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MEETINGS &ASSEMBLIES
November
7 *Conferences 4:00-8:00
*Title I Learning Fair during Conf.
8 *3rd-5th gd. Moral Focus Assembly
2:00-2:30 in the Gym
*PTO Meeting 3:45-4:45
10 *Goodies pick up 10:00-5:00 (Gym)
*Y5K-5th gd. Moral Focus Assembly
9:55-10:25 in the Gym
*Half Day of School
*Y5K-3rd gd. dismiss at 11:10am
*4th-8th gd. dismiss at 11:20am
*Afternoon Conferences 12:30-5:00
*Title I Learning Fair during Conf.
11 *NO SCHOOL–Staff Prof. Dev. Day
16 *8th gd. Field Trip 11:30-2:45
22 *End of 1st Trimester
23 *NO SCHOOL
24 *NO SCHOOL
25 *NO SCHOOL
December
22 *Half Day of School
*Y5K-3rd gd. dismiss at 11:10am
*4th-8th gd. dismiss at 11:20am
23-30 *Christmas Break
January 2017
2 *Christmas Break
3 *Classes Resume
27 *Early Release Day
*Y5K-3rd gd. dismiss at 1:20pm
*4th-8th gd. dismiss at 1:30pm
Challenging each child
to achieve
November 4, 2016 | Vol.XIX No.3
From The Deans
2nd Grade Pumpkin Math Party!
On Friday, October 28, Eagle Crest 2nd graders and a number of their parents
participated together in a Pumpkin Math Party! During this event, students
worked in groups to estimate and check their estimations with the actual data.
The stations were the following:
1. How many seeds do you estimate will be in this pumpkin? Students made
their estimations and then gathered the data to see how close they were in
their estimations.
2. How much does this pumpkin weigh?
3. How tall is the pumpkin? Students estimated how many unifix cubes high the pumpkin would
measure and then they collected the data and checked their estimations.
4. Describe the properties (a recent science term they have learned) of the pumpkin. Write and draw a
description using property terms.
5. Predict whether the pumpkin will sink or float.
What a fun time learning with real life materials! We are so grateful for the parent volunteers who were
able to join us for this fun, engaging, and informative lesson!
Last month, third grade spent a great deal of time working hard
on learning multiplication facts. We have now learned all our
multiplication facts. We are continuing to work hard to practice
these facts to mastery! Here are some kids using their knowledge
of these facts to solve real world problems in class.
Fourth grade was very eager to begin our new science unit on "Energy and Motion" this month.
We started off the unit focusing on particular vocabulary that the students would be introduced
to during this unit. This week, we kicked off the unit with a "Walk-Around Carousel". The
students had 11 pieces of chart paper around the room, and in teams of three, the students
circulated around adding anything they knew about words like: acceleration, energy, inertia,
potential energy, speed, kinetic energy, energy transfer, contact forces, gravity, non-contact
forces, velocity! Students will add to these halfway through the unit and again pull them out at
the end of the unit to see how much learning has taken place.
Fifth grade took a field trip to the Outdoor Discovery Center. This was a great trip and
students were able to learn in a hands-on way about Native Americans in Michigan. We were
very proud of students ability to compare the Native Americans in different regions
throughout the United States. They used evidence and hands on learning from our trip to
find similarities and differences between each region.
