Last Bits of This and That

Well, friends, we're hours away from the finish line with our children. You have been a BLESSING! You have worked hard, been stretched, met the challenge, exceeded expectations and truly you have glorified GOD! And isn't that what we have been called to do? Serve God with the gifts we've been blessed with in the place we've been called to. I'm grateful again and again to serve alongside each of you and I'm deeply grateful for this place. As we begin parting ways over the next week, I pray safety, rest, health and summertime JOY for each of you. Enjoy your family. Enjoy the slower pace this time of year brings. Enjoy God's goodness as you serve him in different ways this summer! 

Final Chapel and Good-byes

Will take place at 10:45 in the gym. We'll sing and pray over our second graders. Kindergarteners will be dismissed first to line the hallway. First graders will be dismissed once the kindergarteners are in place. Parents will then be invited to continue to tunnel at end of the students in line. Once in place, we'll invite our second graders to accept our love and congratulations as they walk toward their classrooms. Final prayers and good-byes will take place in the classrooms. 

Meeting Times Over the Next Few DaysMonday, June 4

• Time: 8:00am - 3:00pm

• Who: Teachers and Administrators

• What: The morning will consist of department and grade level activities, with the afternoon being meetings/activities for our individual campuses.

• Food: Light breakfast and boxed lunches provided

Tuesday, June 5

• Time: 8:00am - 12:00pm

• Who: All HC Employees

• What: Worship, Review of strategic roadmap for our Cultural Intelligence work, Years of Service & Departing staff recognition, Looking Back & Looking Forward

• Food: Admin makes breakfast

Classroom Purchases
As we go into the summer, please remember not to make any purchases until after July 1. Purchases made anytime before that date might not be reimbursed. Please let me know if this poses a problem for you. We have until June 6 to turn in receipts for this year.

Refrigerator 
Lunch will be provided on the last day of school. Since you won't have to take your lunch bag along that day, would you mind clearing out your goodies in the fridge? We don't want to accidentally dip into anyone's 3-month old salsa next August. 😱

Wrapping It Up Details

End of Year Get Together 
Looking forward to celebrating the end of the school year ad well as saying goodbye to those who are heading on to new adventures next year! If you are able please meet at Tami Schippers house (6177 Terravita Way, Holland) around 4 on Wednesday, May 30. Feel free to park in the grassy lot across the street from her house. 

Running Records
Please remember to give your running records to Miska. They will be delivered to the next year's teachers ASAP. Thank you!

Report Cards and MAP Scores
Report Cards will be printed and packed next week. Please let Pat or Miska know when your reports are ready for the presses! The decision was made not to send home the MAP scores this spring. We are developing longitudinal data of these assessments and will, therefore, not send them home with the spring report cards.

Yearbook Distribution
Our yearbooks are here! THANK YOU for all of your work, Jenna and Karen! They look just beautiful! Please distribute the yearbooks to students on Wednesday, May 30. Your class set will be near your mailbox in the copy room.

PD Dates and Times
We will have our closing chapel from 10:45-11:15 on Friday, June 1. After you dismiss your students, please come to the staff center for a lunch on the house ;) We will have a "soft close" together for a little bit but the afternoon is open for classroom tear down, check out with me or however you choose to use your time.

Monday, June 4

• Time: 8:00am - 3:00pm
• Who: Teachers and Administrators
• What: The morning will consist of department and grade level activities, with the afternoon being meetings/activities for our individual campuses.
• Food: Light breakfast and boxed lunches provided

Tuesday, June 5

• Time: 8:00am - 12:00pm
• Who: All HC Employees
• What: Worship, Review of strategic roadmap for our Cultural Intelligence work, Years of Service & Departing staff recognition, Looking Back & Looking Forward
• Food: Admin makes breakfast

Classroom Purchases
As we go into the summer, please remember not to make any purchases until after July 1. Purchases made anytime before that date might not be reimbursed. Please let me know if this poses a problem for you. We have until June 6 to turn in receipts for this year.

Instructional Coach
A huge thank you to Amanda Brouwer for her many years leading our preschool team! Her gifts with children, learning, leading adults and consulting with parents have been SO valuable as we continue to build our preschool program! She will be stepping down from her role of instructional coach over preschool but thankfully will remain serving our community by loving and growing her 3's as their teacher. We welcome Tammy Grassmid to the new role of instructional coach and before/after school care director! Welcome aboard, Tammy! We appreciate your servant heart and desire to give as well!

