Just a Note

Happy Friday! March is reading month! This month we’ll be doing a few fun things to celebrate! One book our class has really been enjoying lately is El Pingüino Taky. 🙂 We are going to write clues to help another class discover which book we are studying. We’re also going to learn a bit more about the author. This book is also available in English if you’re interested in finding it at the library!

Please see the dates below and add them to your calendar to help us celebrate!

• Wednesday, March 13- Pajama/Comfy Day- Get comfy and read
• Friday, March 22- Flashlight Day- bring a flashlight to read by
• Thursday, March 28- Dress like a book character- Dress like Taky (wear crazy clothes) or another book character of your choosing

Have a great weekend!

Melissa

Important Dates

• Mar. 12: Spring Elementary Performance – 1st, 2nd, 5th grades; 6:30pm

• Mar. 15: End of Marking Period; School in Session

• Mar. 21: All School Chapel (9:10)- NO Family Groups

• Mar. 22: Author Visit – 9:00-9:30 for Y5-2nd, 9:45-10:15 for 3rd-5th

• Mar. 22: Half Day of School, Teacher Grading PM (No PD)

• Mar. 28: Elementary Worship; 2:50-3:10

• Mar. 29-April 5: No School – Spring Break

Reminders & Announcements:

• A Note from Miss Stilwell (Elementary Art Teacher): This year, along with the 1st, 2nd, 5th Grade Worship Service at Community Reformed Church in Zeeland, the 1st, 2nd, & 5th grade artists will be displaying their artwork connected to this year’s theme at ZCS: Restored. At the conclusion of the service, students are invited to show family & friends their artwork, and take their artwork home. 1st graders will be displaying their Butterfly Symmetry projects, 2nd graders will be displaying their Clay Fish projects, and 5th graders will be displaying their Paper Folding Relief Projects. Please see Miss Stilwell’s WAAG to learn more about these projects & when your student will be creating them in art class.
  Miss Stilwell appreciates volunteers during the day on March 12 to help make this art show possible. Please reach out to her (jstilwell@zcs.org) if you are available to help for a portion of the day. No past art experience required!
• A note from Kendra Walters, music teacher, about worship night: The first graders will be joining the 2nd & 5th graders for a beautiful night of worship on Tuesday, March 12 at 6:30pm at Community Reformed Church (10376 Felch St). Please bring your child directly to the stage at 6:20pm. After their songs, they will come back to sit with you for the remainder of the service. This is their first official musical performance at ZCS so please help us in getting them excited for it and dressing them accordingly. We’re excited to see you there!
• Please Help Keep Our Students Safe! Parents, please take a few minutes to remind yourselves of our arrival and dismissal procedures. We ask you to follow these steps for the safety of all of our students. If you have specific questions, please feel free to email zcsinfo@zcs.org. This document reminds you of the where, the when, and the how. The why is easy…SAFETY! Thank you for taking time to refresh your memory.

  2023-2024 School Day Arrival & Dismissal Protocols

• TRIP is easy! The ZCS Tuition Reducing Incentive Program is a simple way to earn “free” money on things you are already purchasing to reduce tuition. Order gifts cards & e-gift cards on the RaiseRight app or online (even while you are shopping) or buy gift cards at school on Friday mornings. Just click here and follow the steps to start saving right away! Email Jennifer Schafer at jschafer@zcs.org for more information or with any questions.

What We’re Learning Right Now

Math: Unit 4- add and subtract multiples of 10, compare and represent two-digit numbers, represent the base 10 structure of numbers

Bible: Pascua (Easter)

Bible Verse: Mateo 28:1-8

Science: “Oh Say Can You See!” (sound and light waves)

Social Studies: Unit 3- How do we learn about places?

Writing: We had a great start to our new unit- realistic fiction! The kids had fun developing their characters, including thinking about their likes and dislikes. Next we’ll talk more about setting and brainstorm a problem and solution for our characters. Right now we are outlining our stories, but we’ll be writing them in books soon!

Mentor Text: Bienvenida, Lupe

Grammar Feature: Some verbs in the present tense are regular and some follow an irregular pattern. 

Word Feature: In Spanish the syllable that is stressed and does not have a “tilde” is called “acento prosódico.”

