Holland Heights

A note from Mr. Derr

Please continue to encourage your child around our POWER expectations as they come to school every day. We are beginning to focus on a different letter in POWER each month. This month is P which stands for Pride. We will talk about what Pride looks like in a variety of ways. Pride in their School, Work, Family, and Behavior are the different areas we will focus on in February. We encourage you to spend time at home talking with your child about these different areas of Pride to help them better understand what Pride is and how they can demonstrate it appropriately at school and home. We know as our kids improve at demonstrating the POWER expectations at school, the better the environment will be for learning. Thank you for supporting our efforts around these POWER expectations!!

The Holland Heights 5K is back!

Mark your calendar for the 8th annual Holland Heights 5K run on April 12. Forms will be sent home with your child, so be sure to fill it out and start training for the run. Get those forms in early so we can get those Amazing T-shirts ordered. We would like this to be a family event for all ages. That means grandparents and siblings are all invited to participate. Walking is ok for this event also. It's all about getting out with the family for an evening of fun and fitness. Don't miss out!

Kindergarten Information for 2019-2020

If you have a child at home who will be eligible for Kindergarten in the fall, or know someone in the neighborhood who does, we have an event you/they might be interested in. Feb. 12 - 6:00-7:00pm - Kindergarten Information Night. Spend some time with our Amazing Kindergarten and Trnasitional Kindergarten Teachers along with the Principal.

Parent - Teacher Conferences

Please be sure to look for information coming home that will provide you with an opportunity to schedule your child's Parent-Teahcer Conference. It is very important for you to be in contact with your child's teacher during the school year to make sure we are all working together to help your child become a better learner every day. Here are the dates and times.

• Feb. 21 - 4:30-7:30
• Feb. 26 - 12:30-3:30 - school dismissed at 11:40
• Feb. 28 - 4:30-7:30

Dads Night at the HS Boys/Girls Basketball Games - Feb. 22

5:00 Dinner at Heights and then off to the games around 5:30-5:45. The Boys game begins at 6:00 followed by the Girls game. Bring your kids/family along for this fun night out. Please call the office 494-2750 or email Mr. Derr so he can plan for food and tickets to the game.

Important Dates

• Feb. 12 - Kindergarten Information Night 6:00-7:00
• Feb. 18 - No School - Mid winter break
• Feb. 22 - Dats Night at the Basketball Game - 5:00 Dinner at Heights, then off to the game around 5:45

Winter Weather Reminders:

• The school building isn’t officially open until 8:10 am.
• Be sure to dress your children in their warm coats, gloves, boots, and hats when they leave home in the morning. We go outside during the day, and your child needs to be dressed for the weather. We have some donated winter weather items, so let us know if we can help. 

Attendance:  Absences and Tardies

The K-5 bell rings at 8:37 am, to let the kids know it’s time to line up, with class beginning at 8:40 am.  It is very important for your child to be here on time every day to make sure they aren’t missing learning time. We are required to report students with excessive tardies and absences to the truancy officer. This is something that we don’t like to do, but we need your help in getting your child to school on time every day.  Thanks. 

Traffic Update

Please be sure to pick up your child in the appropriate location. PreK-3 will continue to pick up out front and 4-5 will pick up in the back circle drive. Be respectful of the buses that pick up in front and back and please do not park in their spaces. Also, please do not stop or park in the street, blocking traffic, to pick up your child. For the safety of all, please park on one of the side streets and walk over to pick up your child.

Dads Night w/Mr. Derr Monday, Jan. 28 – 6:30 – 7:30 PM

Please mark your calendar for our next Dads Night w/Mr. Derr on Monday, Jan. 28 at 6:30 PM.  We will spend some time having a meal and talking about how you can support your child here at school, along with planning our annual Dad’s Night at the HS Basketball game. Please call the office, 494-2750 or email Mr. Derr, if you plan to attend so we can get an idea on how much food we will need for this night.  

Important Dates and Events

• Jan. 17  - Parent Participation Committee Meeting – 6:00 – 7:00 – All parents are welcome to attend this meeting to discuss how you can support Holland Heights by volunteering, helping with fundraisers, etc.
• Jan. 21 – No School – Martin Luther King Day
• Jan. 22 – Kindergarten Open House for Fall of 2019. 6-7 PM Remind your neighbors if they have children who may be entering Kindergarten next fall. Thanks.

From the Principal
Thank you to all who have volunteered their time in many of the school activities at this point of the school year. We do have more events and activities coming up that volunteers will be needed. Please make sure to fill out the volunteer form in the office and let us know when you would be available to volunteer. We would love to have you come and spend some time reading or working on math with many of our learners. The more the merrier!

