Dear students and families,

As you begin the new journey of 6th grade

you might be feeling a lot of things,
maybe excited, nervous, or unsure of what
the year will hold. Even though I am your
teacher I am feeling some of those same
things. Being nervous is a perfectly
normal part of trying something new, and
everyone (including me) feels nervous at
times. Even though I may be nervous.
You should know that I am mostly
excited. I am excited to be on this
learning journey with you.

This year we are going to learn all kinds

of things. We are going to learn things
that you will not only use in the 6th grade, but we are also going to learn things that you will use
for the rest of your life. Here are some things I hope you will learn this year:

1. Learn to be curious. The world is bigger than you or I could imagine and there is always
something new for you to learn. I hope this year will spark (or grow) your sense of wonder
in the world. I hope you will leave this year more curious about the world around you.
2. Learn to be brave. Middle school can be a scary time. At some point in the year, you will
have a moment where you do not want to be brave. You will have a moment where you are
afraid to speak up or afraid to share. I am going to ask that you choose to be brave in
those moments. There has never been another you, and there never will be. Your unique
view of the world will never be seen again. Please don’t miss a moment to share ‘you’ in this
classroom. By being brave and sharing who you are your classmates (and me ) will have
the opportunity to learn more about the world.
3. Learn to do hard things. Life is full of hard things, but I know you can do hard things. In
this classroom when we don’t know how to do something, that is when we are going to
embrace our opportunity to learn. By leaning into learning we will come out of this year
stronger and with new skills. When a challenge arises, we are going to work to meet it. If
something seems too difficult or too challenging. In those situations, I want you to know
that it is ok to ask for help. You can and will do hard things, but you do not have to do
them alone. Even I have to ask for help sometimes.
4. Learn to be accepting and kind. Speaking of hard things, middle school is hard. Everyone you
see around you is going through something. You never know if you are seeing someone on
their best day or their worst. In this class I am going to ask you to be two things:
 accepting and kind. It costs you nothing to accept people for they are. You will not be
friends with every student you meet, but you can be kind to every student you meet. In
this class we are going to follow two rules. First, the “five second” rule. If it is not
something that fixed in five seconds, then do not comment on it. Second, the “platinum”
rule. Treat others the way you would want them to treat you.

I know that is a lot, but I am going to work hard to do the same things I am asking of you. I
am going to try to be curious, I still have a lot of things to learn about the world. I am going to
try to be brave, even as an adult it can still be scary to share myself. I am going to try to do
hard things; when I said that life
is full of hard things, I meant it.
I am going to be accepting and
kind; I am going to be your ally
this year and treat you the way I
would like you to treat me.

In the spirit of being brave, I am

going to share who I am with you.
My name is Ezra Pleimann, you can
call me Mr. Pleimann or Mr. P. I
love poetry! Seeing people share
their feelings through words
always makes me happy. I am a
theatre kid at heart, and I am
always ready to see a show. I
enjoy all kinds of movies, from
spooky to romantic. I like to draw.
But above all else, I love spending
time with my loved ones and
students. In the classroom I love
to learn by exploring and I learn as
much from my students each year
as they learn from me. I am always available to help you and I am here for you as your teacher!
Thanks for listening and now let’s have a great year.

Sincerely,
Mr. P