New High Frequency Words: alguien, había, puedo, la vez, ninguna

Sylables of the week: gue, gui, güe, güi

Just a Note

The highlight of this week for us was definitely celebrating Valentine’s Day together! What a beautiful day to reflect on God’s love for us, our love for our Heavenly Father, and the love we share for our friends and families! Stay warm this weekend and try to enjoy the snow a little bit!

Have a great weekend!

Melissa

Important Dates

• Feb. 16-19: Winter Break – No school, no pd

• Feb. 23: All School Chapel (9:10) and Family Groups (9:40); Pastor Appreciation Breakfast

• Feb. 29: Optional Parent/Guardian Teacher Conferences; School in Session

• Mar. 1: Half Day of School; no PD

• Mar. 12: Night of Worship (6:30)

Reminders & Announcements

• Kingergarten/1st Grade Chapel: Friday, February 23 all kindergarten and 1st grade classes will be leading some singing during chapel. You are all invited to attend this special time of worship. If you’d like to join us, please see the note below from our front office to make your morning run a little smoother. 🙂Pre-Registration For February 23 Chapel Now Available!Parents, we encourage you (and grandparents/friends) to Pre-Register for chapel on February 23rd to avoid sign-in lines!! Please share the good news!!
  • Pre-Registration is now a sign-in option for parents/grandparents/guests when attending chapel! 
  • Pre-Registration allows guests to skip the line and pick up their badge at the front desk. No waiting in line to scan in!
  • Guests are eligible to pre-register IF they have signed in at the kiosk in the office previously WITH their driver’s license.  
  • Pre-Registration will be open until 5:00 PM on 2/21/24  

  Pre-Register using THIS LINK!

• Request for Materials for Science Project: Your kids are super excited about the special science project we’re working on! They are designing a solution to a common problem people have. Their design is meant to imitate an animal or plant characteristic (think Velcro is like burrs from plants.) The students will choose an animal or plant characteristic and use it to help them design their model. They’ll draw a model of their design and explain how their design helps solve the every-day problem. They’ve been doing an awesome job and are excited! If you have extra shoe boxes, empty water bottles, clean food containers, and things like that will you please send them in? Thank you!
• A note from Kendra Walters, music teacher, about worship night: The first graders will be joining the 2nd & 5th graders for a beautiful night of worship on Tuesday, March 12 at 6:30pm at Community Reformed Church (10376 Felch St). Please bring your child directly to the stage at 6:20pm. After their songs, they will come back to sit with you for the remainder of the service. This is their first official musical performance at ZCS so please help us in getting them excited for it and dressing them accordingly. We’re excited to see you there!

What We’re Learning Right Now

Math: Unit 3- Working with 10s groups and story problems for numbers 11-19.

Bible: Unit 9- Samuel and Saul

Bible Verse: Isaiah 55:6-7

Science: Special Project- Wrapping up and presenting invention projects

Social Studies: Unit 3- How do we learn about places?

Writing: Small Moments- Choosing a favorite small moment story and editing. We will celebrate their hard work and every student will get to share his or her story with a friend!

Mentor Text: ¿Tu mamá es una llama?

Grammar Feature: Prepositions “por” and “para”. They can indicate movement.

Word Feature: The suffixes -ano, -ense, and -eño form “gentilicios” (adjectives that tell us where a person was born or where they’re from) Ex:  panameño (from Panama), costarricense (from Costa Rica), etc.

New High Frequency Words: tuyo, oye, cuál, sabe, hay

Sylables of the week: ya, ye, yi, yo, yu

Just a Note

Elementary singing, Lunar New Year, and 100th day of school- what a fun week to be at ZCS! I love this time of year because the kids are so ready to learn. They’ve got the routines and school structure down pat. We’ve gotten to know each other well. There is so much learning that takes place in the next few months! We’re looking forward to another week of fun with Valentine’s Day next week!

Have a great weekend!

Melissa

Important Dates

• Feb. 9: Lunar New Year Celebration Starts- (see note below)

• Feb. 14: Valentine’s Day Celebration

• Feb. 15: Schedule switch – Friday specials schedule

• Feb. 16-19: Winter Break – No school, no pd

• Feb. 23: All School Chapel (9:10) and Family Groups (9:40); Pastor Appreciation Breakfast

• Feb. 29: Optional Parent/Guardian Teacher Conferences; School in Session

• Mar. 1: Half Day of School; no PD

• Mar. 12: Night of Worship (6:30)

Reminders & Announcements

• Kingergarten/1st Grade Chapel: Friday, February 23 all kindergarten and 1st grade classes will be leading some singing during chapel. You are all invited to attend this special time of worship. If you’d like to join us, please see the note below from our front office to make your morning run a little smoother. 🙂Pre-Registration For February 23 Chapel Now Available!