Refrigerator 
Lunch will be provided on the last day of school. Since you won't have to take your lunch bag along that day, would you mind clearing out your goodies in the fridge? We don't want to accidentally dip into anyone's 3-month old salsa next August. 😱

Weekend
Have a wonderful weekend with some time to relax, enjoy the sunshine, catch a little poison ivy, whatever's your pleasure (I may try to avoid the latter this time). May God bless each of you as you celebrate the sacrifices and gift that our country is!

Starting to Wrap Up

Spring Luncheon 
The parent team is planning to provide lunch for anyone and everyone who is able (and on staff ;) ) on Monday, May 21. Save your peanut butter & jelly or leftover pizza for Tuesday! Thank you to our amazing parent team!

End Of Year Data Meetings

EOY data meetings are scheduled for next week. The main goal of these conversations is to celebrate all of the progress made by your students this year, and to make sure the table is set to hit the ground running at the start of next year.

Please make sure you have added all data to your grade level spreadsheet prior to the meeting. (Delta and MAP scores automatically flow in.) Find the graduating class below and go to the linked data spreadsheets below, and click on your grade level tab.

• Kindergarten = 2030
• 1st = 2029
• 2nd = 2028

Please review these helpful and important links for you: 

• Here is a link to the directions of what to add to the spreadsheet.
• Please review our ELA Non-negotiables.
• Please review Jana's helpful coaching reminders for Running Records completion.
• Here are the ELA Grade level data spreadsheets.  If you cannot locate your grade's file, please let me know ASAP.  
• Here are the Math Grade level data spreadsheets. If you cannot locate your grade's file, please let me know ASAP.  

As always, let me know, please, if you have any questions. Thank you, all!

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Batons

Just a quick reminder, if you haven't begun already, anytime now might be a good time to break your students' batons out of the closet, cupboard, or other storage space where you've had them. The last day will be here before you know and chipping off a few a week might be a good pace. Thank you for thoughtfully adding this piece of encouragement and blessing to your students! 

Please let me know if you have a new student or a student who has lost his or her baton, and I'll see to it that you get one.

We’ll be sending these home with students again on the last day, June 1. If you need any of the program information, here is a link again.

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Passing the Baton Parent Communication

Please copy and paste this into your blog these remaining weeks for parents as an explanation for the baton which will go home with your students on the last day of school:

Holland Christian Schools has developed a strong culture of adults investing in and mentoring students, cultivating a fruitful context for positive spiritual formation of our students. From Preschool through senior year, Holland Christian students know they are loved, affirmed, instructed and nurtured to become all that God has gifted them to be as his agents of shalom in our world. This happens in one-on-one conferring between teacher and developing reader; on the field, court, pool or stage between coach and performer; over coffee or breakfast between teacher and teen. HCS staff members invest into the lives of students, helping to create a “fabric of faithfulness” surrounding students who are encouraged to grow and “stay strong in their faith.”
One way that we tangibly can represent this “life-on-life” influence institutionally, yet personally, is to pass a customized HCS track baton from teacher to student, and student to teacher each year that a student is at HCS. Inside of this baton that follows each student throughout her or his HCS years is a scroll of paper with the accumulated personal messages of recognition and encouragement that will be added by that student’s teacher each year.
Please watch for this special baton, labeled with your child’s name, to come home with your child on the last day of school, June 3. Read the scroll inside, celebrate and pray together with your child over the growth that has taken place throughout this school year filled with God’s providence, guidance and love. You may feel free to write a note to your child on this baton scroll as well and invite another mentoring adult or two to write a thoughtful note encouraging your child as well. We ask that you store this baton in a safe place throughout the summer months so that your child can pass this baton to his/her new teacher next fall when we return to school.

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Report Cards

Grades will be due by Wednesday, May 30 so we can print and stuff your report cards. They will go home with everyone (except Rita's students) on the last day of school. We will begin printing Thursday morning in the office.

Crazy May

Crazy May. I'm not referring to a favorite Aunt. I'm talking about getting to the other side of this week! We're doing it! Here are some details for your calendar and knowledge:

Delta Math Screener
Our end of the year Delta Math screener needs to take place next week. After this data has been gathered, we will hold our final data meetings on our students to prepare the table for next year.