One last thing, please make sure to remind your child every day that they must come to school “Ready to Learn.” That means they are on time and prepared with all of their materials for the day. This also means that they are mentally ready to listen to their teacher and do their best on whatever task they are asked to complete. We have told all of our learners that school will be hard at times, but they can do “hard things” when they give their best effort. Research has shown that just by giving “effort” with a good “attitude” here at school, achievement will improve. 

School Mornings
Please remember that the school building isn’t open until 8:10 AM. Make sure your child is dressed in their warm coats, boots, gloves and hats when they leave your home in the morning.   We do go outside in the morning and at other times during the day, and I want to make sure your child is dressed for the weather. We do have some donated winter weather items, so let us know if there is something we can help you out with.   

STAR Testing
Shortly after returning from our Holiday break, all of our learners will be taking the second round of STAR testing in Reading and Math. These tests show us where your child is academically in those subject areas. This second test will show us how much your child has grown since taking the first test. These tests are very important in helping your child’s teacher determine areas of strength and areas of needed support. Please remind your child about always doing their best on these tests so we are better able to support them here at school. If you have any questions about the STAR test, please feel free to contact your child’s teacher or me. Thanks again for supporting the staff here at Holland Heights. 

POWER Expectations
Continue to work with your child around our POWER expectations here at school. Take Pride in what they do, Own their actions (even if they make a mistake), make Wise choices, be Engaged in their learning and show Respect to everyone here at school. 

December Dates to Remember
Dec. 14 – Family Movie Night – 7:00 PM - 
Dec. 21 – Last day of school before the Holiday break
Jan. 7 – First day back in school after the break

Notes from the Nurse

When Your Child is Ill

With flu season right around the corner this year, keeping sick children home from school is more important than ever.  While prevention is the key, there may be times when your child does become ill with the flu.  In order to protect the health of other students and school staff, children who are sick should not attend school.  Students who are sick should remain home until they are fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medicines.  Keeping your child home allows your child to rest and recover.  If you child’s symptoms become severe, you should contact your child’s health care provider.  Thanks for your help in keeping our school as healthy as possible. 

Winter Reminders

As we near the cold winter season, it is very important that we make sure our children are coming to school with the appropriate clothing.  We will be going outside during the school day, so please be sure to have your child dressed for the weather.  A winter jacket, gloves/mittens, hat, and boots should be worn to school each day.  Your child can bring a pair of shoes to wear during class time in their backpack or they can leave them here at school in their locker or by their hook.  We do have a few donated winter weather clothing items, so let us know if there is something we can help you out with.   

Thanksgiving Break

Nov. 21 – 23    No School – Enjoy time with your family!!

Dad’s Night w/Mr. Derr for Holland Heights Dads –  Monday Nov. 26

Monday Nov. 20 will be our second Dad’s night with Mr. Derr.  Plan to meet from 5:30 – 6:30.  We will again have a meal together and spend some time discussing how the Dads of Holland Heights learners can impact our school.  Please call the main office (494-2750) or email Mr. Derr to let us know if you are able to attend so we can plan for the food that night. 

Dear Parent/Guardian of 5^th Grade Student:

Believe it or not, your child’s 6^th grade school year is just around the corner and with that comes the opportunity to participate on a number of school-sponsored athletic teams. The purpose of this letter is to provide you with information regarding those opportunities and also provide some details related to the athletic physical that is required of all participants.

The first requirement for participation in school-sponsored athletics is that each child must have a completed physical on file in the athletic office prior to the first day of practice or tryouts. We know that many insurance companies will only cover one physical per calendar year, so please keep in mind that in order to be valid for school-sponsored athletics for the 2019-20 school year, the physical must have occurred on or after April 15, 2019. We often hear from parents who are not aware of this cutoff date, so please plan accordingly.

In order to assist with the athletic physical requirement, we will offer an Athletic Physical Night for HPS students at South Washington Family Medicine on Wednesday, April 24^th. The cost for the physical is $15.00. More information will be distributed as we get closer to the date.

Below is a list of sports offered to 6th-grade students and the seasons in which they are held. Please note that we do offer a number of additional sports for 7th and 8th-grade students, but due to conference guidelines are only able to offer the sports listed below to our 6th-grade students. Sign-up information for each sport will be distributed to students and parent/guardians as we approach each season.

If you have questions, please feel free to contact me at bfarkas@hollandpublicschools.org or 616-494-2251. I look forward to working with you and your child during their careers as Dutch student athletes!

Respectfully,

Ben Farkas, CAA
Athletic Director
Holland Public Schools