Eagle Crest Charter Academy ~ 11950 Riley Street ~ Holland, MI 49424 ~ p: 616.786.2400 ~ f: 616.786.4692 ~ www.eaglecrestcharteracademy.org
Middle School Wing update
Creating and maintaining a positive climate and culture in
the middle school wing is one of our middle school staff’s
top priorities. As a staff we want to create a middle school
culture where all students feel accepted and part of the
community. We want to create a safe learning
environment where students feel like they are able to
learn and have positive interactions with their
classmates. Things like the Eagle Pride system and the
Middle School Social Contract, as well as events like
Middle School Madness help contribute to our positive
culture and climate. This school year as a staff we wanted
to give our students a greater voice and influence in
creating that culture. So a new opportunity for student
leadership was created. This year we have implemented a
new group called the Eagle Crest Council (ECC). The ECC is
made up of 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. The focus of this
group is twofold. First they will find ways to work with the
teachers to help contribute to building a positive climate
and culture in the middle school wing. For example they
may lead morning meetings from time to time to share/
lead culture building lessons. Their second focus will be to
help develop and implement service project opportunities
for the middle school and in some case the whole
school. They are currently organizing the schoolwide
Pennies for Pasta fundraiser that support Leukemia
research. The ECC is led by middle school teachers Miss
Blanchette, Mrs. Gianakas, and Mrs. TerHorst. Members
of the ECC include:
Parking Lot Corner

We would appreciate your cooperation in
avoiding U-Turns in the Waverly Shores
development. This is private property and it
is a major inconvenience for the residents. If
you need to turn left out of Eagle Crest from
7:45-8:15 and 3:00-3:30 please use the church
lot behind our school. This has been a very
successful and quick alternative to this
issue. Since Eagle Crest has communicated
often about this concern, we would expect
that Eagle Crest parents be responsible
citizens and role models for our children.

There are no left turns out of the EC parking
lot from 7:45-8:15 and 3:00-3:30.
English Learner (EL) Updates:
EL Parent Night
We had a wonderful
time on October
17th for our first EL
parent night this
year. We enjoyed a
variety of community
building activities
and sharing cultural
dishes.
Parent Teacher Conferences
6th graders: Mackenzie Spitters, Madelyn Koning,
Lisette Aguillon, Lindsey Anderson,
Brooke Geerlings, Maurice Acuna-Beck, Sam
VanSuilichem, Clement Monie, and Faith Schaub
7th graders: Mila Egedus, Milit Patel,
Ellie VanEngen, and Megan Kamper
8th graders: Aimee Garnett, Mackenzie TenBrink,
Serina Saengdara, Eli Grewell, Jake Neitzel,
Emma Grewell, Zach Terpstra, Anna Spitters, and
Paul Koning
You are able to sign up for a conference with Miss
Veenstra or Mrs. Starook using the academic
specialist link that was emailed to you on Wednesday,
October 26th. Please send us an email if you would
like assistance in setting up a time for conferences.
Contact Us
Please email [email protected] or
[email protected] with any questions.
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Parent / Teacher Conferences
Auditions for the Middle School Play
Open to all 5th —8th grade students
Mon. Nov. 14 and Tues. Nov. 15 in
Mr. Hegg’s room from 4:00-5:30 pm
YOU MUST turn in your drama questionnaire
to your teacher, Mrs. Mathy, or the office by
Tues. Nov. 8 if you want to audition. Students in
6th-8th grade may also join the crew. Interest
forms for crew are also due Wed. Nov. 9.
A reminder that we will be having Parent/Teacher
Conferences on November 7 from 4:00pm-8:00pm
and on November 10 from 12:30pm-5:00pm.
If you have not already done so please go online to
sign up for a conference time by visiting the
following websites:
Y5K-2nd grade Link:
http://tinyurl.com/Y52fall16
3rd-5th grade link:
http://tinyurl.com/35fall16
Watch D.O.G.S. Program
On September 29 we kicked off our 4th year of
the WATCH D.O.G.S program. WATCH
D.O.G.S. is a volunteer initiative that is designed
to give dads, step-dads, grandpas and other
positive male role models an opportunity to serve
in our school and help with our students. A
WATCH DOG will spend a day (or part of a
day) helping out in classrooms, the playground
and at lunch. There is a variety of ways a dad
can help while here at school. So far we have
already had 8 dads and 2 grandpas serve this
year. If you are interested in signing up to serve
please contact Steve Deur at
[email protected] or 616-786-2400
and he will connect you with the dads in charge of
volunteers. We hope you are able to join us.
