West PreK-5th Grade Elementary

No School Monday, February 18

Winter Break: No school, February 18 in observance of Presidents Day.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

Conference sign up forms went home last week. Conferences are:

• Thursday Feb 21st 4:30-7:30
• Tuesday Feb 26th 12:30-3:30
• Thursday Feb 28th 4:30-7:30

Scholastic Book Fair

The Book Fair will be in the Library during Conferences times:

• Thursday Feb 21st - 4:30-7:30
• Tuesday Feb 26th - 12:30-3:30
• Thursday Feb 28th - 4:30-7:30

Look What’s Happening in Gym

This week and next our students are learning how to bowl. This includes great coordination and math (yes math) skills!

4th/5th Graders Ski Trip

Our 4th and 5th grade students had a great day at Bittersweet! Here are just some photos capturing parts of their day. Go to Facebook on the Holland West Connections page to see more.

Kindergarten Informational Hour

Rescheduled date is to be determined. Please keep an eye out for the new date.

Fundraiser at Baja

Go to Baja Grill on Friday, February 22nd between 3:00-8:00pm and a portion of sales will go back to West. Great way to have dinner out and support our school!

777 Washington Ave
Holland, MI 49423
info@thebajagrill.com
(616)546-3600

February’s Character Trait

February's character trait of the month is Courage!
Courage is a great trait to focus on in February as we learn about Black History Month and the courage it takes to stand up for what is right. Please ask your children how they can be courageous at school!

PBIS Donation Needs

Hello West family! We are still in need of donations for our PBIS fund. PBIS stands for "Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports" and we use this to reinforce positive behavior & choices that students make. They earn POWER tickets when caught doing the 'right thing' and submit their tickets to a weekly drawing, where we reward them with candy, snacks, trinkets & toys (such as stickers, yo-yos, snap bracelets, books, posters, etc). This is a research driven strategy and we heavily rely on PBIS to increase positive behavior from our students. Any donations, monetary or otherwise, would be greatly appreciated to help West & PBIS! Thank you!

STEM

Thank you to everyone who has brought in items for the STEM program. We are still in need of cardboard paper towel and toilet paper tubes, juice/milk half gallon cardboard containers (not the plastic jugs) and empty tissue boxes.

Become a Tulip Time Kinder Dutch Dancer!

Tulip Time invites all 3rd, 4th and 5th graders to participate in

Kinder Dutch Dance Program. Practices begin the week of February 25. Register at the Tulip Time website

Volunteer for Popcorn Friday(s)

Please sign up to volunteer for Popcorn Fridays at:

West Carnival – New Date

Friday February 8 6-8pm at West. We will be sending home another flyer with details for families. This flyer will also include an order form to pre order tickets and pay admission before that night. And those tickets will be picked up at a Will-call table the night of. Carnival will have games, prizes, face painting, cake walk, food (popcorn, cotton candy, candy), and the door prize raffle baskets.

Admission is $1.00 per person (this also includes the one ticket for entry for the door prize raffle baskets)
Tickets for games are 4/$1.00 20/$5.00 45/$10.00
There are copies on the table in the office for pre-ordering tickets along with Carnival information.

Sign up to volunteer at the Carnival.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

Look for Conference sign up forms to come home this week.

Winner!

Emma Deenik is the winner for the National Geographic Bee. The top 100 highest scoring students in the state will compete at the state level at Western Michigan University next month.

Kindergarten Informational Hour

Come explore what our Kindergarten Program has to offer. Please plan to attend the following date:
Tuesday, February 12 from 6:00-7:00pm

Volunteer for Popcorn Friday(s)

Please sign up to volunteer for Popcorn Fridays

What is Happening at West

February's character trait of the month is Courage!
Courage is a great trait to focus on in February as we learn about Black History Month and the courage it takes to stand up for what is right. Please ask your children how they can be courageous at school!

Thank you!

