10/13: Early Release Day, 2:30 Dismissal
- 2:30 - 2:45 for last names A - I
- 2:45 - 3:00 for last names J - Z
10/14: Community Meeting, 3rd-5th feat. Coach's class, 8:30 - 8:45 AM
10/15: Community Meeting, K - 2 feat. Amash's class, 8:30 - 8:45 AM
10/19: GRCDC Board Meeting, 6:00 - 7:30 PM
10/30: No School, Staff Professional Development
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What's for Breakfast and Lunch? Click Here, then click on Grand Rapids Child Discovery.
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Dear Families,
Thank you for your participation in Family Teacher Conferences! As you can see, our teachers spend a lot of thoughtful time and reflection preparing for each conference. Partnering with you and your child is an essential part of each teacher's job and it is a fundamental aspect of our Reggio-inspired approach. The relationship between the family, child, and teacher is meant to be an interconnected, collaborative partnership. What happens at the dinner table or in the back seat of the car should inform what happens in the classroom and vice versa!
In the spirit of building your relationship and connection with your child's teacher, please take a moment to say "thank you!" by scanning this QR code or clicking this link! This will take 5ish minutes and will mean the world to the teacher. We make the messages pretty, print them out, and distribute them to teachers next week.
Thank YOU so much!
Lisa
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Media Release for 26-27 School Year: Please take a moment to complete the media release that has been sent with this Link Letter. Please let us know if you have any questions about the media release. On a phone, you can find the form above this post (see image). On a computer/browser, you will see an option to "complete form" at the bottom of the post. |
Volunteer Opportunity: Our rain garden and our front garden boxes need a little attention before winter begins. In the rain garden, removing the seed tops off the ragweed is a priority, and the front garden boxes need to be cleared before winter. If you have a little time after arrival or before/after dismissal to help, please let Ms. Rachel know. She will give you additional instructions. |
Part of the role of the Family Team is to work with the school to provide extracurricular after-school clubs for GRCDC students. |
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New Club for 3-5 - Art Club: Harper (in Trout's class) and her mom, Lyanna, are starting an art club for grades 3 - 5. This is a club for budding artists. Each week there will be a new project to work on a bring home. The club will run on Mondays after school, starting 10/26. The last day will be 11/23. Pick up time for the club each Monday is 5:30 PM. This interest form is due by 10/19 and participation will be confirmed by Thursday 10/22. There are 10 spots available and spots will be filled on a first come, first served basis.
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Club Meetings this week:
- 10/12: Book Club, 4:15 - 5:30 PM
- 10/13: Drama Club, 3:00 - 4:15 PM
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Winter Gear Drive
Family Team is collecting cold weather essentials to ensure every student stays warm and comfortable through the winter season.
On Wednesday October 28, specific donations requests will be shared in a post on the Family Team GRCDC Narwhals Group on ParentSquare where families can sign up to provide gear donations. No identifying information will be shared - only items and sizes.
Donations will be accepted Monday November 2 - Thursday November 12. Volunteers are needed to sort donations on Friday November 13. Sign up for this will also be on the Family Team GRCDC Narwhals Group on ParentSquare on Wednesday October 28.
Winter Wreath Sale
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Volunteers are needed to take delivery, label boxes, assist with pickup at drop off and pick up. Sign up on ParentSquare starting November 4.
What Exactly Do Family Team Fundraisers Fund?
Equity is a pillar of our school and Family Team raises funds to make our events free or low cost for families.
Our big three fundraisers - school spirit merch, winter wreaths, and spring flowers - fund Hope in Action classroom project work by covering admission and transportation costs for field trips and other experiences as well as large events like fall fest, winter wonderland, and the family dance.
Smaller fundraisers like concessions at Movie Nights help us break even on food costs for those events. Same with the Book Swap; donations help replenish books if inventory runs low.
Additionally, we rely on donations from local businesses and organizations to offset event costs.
How can you help? Aside from monetary donations, you can support Family Team efforts in the following ways:
- Attend Family Team meetings; participate in discussions and decision-making. Attend meetings when you can! Participating in Family Team IS NOT all or nothing!
- Volunteer to help with donation/fundraising requests. Family Team works hard to keep events equitable for all GRCDC families. If you know of a business or organization that would like to support Family Team, please let us know.
- Volunteer for events and extracurricular clubs throughout the year. This is a perfect low commitment opportunity; one and done! You can volunteer to set up, tear down, or run a station. This volunteer opportunity is typically 1-2 hours at a time.
Narwhal Nation Merch
Merch has arrived and will be distributed to students early next week. Thank you for supporting this fundraiser!
Upcoming Events & Opportunities
- Our monthly meetings are held on Thursdays after the K-2 Community Meetings: Oct 29, Nov 12, Dec 3, Jan 14, Feb 11, Mar 11, Apr 15, Apr 29, May 13
- Movie Night Friday, November 13. Doors open at 6:00pm, and the movie starts at 6:30pm. Concessions available for purchase; cash and GiveButter accepted.
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- If you are experiencing a housing crisis or issue, please contact us at 616-459-0330 and our Homeless Liaison will reach out to you.
- Want to support GRCDC family owned businesses in the local community? Check out the GRCDC Business Directory
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Families Supporting Families! We want to support our families. We are collecting the information for any family-owned businesses within our community. If you own a business, please fill out this survey. We will add you to the directory once we receive your information.
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GRCDC Threat Reporting Form: It takes everybody in the school community to keep a school safe! In short, if you see or hear something, say something! GRCDC has a team of staff that have been trained to assess and respond to any threats to the school community. Please use this form to make a report.
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OK2SAY: If you receive a threat or know of a threat of violence against your community, please contact your local law enforcement or call 9-1-1. Non-emergency tips can be submitted the following ways:
- Call: 8-555-OK2SAY, (855-565-2729 )
- Text: 652729 (OK2SAY)
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Email: OK2SAY
- Visit: OK2SAY website
- OK2SAY Mobile App: Available for download for Apple, Google and Android mobile devices.
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Absence Reporting: If your child will be absent from school, please contact us by 8:20 AM if possible. There are a few ways you can contact us about an absence:
- Email office@childdiscoverycenter.org
- Call the main office, 616-459-0330
- Send a ParentSquare message and include Jessie Hammond + Rachel Harth
- If you contact a teacher only regarding attendance, please know that they do not always have time to inform the office about your child's attendance. Your first contact should always be the school office. If you want to include the teacher and inform them as well, go for it!
If we do not hear from you, ParentSquare will send an automated message around 8:50 AM that you may also reply to. If you do not contact the office to excuse the absence, it will be marked unexcused.
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Lunch Count FYI: Did you know that the GRCDC lunches are ordered by 8:30 AM from the central kitchen at the Aviation High School? Once the order is in, the food is prepped and delivered to GRCDC. It is very important that all lunch orders are in at arrival time so that we can provide the lunch that is on the menu for the day. If your child is late, we will do our best to ensure they receive a lunch; often, we may have to provide a different lunch than the menu in these instances. It would really help us out if you contact the office by 8:30 AM if your child will be late or out for the day, so we can have an accurate count. |
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