Prayer

Ron and Stacey

You've been missed this week, Ron. But it gives a tiny bit of comfort to know that Stacey has you by her side through all of this. What a hard week. Thank you, friends, for holding both Ron and Stacey close in prayer. Ron? We'll keep loving on the two of you. Please name anything/everything that is helpful or needed. Have a listen to the play list contributed by Forest parents for comfort and assurance intended for Ron and Stacey but equally good for any and all in times of need. 

CST

For those who have made the formal request and submitted documentation to Christy or Katie, our next CST will be held at the middle school on January 30 beginning at 12:15. Christy will provide our agenda. 

Data Meeting

February 6 will be our semester 1 data meetings! If you're able, please complete running records on our kiddos who are below benchmark. Input the updated data in our sheets doc and below is our grade level meeting times and locations:

12:15 Kindergarten - Ron's classroom
1:10 1st grade - Emily's classroom
2:20 2nd grade - Pine Ridge classroom

Did You Hear???

Look who was given $3000 to start a "Salmon in the Classroom" program! Kirsten and her 4th grade Forest School students were given a large check from Holland's Big Red Classic, a local organization that runs a sport fishing tournament in Lake Michigan every year, to be used for the large aquariums, cleaning equipment, etc --all the paraphernalia needed to be salmon growers this fall!

Through the DNR program, 4th grade Forest School--and Pine Ridge--students will be able to raise salmon eggs from egg to adolescence, and then learn the proper procedures and places to release them into the wild.

And the students and Big Red Classic hope to reunite this spring for some charter fishing on Lake Michigan, as well as at the August fishing tournament, so we're grateful for Big Red Classic 's continued involvement with the project as well! I betcha she'll let your class join in the fun if you'd like!

Staff Meeting

February 13 will be our next staff meeting....because we don't have enough staff meetings in the month of February (referring to the PD on the 20th 😆). Let's meet in Emily's classroom again, please. Or here (I'm looking at YOU, second graders!) 

KFB Week (Helpful Hack: in the lower righthand corner you can speed Kyle's explanation up a bit and still understand him!) 

Isaiah 58:10 If you give some of your own food to [feed] those who are hungry and to satisfy [the needs of] those who are humble, then your light will rise in the dark, and your darkness will become as bright as the noonday sun.

50 schools will be partnering with Kids Food Basket this year during their KFB week which will be March 20-24th. Guess who's going to be one of the partners! WE ARE!!! A few things for you to know right now (and we'll touch on this during our staff meeting) March is go orange month! Orange is the color for childhood hunger awareness. We will ORANGE OUT on March 24 along with 50 other schools! More details will be coming soon! 

Would you be willing to pump this one out one more time in your blogs? 

Part of the joy of community is building relationships and enjoying adventures together! You are invited to meet new friends and enjoy community in our first annual Forest Family Night Hike! Bring your flashlights, headlamps and winter gear! The Outdoor Discovery Center will host us for lots of family fun in the dark! Mark your calendars and see you there!

Wet and Wild

What a funny, wet January it has been! Thank you for creatively finding NEW winter joy in the Forest! Let's continue to pray over prospective families as they are making BIG decisions for their families. Enrollment for current Maroons is on January 30. New families get to jump in on February 1! 

Group Tours

Kristen VR has created a new enrollment event for families in addition to our Discovery Night. She's called it Group Tours. Tomorrow is the day! At 9:00, 11:00 and 1:00 I'll be poking around in your classroom space and the Forest with lots of new, curious friends. I CERTAINLY hope we are not a huge disruption to your learning/instruction! Thank you for welcoming all of these prospective families in the K and 1st grade classrooms tomorrow. 

Absence Reporting

Kristi is SINGING your praises for inputting attendance in PowerSchool consistently. THANK YOU!!! She has requested a fine tune measure. When noting WHY a child is absent a simple "P" or "parent excused" doesn't give the state records enough info. When tracking illnesses in the state, they need to know "fever" or "cough" or any gross details you're provided by the parent. The vacation notes you can view below are GREAT! Noting "sick" doesn't provide enough info. If you can provide some specificity, it's very helpful for Kristi. Thank you! 

Data Meeting

February 6 will be our semester 1 data meetings! If you're able, please complete running records on our kiddos who are below benchmark. Input the updated data in our sheets doc and below is our grade level meeting times and locations:

12:15 Kindergarten - Ron's classroom
1:10 1st grade - Emily's classroom
2:20 2nd grade - Pine Ridge classroom

CST

For those who have made the formal request and submitted documentation to Christy or Katie, our next CST will be held at the middle school on January 30 beginning at 12:15. Christy will provide our agenda. 

Please Copy and Paste In Your Blog

HC K-6 Boys and Girls Volleyball Opportunity

Whether you are brand new to the sport of volleyball or have been playing for some time, this clinic is for you!  Led by the high school coaches and mentored by Holland Christian varsity volleyball players, kids will have 3 fun and active sessions learning the game of volleyball and focusing on improving foundational skills.  We work hard to coach every level and look forward to helping you grow in the game of volleyball while you also challenge yourself physically, and engage in fun and memorable games and activities.  

Who: K-6 Boys and Girls

When: March 11, 18 and 25

K- 2nd 8:00-9:20am, 3rd-6th 9:30-10:50am

Where: HC High School Gym

Cost: $25 

Link to sign up

https://campscui.active.com/orgs/HollandChristianSchool

Warm Winter!