  Parents, we encourage you (and grandparents/friends) to Pre-Register for chapel on February 23rd to avoid sign-in lines!! Please share the good news!!

  • Pre-Registration is now a sign-in option for parents/grandparents/guests when attending chapel! 
  • Pre-Registration allows guests to skip the line and pick up their badge at the front desk. No waiting in line to scan in!
  • Guests are eligible to pre-register IF they have signed in at the kiosk in the office previously WITH their driver’s license.  
  • Pre-Registration will be open until 5:00 PM on 2/21/24  

  Pre-Register using THIS LINK!

• Request for Materials for Science Project: Your kids are super excited about the special science project we’re working on! They are designing a solution to a common problem people have. Their design is meant to imitate an animal or plant characteristic (think Velcro is like burrs from plants.) The students will choose an animal or plant characteristic and use it to help them design their model. They’ll draw a model of their design and explain how their design helps solve the every-day problem. They’ve been doing an awesome job and are excited! If you have extra shoe boxes, empty water bottles, clean food containers, and things like that will you please send them in? Thank you!
• Valentine’s Day: We’re looking forward to a day when we can focus on God’s love for us and our love for each other! Your child is invited to bring a valentine for their classmates (18 students.) On Wednesday morning we’ll spend some time in valentine math and literacy centers and passing out valentines. We are all set for snacks/drinks. Thank you to the family who is donating!
• 新年快乐–Happy New Year! Join us for our Lunar New Year Celebration! 
  On Friday, February 9, more than 1.5 million people will begin their two week celebration of the Lunar New Year. The Mandarin staff, students and families are excited to celebrate as well. The community is invited to join the celebration on Friday, February 9 at the Holland Fish and Game Club from 5:30-8:00pm. It will be an open house-style celebration with Chinese food for purchase, cultural crafts and activities, a traditional Dragon Dance and more! Students are invited to wear red on Friday to kick off the celebration!
• A note from Kendra Walters, music teacher, about worship night: The first graders will be joining the 2nd & 5th graders for a beautiful night of worship on Tuesday, March 12 at 6:30pm at Community Reformed Church (10376 Felch St). Please bring your child directly to the stage at 6:20pm. After their songs, they will come back to sit with you for the remainder of the service. This is their first official musical performance at ZCS so please help us in getting them excited for it and dressing them accordingly. We’re excited to see you there!
• From our Immersion Director, Jodi Pierce: Do I need to teach my child to read in English? The answer to this question is a resounding no! you do not need to teach your child to read in English. In fact, our best advice is please do not begin teaching your child to read in English–we’ve got this covered! There is actually a fair amount of research that shows us that introducing English reading instruction too early in the immersion students’ literacy development can be detrimental. We want the students to develop a strong base in the immersion language first, so that the transfer of reading skills to English can happen most efficiently and with the least amount of confusion. This being said, many of our students develop literacy in both languages at about the same rate. Therefore, please let your child take the lead in his or her reading growth; if s/he shows a natural desire and inclination to read in English, you can provide the opportunity. I imagine this looking like a child navigating English reading in a board game you are playing together. Maybe your child loves to read street signs or is trying to follow the words on the screen at church. These are natural points of interest for a child and have an authentic purpose. By all means, you should support and applaud them for their efforts! However, you can put away the English flashcards (unless your child loves it and begs for it), you should not require that they read a certain number of minutes or pages in English each night, and you do not need to expect them to reach specific reading levels in English. As I said before, the best thing you can do to help them grow in English literacy is to read out loud to them each day in English and be sure they have access to books in both languages at home.

What We’re Learning Right Now

Math: Unit 3

Bible: Unit 8- Judges

Bible Verse: Salmo 18:1-3

Science: Special Project- inventing a solution to meet a human need by observing God’s creation and his animals and plants.

Social Studies: Unit 2- How do we get what we need or want? Begin Unit 3- How do we learn about places?

