5th Grade Forest Program: May 22, 2026

UPCOMING EVENTS AND REMINDERS

Monday, May 25 - NO SCHOOL (Memorial Day)

Wednesday, May 27 - Mrs. DeZwaan's Forest Program 5th Grade Showcase at Sassafras Ridge. Our Forest Program class of 5th graders will be spending the day at Sassafras Ridge. The day is meant to showcase their learning, celebrate and share stories from their experiences in the forest program, and enjoy a meal as a class. You are invited to join us for part of that day from 12:30 - 2:15.  
We are also looking for volunteers to help provide food items so the 5th grade can make a campfire lunch using their firebuilding skills!  They will be building fires and roasting their own pizza filled Tonka Pies or tonka toasters or hobo pies or ... yummy goodness over the fire! Please take a look at the sign up if you are willing to help! Thanks! There are a few more slots we would love to see filled! 
WE ARE LOOKING FOR A FEW MORE TONKA PIE IRONS! IF YOU HAVE SOME WE CAN BORROW FOR THE DAY, PLEASE LET US KNOW IN THE SIGN UP! THANKS!

Thursday, May 28 - Baked Goods Sale for 5th Graders 

As part of our bible this year, our 4th graders have been challenged to see the world through “Kingdom Eyes”; looking for those who need to be noticed or situations that need to be restored and finding ways to respond with love. Our kids have accepted the challenge, and will be doing a bake sale at Pine Ridge to earn money to purchase toys/books and games for the kids in the shelter at Gateway Mission! So here are the details you’ll need:
Dates are May 26, 27 and 28
3rd graders on the 26th
4th grade will be on the 27th
5th grade on the 28th
All items will be individually wrapped, nut free and priced at .25 cents each
There will be gluten/dairy free options that will be clearly labeled
Donations will be accepted as well

Monday, June 1 - Big Red Sketch Day at Holland State Park
Students will sketch Big Red and eat lunch by the channel with classmates from Rose Park. Students should bring a backpack with a sack lunch, water bottle, beach towel, hat, and sunscreen. No swimsuits, please -- students will not be in the water.

Tuesday, June 2 - Locker and Desk Clean Out! 
Please send a bag or two for desk and locker clean-out ... maybe 3 ... 

Tuesday, June 2 - 5th Grade Celebration at Pine Ridge at 2:00. This will be our end of the year chapel celebrating our 5th graders.

Summer Announcement:

Classroom Libraries

Students have been taking books out of our classroom libraries on the "honor system" so we have no way of knowing how many books are out except for the fact that some of the book baskets in our classrooms are quite empty. Please have your child check for any classroom books that may be around your house or their bedroom. Those books are due back to school ASAP.

School Library

All library materials are due back to Pine Ridge as soon as possible. Notices are being sent home today for books that have not yet been returned.

Standing Stone Rocks have been hand picked from the shore of Lake Michigan at Pilgrim Haven!

Curriculum Highlights

BIBLE: Our focus has been on the book of Acts. We continue to see how God works through His people to build His church. A study sheet is coming home today for our test on Friday.

We spent some time at Pilgrim Haven talking about standing stones and what they mean. We selected our standing stone and then dug into Scripture looking for a verse that was important to us that we wrote on our stone.

HEALTH: We tackled our health lessons this week! On Monday we talked about who we are at "our core" and we compared what social media might tells us and what Scripture says about who we are. We talked about how our bodies might be changing but that doesn't change WHO we are and WHO we belong to. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the boys and girls met separately to talk in more detail about how God has created their bodies in a complex way and how they might see their body changing.

NATURE JOURNALING: We made our last entry in our nature journal and River Junction was the perfect place to do it!

A little (ok ... maybe a lot) buggy so we took refuge in the cabin!

READING: This week we finished our Historical Fiction reading. We compared and contrasted themes across a number of books that we have read, and looked at complex characters.

WRITING: We continue to work on our memoirs. They have enjoyed looking through pictures of our year, sharing stories with their classmates, and adding some pictures to their published stories!

This week we also worked on our Fatih Writing. We first took a peek at our folder that contains our pieces of writing from previous years. We giggled at our handwriting, appreciated how much we have grown academically but also in our faith.

Then we tackled our 5th grade writing piece, thinking about stories in Scripture, devotions, chapels and people who have helped us grow in our faith walk.

OUTDOOR LEARNING SCHEDULE FOR NEXT WEEK

River Junction is a special place for Calvin's family! Thanks for sharing it with us!

They searched hard for a snake but found a turtle!

We stopped on the way to Hutchins Lake to see a momma swan sitting on her nest. She even lifted her wing to show off her babies.

We had a beautiful morning at the lake! Students spent time kayaking, fishing, reading and coloring on the lawn, catching minnows, and enjoying lunch together. My favorite place with my favorite kiddos!