THANK YOU to Ammie Baumann & her team at "For His Glory Ministry", for their continued donations to our West food
pantry. With their help we were able to provide students with extra food during the snow days, as well as provide winter gear. Ammie & her team have been so generous to us; we wouldn't be able to help our students without them. Thank you!

From the Music Department

The 4th graders from West and all Holland Public Schools will have the opportunity to join other 4th graders from the area schools (such as West Ottawa, Zeeland, Holland Christian and more) to perform with the Holland Symphony. Students will be play the recorder and sing to music written by the Carnegie Foundation. The performance will take place at the Jack Miller Auditorium on the Hope College campus. This will occur on Monday, March 25. We will be seeking out approximately 2 chaperones per class. Stay tuned for future details.

The music department was able to meet just before winter break and we have chosen a date for our spring elementary program! We will showcase our wonderful students in grades 1, 3 and 5 on Tuesday, May 21 at Christ Memorial Church. We have decided to split all of our students into two programs; one program will be from 6:00 pm until 6:45 pm, and the other will be from 7:30 until 8:15. We will feature Jefferson and Heights together at one performance and HLA and West at the other. As of right now we have not decided which schools will go at which time, so I will update you once we have determined this.

PBIS Donation Needs

Hello West family! We are still in need of donations for our PBIS fund. PBIS stands for “Shooting for Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports" and we use this to reinforce positive behavior & choices that students make. They earn POWER tickets when caught doing the 'right thing' and submit their tickets to a weekly drawing, where we reward them with candy, snacks, trinkets & toys (such as stickers, yo-yos, snap bracelets, books, posters, etc). This is a research driven strategy and we heavily rely on PBIS to increase positive behavior from our students. Any donations, monetary or otherwise, would be greatly appreciated to help West & PBIS!
Thank you!

STEM

Thank you to everyone who has brought in items for the STEM program. We are still in need of cardboard paper towel and toilet paper tubes, juice/milk half gallon cardboard containers (not the plastic jugs) and empty tissue boxes.

West Carnival

Friday January 25th 6-8pm at West. We will be sending home another flyer with details for families. This flyer will also include an order form to pre order tickets and pay admission before that night. And those tickets will be picked up at a Will-call table the night of. Carnival will have games, prizes, face painting, cake walk, food (popcorn, cotton candy, candy), and the door prize raffle baskets.

Admission is $1.00 per person (this also includes the one ticket for entry for the door prize raffle baskets)
Tickets for games are 4/$1.00 20/$5.00 45/$10.00
There are copies on the table in the office for pre-ordering tickets along with Carnival information.

Sign up to volunteer.

Kindergarten Informational Hour

Come explore what our Kindergarten Program has to offer. Please plan to attend on Tuesday, February 12 from 6:00-7:00pm

PBIS Donation Needs

Hello West family! We are still in need of donations for our PBIS
fund. PBIS stands for "Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports" and we use this to reinforce positive behavior & choices that students make. They earn POWER tickets when caught doing the 'right thing' and submit their tickets to a weekly drawing, where we reward them with candy, snacks, trinkets & toys (such as stickers, yo-yos, snap bracelets, books, posters, etc). This is a research driven strategy and we heavily rely on PBIS to increase positive behavior from our students. Any donations, monetary or otherwise, would be greatly appreciated to help West & PBIS!
Thank you!

STEM

Thank you to everyone who has brought in items for the STEM program. We are still in need of cardboard paper towel and toilet paper tubes, juice/milk half gallon cardboard containers (not the plastic jugs) and empty tissue boxes.

Volunteer for Popcorn Friday(s)

From the Music Department

The 4th graders from West and all Holland Public Schools will have the opportunity to join other 4th graders from the area schools (such as West Ottawa, Zeeland, Holland Christian and more) to perform with the Holland Symphony. Students will be play the recorder and sing to music written by the Carnegie Foundation. The performance will take place at the Jack Miller Auditorium on the Hope College campus. This will occur on Monday, March 25. We will be seeking out approximately 2 chaperones per class. Stay tuned for future details.

