As most of the nation gears up to send their children back into the physical classroom (hopefully) after months of virtual learning, parents will place a large part of their child’s development directly back into the hands of their school system.

Schools have a tremendous impact in the lives of our children. One way to help ensure that we are raising good humans is to work in tandem with our schools to help foster inclusivity – the practice or policy of including people who might otherwise be excluded or marginalized.

Every parent wants their child to feel included, accepted, to make friends and to have an overall positive experience and year in the classroom.

Here are several ways that schools can work together with parents, and their communities to help foster inclusivity.

March is special not only for the first signs of warmer weather ahead, but it’s also the month that applauds women who are blazing trails, making differences in their communities, all while inspiring girls to become the next generation of leaders.

If one thing is for sure, it’s that this past year has shined a spotlight on what it truly means to rally. We’ve rallied together in the face of a global pandemic; we’ve rallied in the face of injustice and we’ve rallied to make progress as a society when we otherwise could have rolled over and called it a day on the year 2020.

Where else have we seen a rally recently?

On Sunday, February 7, 2021, the world tuned in to watch the underdog Tampa Bay Buccaneers take on the Kansas City Chiefs during Super Bowl LV at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, FL. While watching the Buccaneers beat the Chiefs 31-9, it was clear — through subtle and not-so-subtle messages — the game quickly became the perfect metaphor for an unprecedented year that shines a light on social responsibility.

What would childhood be like if you’ve never put a spoon under your pillow, flushed ice cubes down the toilet or put on your pajamas inside out the night before a winter snowstorm?

A true milestone of growing up is the ever-so-coveted snow day – the gift that all children angst for each winter when that first hint of snow is detected in the forecast. 

While skipping school for the day is the most immediate and best part of a snow day for most children, there are many other hidden mental and physical health benefits associated with snow days. Considering our current pandemic situation, snow days are more important now than ever before.

While every election season brings us hot-button issues, the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election specifically focused on the economy, health care, the global COVID-19 pandemic, race and ethnic inequality, Supreme Court appointments and more. While it’s easy to get caught up in the hype and social media craze, it’s essential that families take a deep breath, step back and find the silver linings from election 2020 to help our children understand the significance.

Perhaps one of the most important silver linings is that there are many lessons that girls can learn about from these last few months from Election Day 2020 through this week’s Inauguration Day. 

With the New Year here (finally!) and school back underway after the holidays, the toggle between children learning in-person (full or half-day) to learning virtually from home can be stressful and confusing for families. 

While we’d all like to get back to pre-COVID days, unfortunately, the virus is still hanging around. As a result, it has caused many schools to pivot back-and-forth between teaching children in the classroom and virtually at home with little notice. 

With the school juggle this year still very volatile, we have some helpful tips for families to help ease your children into this new way of learning.

Although many of us might be fresh out of ideas of ways to keep our children entertained during this pandemic, brace yourselves – winter break is nearly here, and more down time is around the corner. 

If we rewind the clock, surely we all remember looking forward to blocks of time off from school. So, with our own happy memories of days off from school in mind, it’s time to make our own children’s days off from school just as memorable. 

The ongoing pandemic has certainly brought with it a continued stream of cancellations this year. COVID-19 is the unfortunate culprit of recent delays to the New Jersey winter high school sports season, in-person extracurricular activities and many organized team workouts, too. But there is some good news when it comes to these cancellations (yes, some good news in 2020!).

COVID restrictions have increased personal wellness and individualized fitness activity among athletes and the average person looking to stay healthy – and this new way of working out and wellness has many positive long-term health benefits. 

So, before you lament your child’s cancelled sports season or your own gym’s modified hours, check out how COVID has forced us all to change our perspective and personal well-being for now and, perhaps for the long haul.

As we are now in the last month of an unusually challenging year, it’s understandable the anticipation of the new year ahead now more than ever before. However, before they usher in a brand new year, Christians across the globe are currently celebrating Advent – the coming of Christ – signifying the four weeks leading up to Christmas Day. 

Amid the holiday hustle and bustle, there are many fun and meaningful ways that families can connect to celebrate Advent together this month before Christmas morning arrives. 

Extra, extra, this just in! We intercepted an important letter (really, tiny handwriting, actually) here at OKS from Bernard, the Chief Technology Elf at the North Pole! He accidentally forwarded our school’s Marketing and Communications office a top secret letter that was indented for Santa!

We could not wait to share this hot off the presses from the elf factory. We don’t want you to miss out on this important holiday information – the best technology gifts of 2020. Hint, hint: Black Friday is coming!