Middle School Link:
http://tinyurl.com/68fall16
Academic Support teacher link:
http://tinyurl.com/academic16
You are invited to
the 3rd annual
EC Family
Learning Fair!
November 7 & 10
during Conferences
Visit our reading, writing, &
math stations on your way
to the Book Fair. Gather
great resources/materials
to use at home to make
learning more fun!
Plus, learn about our Title
One support services at
Eagle Crest.
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The Specialist’s Spotlight
MUSIC NOTES
Here’s what we’ve been focusing on in music during our
first 2 months:
1. Relationships: Positive social relationships with your
classmates is a MUST in a music classroom. Music is a
Psychomotor (mind-body) and Psychosocial (mindothers) skill. If I asked you as a parent right now to sing
in front of 30 people you didn’t know very well, how
comfortable would you feel? Kids experience that same
stress at a heightened level. Our first months have been
full of musical games designed to not only work on skills
like singing, but building trust as well.
2. Skills: Our first months have also been spent
reinforcing skills we have learned last year. Musical
skills experience summer loss too! Focusing on review
material also allows kids to feel successful right away
which helps with motivation!
Middle School
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
We have been enjoying ourselves in P.E. these last few months.
The younger grades have been learning about LOCOMOTOR and
MANIPULATIVE skills. They have been learning how to run the
“race track”, being aware of what is happening outside their
bubble, taking turns and encouraging their classmates when
they get the gym award.
Our upper grades have been spending time on
lead-up games to soccer, integrating new skills
with games we already know how to play, being
competitive in a positive way, and learning that
winning is really just about doing your best,
then we all win!
In Middle School we have been enjoying the nice temperatures
outside while playing many soccer and flag football activities,
as well as capture the ball, speedball, and ultimate football/
Frisbee. We are continuing to stress teamwork, safe play,
encouragement and respect to our teammates/classmates, and
most of all having fun!
Our choir and band classes are sounding great already.
Band: we have started rehearsing music for our first
concert in January. Students should be practicing a solid
15 – 20 minutes 4-5 times a week.
Choir: We have also started rehearsing our concert
music. We have been analyzing lyrics for emotional
meaning, writing short stories to connect with the songs
we are singing, and learning how to sing certain sections
of our songs. I’m excited to continue building the choir
program, our number is growing each year!
Inhalers
If your child needs to use an inhaler while
at school a form must be filled out by your
child’s doctor. The State of MI requires this
form to be completed whether the inhaler
is kept in the office or if an older student
carries the inhaler.
The form is available in the EC office.
Green School Tip
Did you know you can recycle
televisions, computers and electronics
at Comprenew located at 11379
Lakewood Boulevard in Holland?
Lost and Found
There are many articles in the two lost and found bins.
One lost and found bin is located by the front door and
the other is located in the middle school hallway.
All unclaimed clothing items will be donated to the
clothing drive on Friday morning 11-11-2016.
4
PTO POST
Eagle Crest students and families ROCK! Our Goodies
Fundraiser brought in $30,482.65 last month of which
the PTO gets to keep half! We well exceeded our goal
of $20,000 and our EC students have earned a glow
party this winter. The PTO is blown away by your
willingness to help out with our fundraising efforts
and is beyond grateful. Thank you Eagle Crest
students and families!
Chloe VanNoord, Analee Tagle, Jayden Lopez, Kara
Volkers, Rashard Johnson, Kaden Saephanh, Hope
DeBrot, Alex Barlass, Logan Schamper, McKenzie
MacDonald, April Darwish, Jacob Rios, Vincent Banks,
Kaiden Salgado and Chevy Aalderink won $5 gift cards
during our Goodies drawings. Congratulations!
Aily Ul, Xane Herrygers, Brayden DenBleyker, Cameron
Volkers, Zach Baldwin, Jervony Phao, Cristian
Calderon, Destiney Lopez, Emmett Deur, Hayley
Sanderson, Kaylee Ashby, Soarah Barrett, JJ Garcia
and David Tiffany won $5 cash during our Goodies
drawings. Congratulations!