Writing: Small Moments- Choosing a favorite small moment story and editing. We will celebrate their hard work and every student will get to share his or her story with a friend!

Mentor Text: El Pinguino Taky

Grammar Feature: Possessive adjectives, “tónicos,” are written after the noun. They are “mio/miso, tuyo/tuyos, and suyo/suyos. For example, you could say, “La mochila es mia.”

Word Feature: The suffixes -dad, -ismo, and -anza are at the end of some words to form nouns. (Ex: bondad, esperanza, optimismo)

New High Frequency Words: llamar, allá, cállense, tener, dime

Sylables of the week: lla, lle, lli, llo, llu

Just a Note

Finally, a 5-day week of school! 🙂 This week we worked hard to complete a few different assessments- MAP Growth for reading and math and some phonics assessments for RAMS/RTI. Your kids have shown up with great attitudes and have worked so hard! We’re very proud of them and excited to use the data to better inform our instruction and meet your child’s needs! We hope they rest well this weekend and you can all enjoy the sunshine!

Important Dates

• Feb. 5: Project Best Life Parent Info Meeting for 4th/5th grade parents; 6:30pm

• Feb. 7: Elementary Worship; 2:50-3:10pm

• Feb. 9: Lunar New Year Celebration Starts- (see note below)

• Feb. 14: Valentine’s Day Celebration

• Feb. 15: Schedule switch – Friday specials schedule

• Feb. 16-19: Winter Break – No school, no pd

• Feb. 23: All School Chapel (9:10) and Family Groups (9:40); Pastor Appreciation Breakfast

• Feb. 29: Optional Parent/Guardian Teacher Conferences; School in Session

• Mar. 1: Half Day of School; no PD

• Mar. 12: Night of Worship (6:30)

Reminders & Announcements

• Valentine’s Day: We’re looking forward to a day when we can focus on God’s love for us and our love for each other! Your child is invited to bring a valentine for their classmates (18 students.) On Wednesday morning we’ll spend some time in valentine math and literacy centers and passing out valentines. We are all set for snacks/drinks. Thank you to the family who is donating!
• 新年快乐–Happy New Year! Join us for our Lunar New Year Celebration! 
  On Friday, February 9, more than 1.5 million people will begin their two week celebration of the Lunar New Year. The Mandarin staff, students and families are excited to celebrate as well. The community is invited to join the celebration on Friday, February 9 at the Holland Fish and Game Club from 5:30-8:00pm. It will be an open house-style celebration with Chinese food for purchase, cultural crafts and activities, a traditional Dragon Dance and more! Students are invited to wear red on Friday to kick off the celebration!
• A note from Kendra Walters, music teacher, about worship night: The first graders will be joining the 2nd & 5th graders for a beautiful night of worship on Tuesday, March 12 at 6:30pm at Community Reformed Church (10376 Felch St). Please bring your child directly to the stage at 6:20pm. After their songs, they will come back to sit with you for the remainder of the service. This is their first official musical performance at ZCS so please help us in getting them excited for it and dressing them accordingly. We’re excited to see you there!
• From our Immersion Director, Jodi Pierce: Why do we teach students to read in the target language first? In an early-total immersion program (as we have at ZCS) your child’s initial literacy instruction is fully in Spanish or Mandarin. This is because we want to maximize the use of the immersion language. We know that acquiring a new language requires time and meaningful quality language input. Through their exposure to reading instruction in Spanish/Mandarin, our students will encounter a variety of vocabulary, language structures, and intriguing literature; this will help the children to grow in their understanding of the new language. We also know that concepts learned in one language transfer to another language. This transfer typically happens more naturally and quickly when going from the immersion language to the first language. Additionally, our students’ world outside of school is filled with environmental print in English. When they ride in a car, when they sit in church, when they walk through the grocery store, their brains are busy trying to make sense of the English print around them. It is natural for them to take the skills they are using to read in Spanish or Mandarin and use them to decipher the English text–and they will be successful! As you watch your child negotiate the meaning of Spanish or Mandarin print in their school work, you can know that these crucial literacy skills will guide your child to reading in English as well.

What We’re Learning Right Now

Math: Unit 3

Bible: Unit 8- Judges

Bible Verse: Salmo 18:1-3

Science: Special Project- inventing a solution to meet a human need by observing God’s creation and his animals and plants.