The music department was able to meet just before winter break and we have chosen a date for our spring elementary program! We will showcase our wonderful students in grades 1, 3 and 5 on Tuesday, May 21 at Christ Memorial Church. We have decided to split all of our students into two programs; one program will be from 6:00 pm until 6:45 pm, and the other will be from 7:30 until 8:15. We will feature Jefferson and Heights together at one performance and HLA and West at the other. As of right now we have not decided which schools will go at which time, so I will update you once we have determined this.

Total Trek Quest

An afterschool program for boys in grades 3-5, Total Trek Quest (TTQ) combines the physical activity of training for a 5k run with a curriculum that focuses on learning to set goals, building strong relationships, and making healthy choices. This fun, interactive 9-week program uses running and educational activities to encourage positive mental health and wellness while also preventing high-risk behaviors.

Register for TTQ

Date: Monday, February 25, 2019
Time: Practices vary from school to school. Please refer to your respective school for specifics regarding practice days/times.

Please join us at our Season Kickoff Event on Saturday February 16th at The Lost City! See confirmation email for more details!

What’s Happening at West

January’s character trait is GRATITUDE. The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.

NO SCHOOL MONDAY, JAN. 21

There will be no school, Monday January 21 in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Check the Lost and Found

The lost and found will be donated at the end of the day Friday. Please have your child check the lost and found.

West Carnival – Save the Date

Friday January 25th 6-8pm at West. We will be sending home another flyer with details for families. This flyer will also include an order form to pre order tickets and pay admission before that night. And those tickets will be picked up at a Will-call table the night of. Carnival will have games, prizes, face painting, cake walk, food (popcorn, cotton candy, candy), and the door prize raffle baskets.

Admission is $1.00 per person (this also includes the one ticket for entry for the door prize raffle baskets)
Tickets for games are 4/$1.00 20/$5.00 45/$10.00
There are copies on the table in the office for pre-ordering tickets along with Carnival information.

Sign up to volunteer for the Carnival

Kindergarten Informational Hour

Come explore what our Kindergarten Program has to offer. Please plan to attend one of the following dates:
Tuesday, January 22 from 6:00-7:00pm
Tuesday, February 12 from 6:00-7:00pm

PBIS Donation Needs

Hello West family! We are still in need of donations for our PBIS fund. PBIS stands for "Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports" and we use this to reinforce positive behavior & choices that students make. They earn POWER tickets when caught doing the 'right thing' and submit their tickets to a weekly drawing, where we reward them with candy, snacks, trinkets & toys (such as stickers, yo-yos, snap bracelets, books, posters, etc). This is a research driven strategy and we heavily rely on PBIS to increase positive behavior from our students. Any donations, monetary or otherwise, would be greatly appreciated to help West & PBIS!
Thank you!

Volunteer for Popcorn Friday(s)

Please sign up to volunteer for Popcorn Fridays

Looking for Volunteers

We are asking for Parent (or Grandparent) volunteers to help sort/pocket/card books for the Read At Home room. The “party” will be Friday, January 18th at 9:00am in the RAH room. * The Volunteer must have a Volunteer form on file.
Any questions text Vicki Shearer @ 616-834-1092

From the Music Department

The 4th graders from West and all Holland Public Schools will have the opportunity to join other 4th graders from the area schools (such as West Ottawa, Zeeland, Holland Christian and more) to perform with the Holland Symphony. Students will be play the recorder and sing to music written by the Carnegie Foundation. The performance will take place at the Jack Miller Auditorium on the Hope College campus. This will occur on Monday, March 25. We will be seeking out approximately 2 chaperones per class. Stay tuned for future details.

The music department was able to meet just before winter break and we have chosen a date for our spring elementary program! We will showcase our wonderful students in grades 1, 3 and 5 on Tuesday, May 21 at Christ Memorial Church. We have decided to split all of our students into two programs; one program will be from 6:00 pm until 6:45 pm, and the other will be from 7:30 until 8:15. We will feature Jefferson and Heights together at one performance and HLA and West at the other. As of right now we have not decided which schools will go at which time, so I will update you once we have determined this.