Wow! How about that sunshine?!? Forest kids reading outdoors in t-shirts in January? It's a little crazy but the sunshine sure is beautiful! 

Donor Thank You Notes

Our generous Christmas bonus $ was gifted to us by a kind donor. Leanne Halma will be delivering any thank you cards to this donor on Friday. If you have a moment to jot this kind friend a warm thank you note, I'll grab them from you on Friday morning. The notes will make their way to Leanne in time for the delivery on Friday! 

Discovery Night Wednesday, January 18

• 5:00 Dinner is served in Ron's Room
• 5:30 Pregame Conversation/Details
• 5:45 In Places
• 6:00 Go Time! 

Group Tours

On Friday, February 20 I'm scheduled for group tours of Forest School for most of the day. We'll try to be as non-disruptive to your teaching/instruction. If you see me wandering through your territory with a gaggle of friends, we're on a tour. Feel free to bop over the introduce your wonderful selves if you have a free moment. 

Swimming Lessons

Now that safety concerns we lived through during the pandemic are released, the Aquatic Center is able to provide swim lessons for us again this year! I recognize this program is a little uncomfortable for each child because it’s new and unfamiliar. Because our children are blessed to be raised in Michigan, surrounded by bodies of water, we believe this safety instruction is a blessing that we pray they will never need but feel responsible to equip them. If you find yourself pondering over the “why” of lessons, please take a listen to HC mom Jenny White on the why swim safety. HCAC Swim School welcome video that will help you understand a bit about the logistics. The Holland Aquatic Center will be providing us with swim lessons again this year. Our 1st -4th graders will head to the pool February 27-March 10. Our 3rd and 4th graders will join the Pine Ridge time slots.

• 2nd Grade – 9:15am-9:45am (pick up time 8:50ish...confirmation forthcoming)
• 1st Grade – 10:15am-10:45am (pick up time 9:50ish...confirmation forthcoming) 

Staff Meetings

Just because I created a bit of chaos in our google calendar (sorry about that!) here is a listing of our staff meetings for the balance of the school year: 

• Monday, February 13 @ 11:30
• Monday, March 13 @ 11:30
• Monday, April 17 @ 11:30
• Monday, May 15 @ 11:30

Forest Family Night Hike

Consider yourself invited and mark your calendars! 

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, Friends!!! I pray you had a restful and healthy break! It's good to be back in action with you. 

Staff Meeting

On Tuesday from 11:30-12:15. In Emily's room, please. Erica and Kirsten, you'll receive this shpeel at the Pine Ridge staff meeting. 

Wacky Wednesdays Are Almost Upon Us! (these are for K-2....3 & 4th will follow Pine Ridge days)

Wacky Wednesday will be beginning next week! Below are the list of each day with its theme and the prize that your class can win if you have the most participation on that day!  ( A Poster will be brought to your class by Friday so you can have a reminder for the classroom) 
 
January 11- Camo/ Camper day 
              CLASS PRIZE: hand/ toe warmers
January 18- Pajama Day
              CLASS PRIZE: hot cocoa celebration
January 25- Neon/ Tie-Dye Day
              CLASS PRIZE: s’mores party
February 1- Mismatched Day
              CLASS PRIZE: pizza party
 
Here’s how it works…Encourage your class to dress up and take a tally in the morning. 
We need to know  #kids dressed up/ #total kids present on that day
send to Erica.engbers@gmail.com or text Erica at 616-550-4336
Parent board will tally it up and send out the winner by the afternoon so teachers can announce to their class!!

Please Copy and Paste In Your Blogs

Part of the joy of community is building relationships and enjoying adventures together! You are invited to meet new friends and enjoy community in our first annual Forest Family Night Hike! Bring your flashlights, headlamps and winter gear! The Outdoor Discovery Center will host us for lots of family fun in the dark! Mark your calendars and see you there!

Wacky Wednesdays

To brighten up our winter daze our parent board is sponsoring Wacky Wednesdays! Take a peek at the fun dress up happening in Forest School on these dates! There will be fun celebrations for class participation! 

January 11- Camo/ Camper day 
              CLASS PRIZE: hand/ toe warmers
January 18- Pajama Day
              CLASS PRIZE: hot cocoa celebration
January 25- Neon/ Tie-Dye Day
              CLASS PRIZE: s’mores party
February 1- Mismatched Day
              CLASS PRIZE: pizza party

Swim Lessons

Now that safety concerns we lived through during the pandemic are released, the Aquatic Center is able to provide swim lessons for us again this year! I recognize this program is a little uncomfortable for each child because it’s new and unfamiliar. Because our children are blessed to be raised in Michigan, surrounded by bodies of water, we believe this safety instruction is a blessing that we pray they will never need but feel responsible to equip them. If you find yourself pondering over the “why” of lessons, please take a listen to HC mom Jenny White on the why swim safety. HCAC Swim School welcome video that will help you understand a bit about the logistics. The Holland Aquatic Center will be providing us with swim lessons again this year. Our 1st -4th graders will head to the pool February 27-March 10. Our 3rd and 4th graders will join the Pine Ridge time slots.

• 2nd Grade – 9:15am-9:45am
• 1st Grade – 10:15am-10:45am