Social Studies: Unit 2- How do we get what we need or want?

Writing: Small Moments- Understanding a small moment story, discovering small moments, stretching one small moment, adding details to our writing

Mentor Text: no new mentor text

Grammar Feature: Possessive adjectives, “tónicos,” are written after the noun. They are “mio/miso, tuyo/tuyos, and suyo/suyos. For example, you could say, “La mochila es mia.”

Word Feature: The suffixes -xión, -sión and -ción are at the end of some words to form nouns. (Ex: organización, conexión, bendición)

New High Frequency Words: el uso, el ojo, son, alrededor, el río

Sylables of the week: ra, re, ri, ro, ru- R makes a soft sound and a hard sound in Spanish. When it is between two vowels it usually makes a soft sound. We have been talking about the hard sound the last 2 weeks and now we’ll move on to the soft sound.

Just a Note

This week we were excited to share report cards with you! We’re so proud of the growth we’ve seen already this school year. If you have any questions after viewing the report card and reading the comments, please reach out. We hope you can find some time to intentionally celebrate your child’s hard work in a way that fits your family! Thank you for all the ways you support your learners at home and us as their teachers at school. The next few months are exciting in 1st grade. Lots of learning and growth happens and we love our front row seats to it all!

Important Dates

• Jan. 29-Feb. 9: MAP Growth Window (See note below)

• Jan. 30: Immersion Year 1 Parent Meeting (See note below)

• Feb. 5: Project Best Life Parent Info Meeting for 4th/5th grade parents; 6:30pm

• Feb. 7: Elementary Worship; 2:50-3:10pm

Feb. 14: Valentine’s Day Celebration

• Feb. 15: Schedule switch – Friday specials schedule

• Feb. 16-19: Winter Break – No school, no pd

• Feb. 23: All School Chapel (9:10) and Family Groups (9:40); Pastor Appreciation Breakfast

• Feb. 29: Optional Parent/Guardian Teacher Conferences; School in Session

• Mar. 1: Half Day of School; no PD

Reminders & Announcements

• MAP Growth: We’re looking forward to upcoming MAP Growth assessments! MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) assessments in Math, Language, and Reading will help teachers to understand what students will be ready to learn throughout this school year. (1st graders do not take a language assessment in this wintertime assessment window yet.)It’s important that students do their best to show all that they’ve learned this year! We are helping your student by preparing them to know what to expect on the assessment, coaching them on assessment-taking strategies, reminding them that they are capable of doing well, and shaping a structured and supportive classroom environment on those mornings.

  You can help your student by ensuring that they get proper sleep the evening before an assessment, feeding them a healthy breakfast on each assessment morning, and encouraging them to have a positive attitude and to do their best–this assessment is important, and they are capable!

  Together, we can support students in doing their best to show what they’re reading to learn this year! There is additional information available at https://www.nwea.org/parent-toolkit/. If you have further questions, please let me know!

• Immersion Parent Meeting: Join us for a time to connect with other immersion parents on January 30 at 7:00 pm. This is an opportunity to learn about our approach to immersion at ZCS, ask questions related to immersion, and meet other parents of ZCS immersion students. Now that you have experienced the rhythms of another school year and your young child is making huge strides in developing a solid basis for biliteracy, I encourage you to join us in the media center to talk about both Spanish and Mandarin immersion at ZCS. While this gathering is for parents who are in the first year or two of having students in our immersion program, anyone who wants to learn more about immersion is welcome to attend (current or prospective parents).
• Lunch Coverage: Maestra Rodríguez and I have a meeting from 12:00-12:45 on Tuesday, January 30. We are looking for someone to cover the classroom during lunchtime. The kids come in from recess at 12:20. Please email me or reach out on the Remind app if you’re available! Siblings are welcome to come. Thank you!
• Valentine’s Day: We’re looking forward to a day when we can focus on God’s love for us and our love for each other! Your child is invited to bring a valentine for their classmates (18 students.) On Wednesday morning we’ll spend some time in valentine math and literacy centers and passing out valentines. If you would be willing to send in a snack and/or juice, please let me know by email or Remind app. We’d like to have a class snack to help make the day feel special. Thank you!
• Recess in Wintertime: Elementary students go outside for recess in the wintertime unless the windchill is below 0. If it is close, sometimes we go out for a shorter recess and then play inside for the rest of the recess time. Please plan accordingly and continue to check to make sure snow clothes are clean and dry before sending them back to school!

