It’s almost that time of year again.
That time of year when love is in the air, sugar is in the belly, and smiles are on faces. (Well, smiles and tears, that is.)
It’s no secret that Valentine’s Day is an emotional holiday for a lot of folks. And not just the love emotions but a lot of other feelings too — feelings like sadness, anger, bitterness, loss, and depression are also emotions synonymous with this holiday of hearts.
In recent years, it seems that more effort has been put on marketing February 14 as a day of kindness and other forms of love like friendship, love between families, and even our love for our pets. It would seem safe to say that this new focus on platonic love has made this holiday even more kid-friendly, but as a teacher, I can say that’s not entirely true.
Every year, I send that list home
They notice
And they feel bad. So, as Valentine’s Day approaches and you make that obligatory trip to Target to select this year’s Valentines of choice, resist the urge to give in when your kid asks to get her best friends something special. Use it as a little opportunity to teach equity and feelings, and making everyone feel special and wanted.
Then, maybe grab Starbucks gift card and a little box of chocolates for the teacher. They are the one exception to this rule and they deserve it!
