What Highland Park families are telling me this September

We're three weeks into the school year, and I'm hearing the same thing over and over from St. Paul families. Kids started September already behind in a few spots from last year, and now the pace of new material is piling on before anyone's had a chance to catch up. The phrase I hear the most from parents is something like, they understand it when I explain it, but they don't feel confident doing it alone. That space between understanding something and actually trusting yourself to do it, that's where we spend most of our time with kids.

The struggles change depending on age, but there's a clear pattern. My younger students are working through gaps in multiplication, fractions, place value, basic computation, that kind of thing. My middle and high schoolers are running into trouble because their algebra foundation isn't solid, and once that's shaky, everything stacked on top of it gets harder than it should be. What I tell parents constantly is that most of these kids know more than they think. They just need someone to slow them down, help them organize their thinking, and remind them they can trust themselves.

My advice this month is simple. Don't wait for a bad grade to be your first sign something's off. The start of the year is the easiest time to figure out where your child feels solid and where they need help, because you've got months ahead of you instead of weeks. And just as important, tell your kids that struggling with something doesn't mean they're not a math person. Math is built skill by skill over time, and one missing piece from last year can make brand new material feel way harder than it actually is.

Around the center, September has been all about routine and keeping things fun. Our bead estimation jar has been a hit with the kids, we celebrated National String Cheese Day (yes, that's a real thing), and we took part in Great River School's back to school events. We also dropped off supplies and cupcakes at a few local schools to say thanks to the teachers starting the year off.

If you're looking for something to do as a family this month, the City of St. Paul and the Palace Community Center are hosting a Back to School Bonfire on Thursday, September 24, from 6 to 8pm at 781 Palace Ave. It's free, there's food and fire pits, and it's a nice way to meet your neighbors here in Highland Park.