What We’re Learning Right Now

Math: Unit 3

Bible: Unit 7- Settling the Land

Bible Verse: Éxodo 15:2

Science: Special Project- inventing a solution to meet a human need by observing God’s creation and his animals and plants.

Writing: Small Moments- Understanding a small moment story, discovering small moments, stretching one small moment, adding details to our writing

Mentor Text: nothing new because of MAP Growth

Grammar Feature: Singular possessive adjectives, “Atonos” – are written before the noun: “mi, tu, su, nuestro, nuestra”.  (Ex: mi casa, nuestro perro)

Word Feature: The suffixes -ante, -ario, -dor (a), ero (a) are at the end of words that tell about professions or jobs. (Ex: comerciante, panadero, veterinario, vendedor)

New High Frequency Words: el rato, reír, el rodeo, eres, caí

Sylables of the week: rra, rre, rri, rro, rru

Just a Note

It was a short but sweet week! Tuesday was a fun change of pace as we listened to the Grand Rapids Symphony accompany a read aloud of the book Wild Symphony. Thank you to the parents who joined us and for those who prayed for traveling safety!

Thursday I was able to meet one on one with students to listen to them read. I’m so proud of the growth I see in each one of them! Please continue to enjoy reading at home with your child and, whenever possible, listen to them read the books from school! They’re working really hard!

Important Dates

• Jan. 15: Martin Luther King Jr. Day, No students, PD 8:00-12:00, afternoon for grading

• Jan. 16-19: Delta Screener Window

• Jan. 22: All School Chapel at 9:10, Family Groups after chapel

• Jan. 22: Roller Skating Party- Y5-2nd grade (Parent Partners sponsored event)

• Jan. 29-Feb. 9: MAP Growth Window

• Jan. 29: Roller Skating Party- 3rd-5th grade (Parent Partners sponsored event)

• Jan. 30: Immersion Year 1 Parent Meeting

• Feb. 5: Project Best Life Parent Info Meeting for 4th/5th grade parents; 6:30pm

• Feb. 7: Elementary Worship; 2:50-3:10pm

• Feb. 15: Schedule switch – Friday specials schedule

• Feb. 16-19: Winter Break – No school, no pd

• Feb. 23: All School Chapel (9:10) and Family Groups (9:40); Pastor Appreciation Breakfast

• Feb. 29: Optional Parent/Guardian Teacher Conferences; School in Session

• Mar. 1: Half Day of School; no PD

Reminders & Announcements

• A note from ZCS Parent Partners: SKATING PARTIES are coming!!!
  January 22: Y5-2nd
  January 29: 3rd-5th
  February 13: Middle School
  All skating parties will start at 6:00pm and wrap up at 8:00pm. Admission is $10.00 and skate rental is included in that price. NOTE- any child over 33 inches coming into Rollerxscape will be charged the 10 dollar admission fee. A supervising adult who does not plan to skate will NOT be charged the fee.
  Rollerxscape does not allow any outside food or drink in their facility due to health department rules. Concession stands will be open, and you are able to purchase food and beverages if you wish to do so. Come and join in on the fun! Hope to see you there!
• Recess in wintertime- Elementary students go outside for recess in the wintertime unless the windchill is below 0. If it is close, sometimes we go out for a shorter recess and then play inside for the rest of the recess time. Please plan accordingly and continue to check to make sure snow clothes are clean and dry before sending them back to school!

What We’re Learning Right Now

Math: Unit 3

Bible: Unit 7- Settling the Land

Bible Verse: Éxodo 15:2

Science: Special Project- inventing a solution to meet a human need by observing God’s creation and his animals and plants.

Writing: Small Moments- Understanding a small moment story, discovering small moments, stretching one small moment, adding details to our writing

Mentor Text: Pequeño gato nocturno

Grammar Feature: Direct object pronouns

Word Feature: In Spanish we use the suffixes -aco, -usa or -zuelo to show that something is  bad or of poor quality (malo o de mala calidad.) Please note we never use these endings for people. 

New High Frequency Words: el rato, reír, el rodeo, eres, caí

Sylables of the week: ra, re, ri, ro, ru