Welcome to a new school year! I am thrilled to be able to share it with you and your child! God has blessed us all to allow us this opportunity to grow together in Him.
This has been a wonderful few days of settling in, getting to know each other, learning routines, and developing a cooperative and safe classroom environment. The kids have done AMAZING this week! I have thoroughly enjoyed them😍. Their personalities are so varied and fun. They seem happy to be at school learning and growing together. Parents, you've done a great job with them!😉 Thank you for sharing them with me. This is going to be a great year, I can tell already!
This week we enjoyed opening our days together by spending time in prayer, we dove into our school wide SER behavior system (ask your child what that means!), we've been reading the Bible to learn what it means to be a Kingdom of priests, we've been working with place value, we've learned how reading workshop will run so that we can practice our reading. We've explored how to have a Growth Mindset in 4th grade. We feel like our classroom is a welcoming, warm, and safe environment with lots of learning choices and opportunities. We enjoy being there. Friendships are forming. It has been a great week!
Classroom Connections
This year you will be asked to keep up with our classroom happenings by regularly viewing this blog. You will receive a reminder e-mail from me every Friday with a link to this blog which has information for the upcoming week. Be sure to read it carefully in order to help your child be well prepared for each day of 4th grade. I try hard to limit my emails to you (I know how overwhelming a full inbox is!), so for the most part, all important details will be in this blog. There are some tabs across the top for useful links. In addition, a Google Calendar is embedded on this site. This calendar will highlight due dates, class events, field trips, tests, etc. If you are a google user, you should be able to subscribe to this calendar and it will sync with your personal calendars. Subscribe by clicking the plus button on the bottom right.
If your primary means of viewing the blog is on a mobile device, you will want to scroll all the way to bottom of the page that pops up when you open it and tap on "View Web Version" so that you can access the calendar and other features on the side. You can also use the drop down menu near the top to see the linked pages.
You may also find it valuable to bookmark our class website. That website contains links to some valuable resources that you may need this year. The students will also use that site to access some valuable class materials.
You may also find it valuable to bookmark our class website. That website contains links to some valuable resources that you may need this year. The students will also use that site to access some valuable class materials.
Student Information
It has been a pleasure to meet so many of you at the ice cream social and at parent night. I have also enjoyed reading through the information you sent/gave me about your child (identified in an email you received from me this summer). If you have not yet had a chance to finish that, I will still gladly accept it as soon as you are able to get it to me. Thank you for taking the time to do this! It gives me such valuable insight into my students so that I can begin to make personal connections with them right away.
Parent Handbook - If you were unable to make it to parent night last night, your child took home a purple printed copy of the Parent Handbook. Please read through that packet carefully. There are some important details for you to know for a successful 4th grade year.
Also, this blog will be your source for all the details. It will most often come out on Friday afternoon for the following week. Be sure to read it carefully in order to help your child be well prepared for each day of 4th grade. I try hard to limit my emails to you (I know how overwhelming a full inbox is!), so for the most part, all important details will be in this blog.
Communication - Please note the section at the end of the handbook related to parent/teacher communication hours.
Sign-ups - Be sure to check the tabs at the top of this blog for ways to sign up and volunteer if you are willing (library helpers, clerical work, party moms, field trip chaperones, etc.). The instructions on the top of each sign up page give helpful information before you select your choices.
Planners
This week your child was introduced to his/her take home folder and planner. You’ll be able to keep up with what’s going on by checking your child’s folder and planner daily and looking over any papers that come home throughout the week. Folders and planners need to come to school everyday and go in their desks in the morning so we can fill them and send them back home again. You may also place notes/papers in there that need to be returned to school. Be sure to instruct your child to turn in those notes/papers in the morning when they get to school. Planners must be signed by a parent each week by Friday so I know that the parents saw their child’s assignments that week. Please make it a daily habit to peek at your child's planner for any notes concerning upcoming assignments and reminders.
Gym Days
All students need a pair of gym shoes on gym day (Fridays and some Mondays). They will be required to wear socks in these shoes, so if they wore sandals to school they should pack a pair of socks for their gym shoes. If it is easier for you, you may just send a pair of gym shoes to stay in your child's locker at school.
Water Bottles
Because we don't have a drinking fountain in our room, each student should take a water bottle to school each day. They will be able to refill it as needed, so one water bottle will be sufficient.
Baton
If you were at Rose Park last year and have not sent your child's baton back to school yet, you may do that at any time.
Paint Shirt
If you haven't sent a paint shirt to school yet, now is a great time. 😉 Any oversized t-shirt that can get stained will do the job just fine. No buttons please.
Headphones
If your child's headphones are not yet at school, please send those in as soon as possible. 👍
Phones & Watches - Just a reminder that Holland Christian has a no personal technology devices at school policy. That means smart watches, phones, etc. must stay at home. Please make sure your child is abiding by this policy.
Contact Information
I treasure your support in thoughts and prayers as we begin this year together. If ever you have any questions of concerns, please feel free to contact me (kvanderzwaag@hollandchristian.org). I want to work together with you to make this a great year for your child!
FROM THE ROSE PARK OFFICE:
Click this link for the most up-to-date announcements from the office.
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