Week of May 4 to 8
Lesson Highlights:
Lesson 3: The Rescue of Prince Joash
We discussed the reign of Athaliah, the only ruler of Judah who did not descend from the line of David.
The students learned about the courage of Jehoiada the high priest and his wife, Jehosheba, who hid young Prince Joash in the temple for six years to protect the royal line.
We reflected on how Joash’s heart changed after Jehoiada died; without that godly influence, he turned from God, and the kingdom began to disintegrate.
Lesson 4: A Kingdom in Conflict
We looked at the broader picture of Israel's history, noting how the wickedness of their kings led to constant political unrest and warfare.
The recurring theme for the week was the importance of listening and obeying—and the heavy cost when a nation refuses to hear God’s voice.
Wrapping Up Unit 7: To prepare for our Unit 7 Test on Friday, the students worked through their practice tests and carefully checked their work. This self-correction process is so important for building confidence and catching those small "silly" mistakes before the summative assessment.
Welcome to the World of Geometry! We have officially launched into our new unit, exploring the fundamental building blocks of geometry.
The Basics: We learned how to identify and appropriately label points (using capital letters), lines, and line segments.
Angles: The students discovered that an angle is formed by two rays sharing the same vertex. We spent time drawing, naming, and identifying the three main types:
Acute: "A-cute" little angle (less than 90°).
Obtuse: Wide and large (greater than 90°).
Right: A perfect corner (exactly 90°).
Precision Tools: In Lesson 2, we broke out the protractors! The students are learning the fine motor skills required to align a protractor correctly to measure existing angles and to draw their own angles given a specific degree. It’s been great to see their precision improve with each practice session.
Themes of Resistance and Resilience: In Chapter 7, we moved from the crowded streets of Copenhagen to the quiet, salt-aired world of Gilleleje. This setting gave us the perfect backdrop for a deep, engaging conversation about the Danish Resistance and the quiet ways everyday people showed bravery during the Nazi occupation of 1943.
We discussed the "unspoken" rules the characters live by and how the author uses the sea as both a symbol of freedom and a dangerous boundary.
It has been powerful to see the students truly "step back in time," showing such empathy and curiosity for what life was like for children their age during World War II.
Crafting the Core: Using sentence stems as a guide, the students worked on polishing their claim statements. The goal was to move beyond simple observations and create strong, effective arguments about their chosen short stories.
The Pillars of Evidence: A claim is only as strong as the evidence supporting it! We explored three specific types of evidence the students can pull from their stories:
Reasons: Explaining why a character acted a certain way.
Ways: Describing how a specific theme is shown.
Moments: Pinpointing exact scenes or dialogue from the text.
The Road Map: After receiving feedback and refining their ideas, the students transferred their best work into a color-coordinated graphic organizer. This isn't just a worksheet—it's their personalized road map! By organizing their claims and evidence pieces visually, they now have a clear path to follow when we begin writing the full essays.
We started by returning to our mentor text, Grandpa’s Corner Store. The students did an excellent job of acting as "Economic Detectives," identifying real-world examples of the six characteristics of a market economy (like private property rights and competition) within the story.
To see these concepts in action, we conducted a simple market economy simulation. This gave the students a front-row seat to how money facilitates the voluntary exchange of goods and services. It was wonderful to see them navigate the roles of buyers and sellers, realizing that every transaction is a choice!
We wrapped up the week by discussing incentives—specifically, how price tags influence our decision-making. We talked about how we weigh the "cost" against the "want" and how prices serve as signals that help us decide what to bring home and what to leave on the shelf.
I'm sure you've heard - the PLANT SALE is coming soon! We've been preparing at school and are excited to see you Thursday, May 21 starting at 7:30 AM. Please spread the word to all your family, friends, neighbors, church people, etc. - we're hoping for a BIG crowd!
Each student will be assigned a "shift" to work, and I will need a few who can be at school early on that Thursday morning (7:30 AM). If you are able to get your student dropped off at 7:30 AM on Thursday, please let me know and I will plug them into that first shift slot. Thank you!
Upcoming Dates:
May
21: 4th Grade Plant Sale at Rose Park - 7:30am
25: Memorial Day: No school
27: Field Day & Ms. Raak’s retirement celebration at 2:45pm
June
3: Last Day of School 1/2 day
Preschool celebration at 9:00am
Final Chapel at 10:30am
Y5-5th Grade dismissal at 11:30am
4th Grade Plant Sale: The annual fourth grade plant sale is coming to Rose Park on May 21 starting at 7:30am. They will be selling tomatoes, peppers, and a variety of herbs. All plants will be $3 per pot, cash or check only. Mark your calendars!