Our grand prize $50 winners are Mollie Bookie, Robert
Lubbers and Izzy Steele. Congratulations! Thanks
again to our EC students and families. We could not
do it without you!
REMINDER: Goodies products will be delivered on
November 10 from 10am-5pm in the EC Gym. Please
remember to stop by and pick up your order as we
do not have refrigeration available.
Pennies for Patients
EC will be taking donations from Nov. 1 - 18
Please donate to help those fighting against blood
cancer. You can send donations in with
your student or donate online at
http://events.lls.org/pages/mi/
Eagle'SCrestCharterAcademy2017
Be sure to type in their homeroom teachers name on the
left hand side of the page to give credit towards the
possible earning of a pasta/pizza lunch. Thank you so
much for supporting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
and EC in the Pennies Program.
Junior First Lego League
Junior First Lego League is an opportunity for
kids to get hands on experience with basic
engineering. The kids will meet once a month
and we all work on a project together. We will
be building machines that mimic machines
and robots in the real world using legos,
motors, and other gadgets.
Jr. F.L.L. is for ages 6 to 10.
EC is need of someone to co-coach this group.
The meetings take place at EC. If you are
interested please call Clay at 616-403-8869.
Our fall Box Tops drive is complete and we thank you
for your support. The top three classrooms were
Kuiper (611 points), Schamper (571 points) and
Bruinsma (501 points). As the class with the most
points, Mrs. Kuiper’s students have earned an ice
cream float party and extra recess. Way to go!
Don’t forget Popcorn Fridays, which are on the first
Friday of each month. If you would like to volunteer
to help out, please meet in the Conference Room at
8:00 AM. If you are in the building that morning,
please stop by and grab a bag.
Our next PTO meeting will be held on November 8 at
3:45 PM in the Library. Meetings last about an hour
and children are welcome. We would love to see you
there!
3rd – 5th grade girls have an amazing
opportunity to participate
Girls on the Run.
This year the season will begin in early March
and end in early June. Practices will be on
Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30-5:00.
Registration is online at gotroac.org. You must
register by November 30th to participate in the
program. Scholarships are available and can be
applied for online. If you have any questions
please contact Mrs. Cousino at
[email protected].
5
Moral Focus Award Winners
of Wisdom
Tyler
Andrada
Nela
M
Jazlene
Greyland
Howie
Ryder
Elodie
Darcy
Liam
Travis
Tania
Armani
Cameron
Ashlyn
Isabela
Jade
Emmett
Cohen
Gautham
Josiah
Naomi
Anderson
Anghel
Anongdeth
Babbitt
Barron
Bauer
Baumann
Baumann
Boerma
Bookie
Bosman
Brown
Carillo
Chanthavong
Chanthavong
DeBoer
De la Garza
DeMaagd
Deur
DeYoung
Dineshkumar
Faucher
Flores
Aimee
Katie
Coraima
Cindy
Leah
Savanna
Jennifer
Esme
Gavyn
Addisyn
Jakobi
Jayden
Timothy
Sophia
Landen
Clement
John
Aleiah
Diya
Zachary Paul
Daveyana
Laura
Garnett
Gilbert
Hernandez
Ho
Kamper
Karsies
Kaseumsouk
Khang
Killian
Kooyers
Lakangnavong
Lozano
McDonald
Medina
Milanowski
Monie
Muoio
Nyhoff
Patel
Perkins
Phasavo
Rafael
Michael
Kendyl
Dylee
Julia
Ethan
Lily
Serina
Lindsey
Deon
Makenzy
Sophya
Eli
Mya
Katie
Aily
Acacia
Andon
Leah
Sophia
Kara
Nathan
Samuel
Sydney
Ramirez
Regan
Rodriguez
Roelofs
Rounds
Saechao
Saengdara
Schumaker
Sinakone
Sluiter
Sluiter
Smith
Symbounma
Tran
Ul
VanSpronsen
Veneberg
Veneberg
Visscher
Volkers
Ward
Winjoe
Young
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