Total Trek Quest

An afterschool program for boys in grades 3-5, Total Trek Quest (TTQ) combines the physical activity of training for a 5k run with a curriculum that focuses on learning to set goals, building strong relationships, and making healthy choices. This fun, interactive 9-week program uses running and educational activities to encourage positive mental health and wellness while also preventing high-risk behaviors.

Register for TTQ online

Date: Monday, February 25, 2019
Time: Practices vary from school to school. Please refer to your respective school for specifics regarding practice days/times.

Please join us at our Season Kickoff Event on Saturday February 16th at The Lost City! See confirmation email for more details!

West Carnival – Save the Date
Friday January 25th 6-8pm at West. We will be sending home another flyer with details for families. This flyer will also include an order form to pre order tickets and pay admission before that night. And those tickets will be picked up at a Will-call table the night of. Carnival will have games, prizes, face painting, cake walk, food (popcorn, cotton candy, candy), and the door prize raffle baskets. Admission is $1.00 per person (this also includes the one ticket for entry for the door prize raffle baskets), and tickets for games are 4/$1.00 20/$5.00 45/$10.00.
Sign up to volunteer for the Carnival

Volunteer for Popcorn Friday(s)
Please sign up to volunteer for Popcorn Fridays

Kindergarten Informational Hour
Come explore what our Kindergarten Program has to offer. Please plan to attend one of the following dates:
Tuesday, January 22 from 6:00-7:00pm
Tuesday, February 12 from 6:00-7:00pm

Spelling Bee
The West Elementary Spelling Bee will take place next Thursday at 9:00 a.m. in the media center. Parents are welcome to come and watch. The classroom winner and runner-up participants will compete in the school Spelling Bee. Spelling Lists will go home tomorrow. This is for third through fifth grade.

Geographic Bee is coming to West
Holland West will be hosting its annual National Geographic Bee. This is for students in fourth and fifth grades. The competition will begin in classrooms first. This will take place by December 21st. The winner of each classroom bee will advance to the next level- the school round. This competition will take place on Wednesday, January 16th at 1:30 in the Gym. The winner of the school takes a test to qualify for the state level competition. The state competition is held on March 29, 2019. Some useful sites to brush up on your geography skills are  National Geographic website and another national Geographic page.

January’s character trait is GRATITUDE. The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.

Kindness Character Trait Winners

Sohpia Vasquez, Leinad Hollon, AJ Walters, Andrew Klinge, Andrew Legg, Melanie Rodas-Figueroa, Satyra Young, Romeo Garcia, Braylon Cates, Anahi Ayala, Jordan Garcia, Megan Smith, Eleanor Canaan, Kendall Dekker, Malina Torres, Adam Almanza, Emma Weiss, Vincent Villegas, Max Keppel, Yaretzi Juarez-Lopez, Landon Wilson, Zuriel Horn, David Estupinan, Mia Kelley, Axel Wolfe, Gianna DeLeon, Max Martinez, Anatascia Morin, Colt Geerts, Ellison McFarland, Felipe Torres, Angie Ascenico, Jazmin Fuentes-Rivas, Bryson Forker, Dean Vereeke, Analicia Castro, Yasmin Sanchez, Ryann Winsemius

Holiday Spirit Week Dress up Days

December 17th-21st

• Monday – Comfy Cozy Day; Wear comfortable clothes, fuzzy socks, etc.
• Tuesday – Holiday Accessory Day; Think ornament earrings, Santa hat, Christmas scarf, reindeer headband, fun socks, etc. Be creative!
• Wednesday – Character Day; Dress up like a snowman, angel, elf, etc
• Thursday - Tacky Holiday Sweater Day; what’s in your drawer or closet? You can always make an ugly sweater/shirt/sweatshirt also!
• Friday - Red and Green Day; Get into the Christmas Spirit! Wear the most red and green you can find.

