Dear Hutchings Community,
Two BIG EVENTS happened this week at Hutchings! We had the long awaited arrival of a fully trained Roo! We also had our third and final visit of the year from Sensei Sam!
On Roo:
Those of you who know Mrs. Jilek-Wolfe won't be surprised to hear that she is a perfect handler for our therapy dog, Roo. She learned from other handlers in the district in anticipation of Roo's arrival and spent some of her weekend bringing Roo into the building to refamiliarize her with Hutchings.
Just like our school year starts with half days, Roo's return began with half days, too. She met kindergarten and first grade classrooms on Monday, second and third grade classrooms on Tuesday, and finished with fourth and fifth graders on Wednesday. Mrs. Jilek-Wolfe set and reviewed expectations for student interactions with Roo. This is so important because, while we're all SO EXCITED about Roo, we also have to respect her space and realize how overwhelming her work might feel.
But Roo has been PHENOMENAL! She's in hallways greeting kids everyday, and Mrs. Jilek-Wolfe has built a great system with Ms. Hogan and Mrs. Levely that will help Roo maximize student time for the rest of the year (while still getting important dog naps and walks outside!).
On Sensei:
Sensei had visited our students earlier in the year to help them develop their COURAGE muscle first. Then, he returned to talk about our DISCIPLINE muscle.
Your Husky could probably finish these lessons from Sensei:
On COURAGE: "Every time I run away from a fear, all my fears get bigger. But every time I face my fear, I get bigger!"
On DISCIPLINE: "I always do a little bit more than anyone expects!"
Today, Sensei talked about our HUMILITY muscle. Two key phrases that we will use throughout the rest of this year are "I look the same whether I win or lose!" and "Humble in victory, gracious in defeat".
One really exciting thing about our work with Sensei this year is that WE'RE JUST BEGINNING! Next year, Sensei is planning to return, and help us continue to develop stronger COURAGE, DISCIPLINE, and HUMILITY muscles!
Have a lovely weekend!
Sincerely,
Ben Malecki
Principal