to be able to ask questions about newspapers.

The playground was a place where I saw the simplicity of compromise. If only peace in the Middle East could be achieved through rock-paper-scissors. That's how most disagreements get avoided at the school. I couldn't stop smiling as I looked around and saw heated tetherball exchanges suddenly dissolve into hand-games of chance. Quite a structure they've got going there.

All in all, it was a worthy experience to observe what a principal does all day, especially when they've got 600 kids who either speak English or Spanish -- or both -- a rotating cast of teachers out on maternity leave, no vice principal to be able to handle disciplinary issues, and impending construction of a new facility that will require a lot of moving and portables.

I'm comfortable with my desk job.