Holiday Craft

Holiday Craft is back, and the PTO needs your help to pull this off!! The craft days will be on Wednesday, December 12 and Thursday, December 13. Students in Preschool -5th grade will make a craft as a gift to give, a card, and have a cookie. All volunteers need to have a volunteer form turned into the office and cleared before the event date. We need volunteers the day of, cookie bakers to bring in cookies, AND a $2 donation to help offset the cost of the materials. Here is the link to sign up. Any family members that are cleared can also help. Please send in the money donation with your student by Monday, December 10. If you are able to send in an extra $2 donation to help those students that may not be able to pay we would appreciate it. Thanks for your support!!!

Bittersweet Ski Passes

Mr. Elenbaas will once again offer ski and snowboard cards for those families and friends who are interested in skiing or snowboarding at Bittersweet Ski Area. The cards will enable you to purchase lift tickets and rental equipment at discounted rates and get two free lessons with a certified instructor. Some restrictions do apply. See Mr. Elenbaas for all the details.

What’s Happening at West

December's character trait is KINDNESS. We are teaching students how to be kind and how to show kindness to others. One way is the canned food drive! We are bringing in cans to supply our West food pantry & support Community Action House. We hope you'll help us by talking with your children about what kindness means to them and giving them ideas & ways to be kind to others.

Fun trip for the 2nd graders

Our second grade field trip was to DeGraaf Nature Center. Students learned about how pioneers lived long ago when they came to Holland. We made our own candles by dipping them in wax, we made sachets with tree bark scented like a fir tree, listened to stories in the log cabin about what pioneers received for Christmas, and learned about the different kinds of coniferous trees as we walked through the trails.

PTO News

The PTO is doing a food drive. Students are collecting nonperishable items for Community Action House and West’s new food pantry. Donations that stay at West will go to help some of our own families. Please help and give what you can. We appreciate all the donations.

Holiday Craft

Holiday Craft is back, and the PTO needs your help to pull this off!! The craft days will be on Wednesday, December 12 and Thursday, December 13. Students in Preschool-5th grade will make a craft as a gift to give, a card, and have a cookie. All volunteers need to have a volunteer form turned into the office and cleared before the event date. We need volunteers the day of, cookie bakers to bring in cookies, AND a $2 donation to help offset the cost of the materials. Here is the link to sign up. Any family members that are cleared can also help. Please send in the money donation with your student by Monday, December 10. If you are able to send in an extra $2 donation to help those students that may not be able to pay we would appreciate it. Thanks for your support!!!

Bittersweet Ski Passes

Mr. Elenbaas will once again offer ski and snowboard cards for those families and friends who are interested in skiing or snowboarding at Bittersweet Ski Area. The cards will enable you to purchase lift tickets and rental equipment at discounted rates and get two free lessons with a certified instructor. Some restrictions do apply. See Mr. Elenbaas for all the details.

Geographic Bee is coming to West

Holland West will be hosting its annual National Geographic Bee. This is for students in fourth and fifth grades. The competition will begin in classrooms first. This will take place by December 21st. The winner of each classroom bee will advance to the next level- the school round. This competition will take place on Wednesday, January 16th at 1:30 in the Gym. The winner of the school takes a test to qualify for the state level competition. The state competition is held on March 29, 2019. Some useful sites to brush up on your geography skills are the following: National Geographic website and another national Geographic page.

What’s Happening at West

November's character trait is: RESPECT. How can our students show respect at school, on the playground, at home, and in the community? Please ask your students to share how they are showing RESPECT everywhere they go!

December's character trait is KINDNESS. We are teaching students how to be kind and how to show kindness to others. One way is the canned food drive! We are bringing in cans to supply our West food pantry & support Community Action House. We hope you'll help us by talking with your children about what kindness means to them and giving them ideas & ways to be kind to others.

Exciting Stuff

The second grades had a Reward Celebration this week at Christ Memorial on Tuesday, December 4th. Students that showed all the POWER characteristics were able to attend and watch a movie.

Mrs. Smith's second graders are going to the DeGraaf Nature Center on Thursday, December 6th @ 1:30.

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