First week news

“Life is either a daring adventure… or nothing at all.”  - Helen Keller

Dear Parents,

Welcome to a new school year!  It was great to meet most of you at Open House and during the first few days of school.  I thought I’d take a moment to introduce myself.  My name is Kip Holland-Anderson, but my students call me “Mr. H-A.”  This school year will be my nineteenth year as a teacher (WOW!  Where do the years go?). 

I was born and raised in Minneapolis, MN and graduated from North Park College in Chicago, IL where I student taught in a 4th grade classroom.  Upon graduating I was offered a position working with 8th grade students.  After my wife and I moved to Holland, MI, I continued teaching 8th graders at Creekside Middle School where I taught for nine years.  In 2006 I requested a transfer to 4th grade and this year will be my eighth year at Roosevelt. My wife teaches 4th grade part-time at East K-7 in Holland Public Schools where our three kids attend school.  

I chose the theme of the Pathfinder Team for our classroom because I believe that learning is a journey and an adventure.  As the quote above states, life is a “daring adventure.”  I like to extend that to education and learning as well.  Learning is a daring adventure in that sometimes it is picturesque, easy-going, and feels great.  Other times the journey is difficult, challenging, and possibly frustrating.  Sometimes it will take risks to step out and try new things.  Yet, as with all great adventures I believe that when we reach the end of the school year we will look back and be amazed at how far we’ve traveled together and how much we’ve learned.

If you ever have a question or comment, please feel free to contact me either by phone, e-mail, or by sending in a note (contact info. is at the bottom of the page).  I’ll get back to you as soon as I’m able!

Happy Trails!
Mr. H-A

Odds and Ends

• Last week your son or daughter began bringing home his or her Homework Folder with a “Homework Log” inside.  This record sheet will be our way of communicating about homework for each night.  Students are expected to get a parent (or any other adult who is "in charge") signature on it each night and return it to his or her folder.  
• If a student forgets to return an assignment or to get a parent signature, they will be bringing home an “Oops!” form.  It is my way to keep track of how many times they have forgotten items and it reminds them to be responsible.  Consequences will be given on a case-by-case basis if too many Oops! forms are accumulated by an individual student.
• In addition to any homework listed, students are expected to read for 20 minutes each night, six days of week (they can choose one night to take off) and should record the book title, minutes read, pages read, and two response sentences on the back of their Homework Log.