Contracts
I have an envelope on my desk if you would like me to turn in a contract for you. Slip yours in the envelope or give it to me, please. They are due by tomorrow if you are able.

Running Records
When you have running records completed on your students, please give your collection to me. I will disperse them to next year's teachers. Here is a refresher on the non-negotiables.

Staff Celebration
Mark your calendars! Our Sunshine Committee (I don't know what they call themselves....sunshine committee just sounds better than Monsoon Group) has graciously pulled together a party time for us to sit together, celebrate the year and, above all, celebrate friendships. Those of us who will not be returning to the same role at South Side next year will be missed and we are eager to say thank you and celebrate you! Please make arrangements, if you are able, to come to Tami Schippers' house at 6177 Terra Vita Way on May 24 at 4:00.

PD Days

Monday, June 4

• Time: 8:00am - 3:00pm
• Who: Teachers and Administrators
• What: The morning will consist of department and grade level activities, with the afternoon being meetings/activities for our individual campuses.
• Food: Light breakfast and boxed lunches provided

Tuesday, June 5

• Time: 8:00am - 12:00pm
• Who: All HC Employees
• What: Worship, Review of strategic roadmap for our Cultural Intelligence work, Years of Service & Departing staff recognition, Looking Back & Looking Forward
• Food: Admin makes breakfast

Preschool CPR Training
Our annual training will take place Monday, June 4 from 8:30-11:30 in the Rose Park media center.

Michelle Engbers
Our ESS staff is growing! We welcome Michelle Engbers to our inclusive classroom as an aide to help our students learn to regulate, cope with emotions and sensory needs as well as transition fully into classroom life. Welcome, Michelle! She will work alongside DJ and Rachel!

Tulip Days and Beyond

Kids Fun Run Announcement
We have a wonderful new family at South Side this year who is eager to continue growing the sense of community at South Side and Holland Christian at large. She put some work into organizing a "South Side Runners Group" for the Tulip Time Kids Fun Run with the Tulip Time office. After all of her work, she would love to have some help generating buzz. If you have time and are willing, would you please copy and paste this in your classroom blog? It's been in the general elementary blog but perhaps your South Side teacher blogs would help spread the word and honor her efforts as well. Thank you:

Tulip Time is right around the corner 🌷🌷🌷Come join other South Side Families at the Kid’s Fun Run on May 5th at 9:00am 🏃🏼‍♂️🏃🏼‍♀️ There is even a discount code to enter and save 20% 🎉 (see details below)

Wear a maroon shirt or any other HC Shirt and we will meet before hand to take a group picture!

***The Fun Run is for kids 8 and under 🙂

Team Name: HarborCollin
Password: SouthSide
Discount Code: sponsor18

https://runsignup.com/Race/Register/?raceId=39560

Tulip Time
Let's plan on our parade practice right after morning recess on Monday. By 10:15 we'll line up in parade order, walk to Maranatha parking lot and return. This will help the kids get a little comfortable with walking....that can be a little tricky ;) If you could, please have your students placement mapped out so they know where they stand.

Preschool dismissal can get a little convoluted because of the 11:30 dismissal of the K-2 crowd. Preschool teachers, as we have in the past, please offer to your families to pick up at 11:00 if they choose.

There will be NO HPS bussing on Wednesday or Thursday at dismissal.

We will get the finer points of Thursday's events soon, but please invite your parents to come and change their child into their costume if they choose. We will eat lunch, perhaps go outside if it's not too hot, I will take the kids in the gym to rest and stay cool before loading the busses. Please remind the parents that they must pick up their child at Kollen Park after the parade. Again, we'll have more details on division and times soon.

Staff Meeting Postponed
Rather than a staff meeting with two weeks left in the school year, we will postpone May's staff meeting until the PD days in June.

PD Schedule
Monday, June 4 we will meet at the high school for a morning of work with curricular teams and grade level teams. Breakfast will be served from 7:30-8:00. Our work time will last at the high school until around noon. We'll take a boxed lunch and then come back to South Side for an hour or so of staff time followed by classroom clean up time.

Tuesday, June 5 we will be served breakfast from 7:30-8:00. We will meet as an entire staff on that morning to both reflect back and listen to the vision as we look forward. Everyone is asked to attend on the 5th if you are able. We will dismiss by lunch time. Lunch will be the launch into summertime. Have it at the beach!