Ms. Raak's retirement celebration: After 40 years in education Ms. Raak, our Rose Park PE teacher, will be retiring at the end of the school year. Field Day just so happens to be her birthday as well! Please save the date to help us celebrate Ms. Raak by congratulating her out on the playscape to end the day on Wednesday, May 27th. Parents are welcome to park their cars and come out back to the playscape to celebrate Ms. Raak and end field day, and her wonderful career in celebration! Please join us from 2:45 -3:30 pm for a cookie and congratulations. Please be mindful of the bus and carpool lanes as you park cars!
Rose Park Night at Craig’s Cruisers - May 18th from 5-9pm
Enjoy a night of family fun at Craig’s Cruisers in Holland. All Rose Park students will receive a wristband at the door good for unlimited attractions and $5 of free tokens! Parent supervision required!
Pizza will be available for purchase along with extra wristbands and tokens for siblings and/or parents.
Community Opportunities: The below list of organizations are not necessarily affiliated with Holland Christian Schools but have requested the sharing of these community opportunities
As we head into May, we are preparing for our spring MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) Testing. These assessments help us celebrate the incredible growth your students have made since the beginning of the school year!
Testing Schedule:
Week of May 11–15: Language Arts and Math Tests
A Great Study Tool- SplashLearn: To help students feel confident and prepared, we have made review assignments available on SplashLearn. This platform serves as a wonderful refresher for both the Math and Language Arts portions of the MAP tests. The photo below shows the login information. It has been updated recently.
Math Concepts: The review covers our entire year of learning, including fractions, geometry (covered in unit 8), algebra, addition, subtraction, and multiplication. Note: Students must complete a few short assessments on the site before they can unlock these specific review concepts.
Language Arts Concepts: Students can practice essential "mechanics" such as parts of speech, verb tenses, capitalization, and punctuation.
Optional Practice: Please note that completing these SplashLearn assignments is not mandatory. It is simply an extra resource available for students who would like a little more practice and review at home.
Mark your calendars! We are so excited to invite parents, family, and loved ones to attend our upcoming 4th Grade SI Chapel. This is a special time for our students to lead us in worship.
When: Monday, May 11
Time: 10:40 AM – 11:15 AM
Location: The Small Gym
Arrival Instructions: Please plan on checking in at the front office to receive your visitor badge before making your way to the small gym. We can’t wait to see you there!
As we look ahead to our special chapel on May 11, we are in need of a few specific props to help bring our student-led skit to life!
If you have 4 medium-sized cardboard boxes at home that you are willing to part with, we would love to use them!
Preparation: If you have one to send in, please wrap it in single-color, plain wrapping paper or brown butcher paper.
Delivery: You can send the wrapped box to school with your child any time this week or early next week.
Thank you so much for helping us make our presentation look polished and professional for the school!
As we look toward the finish line of 4th grade, I wanted to share an update regarding our special end-of-year gift for the students: the Spanish edition of "Tu eres especial" (You are Special) by Max Lucado.
Shipping Update:
The Situation: I received word from Christianbook.com that there is a significant delay in their warehouse. The books are expected to arrive there by May 26, and they will be shipped out to us as soon as possible.
The Timeline: Since our last day of school is June 3, this will be a tight turnaround!
The Plan: I am praying for a speedy delivery so we can get these beautiful books into the students' hands on our final day. If the timing doesn't work out, please don't worry—we will come up with a "Plan B" to make sure every student receives their special gift.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we navigate this little shipping hiccup!
We are excited to share that Reflex Math has made their program available to our students and families throughout the entire summer! This is a wonderful opportunity for students to maintain their "fluency" and keep those math muscles strong while school is out.
What you need to know:
Login Info: Your student should have already brought home a parent letter containing their specific login information and a quick guide on how to get started.
Summer Resources: Reflex has also provided a dedicated link for families with extra tips and resources to make summer learning fun: [Link to Reflex Summer Resources]
Whether it’s a rainy afternoon or a quick 15-minute session a few times a week, staying consistent with Reflex will help your student feel confident and ready for the start of 5th grade!
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