Belmont Elementary School
6097 Belmont Ave NE
Belmont, MI 49306
616.863.6362
Spring is in the air!
Believe it or not, it is officially spring! Students are well on their way to meeting their March is Reading Month Goal of reading 1,000 hours! Belmont students have currently logged 694 hours of reading this month! They are gaining stamina and "getting their paws on good books" every day at school!
We are hoping to share that energy with you as we launch our culminating reading month activity, "One Book, One School". On Friday, March 21, I revealed the title of this book to students and shared with them the different ways that we can embrace the joy of reading this book together. Each family will receive a copy of this book along with a bookmark reading guide. Additional information can be found below and I look forward to laughing with you as we read this book together!
Please let me know if you have any questions and have a great weekend!
Rachel DeKuiper, Principal
rmdekuiper@rockfordschools.org
616.863.6362
8 Class Pets + 1 Squirrel / 1 dog = chaos!
Please find linked below audio/video links to chapters in our "One Book, One School" title. We will add links here each day as optional resources when reading/listening to the assigned chapters. Enjoy!
Chapter 1, Twitch (the school-yard squirrel)
Chapter 2, Green Eggs and Ham (the first-grade hamster)
Chapter 3, Lucy Cottontail (the second-grade rabbit)
Chapter 4, Sweetie (the library rat)
Chapter 5, School of Neon Tetra (third-grade fish)
Chapter 6, Lenore (the fourth-grade parrot)
Chapter 7, Nancy (the art room turtle); Nancy (British art room turtle)
Chapter 8, Angel (the fifth-grade corn snake; part 1); Angel (the fifth-grade corn snake, part 2)
Chapter 9, Galileo and Newton (science lab geckos)
Upcoming Events:
March 21 - Reading Month Spirit Day - BRING A STUFFY TO SCHOOL (small stuffed animal)!
March 21 - Popcorn Day
March 21 - School Store
March 21 - March is Reading Month Culminating Activity Kickoff: One Book, One School!
March 26 - Early Release Day
March 28 - One Book, One School Guest Reader for the Final Chapter
March 28 - Reading Month Spirit Day- DRESS LIKE YOUR FAVORITE BOOK CHARACTER!
March 28 - Battle of the Books...GOOD LUCK, BELMONT!
March 31 - Reading Logs DUE - Will we meet our 1,000-hour goal?
April 3 - First Day of Spring Break!
April 14 - Welcome Back from Spring Break!
April 16 - PTO Meeting @ 6:30
April 18 - Popcorn Day
April 18 - Belmont Night at the Whitecaps!
April 23 - Early Release Day
April 24 - VIP Breakfast (last names A-K)
April 25 - VIP Breakfast (last names L-Z)
One book, One school title revealed!
Today students attended a virtual assembly and learned the title for One Book, One School.
8 Class Pets + 1 Squirrel / 1 Dog = CHAOS! is the title and is sure to be a fun read for our students and families.
Please click HERE to learn more about today's big reveal and how students can enter to win prizes as they read!
Spring Testing
When we return from spring break, upper elementary students will be embarking upon the M-STEP. Our fifth graders will be tested in four content areas: English Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies. Our third and fourth graders will be assessed in English Language Arts and Math.
Shortly after our upper elementary students wrap-up M-STEP testing, all of our students will take their end-of-year NWEA-MAP assessments in the areas of reading and math. You can see our testing schedule linked below along with a parent's guide to state assessments. Please know that we do all we can to prepare students for these assessments and will do our best to support them through the testing season. Thank you for all you do at home too.
Belmont Battle of the books Team
We had tremendous participation in Battle of the Books with 25 fifth graders qualifying for the team. To do so, students had to read and provide questions/answers to 10 different books. The books read encompassed a variety of genres and students stretched themselves as readers. During our school Battle of the Books, students competed gracefully. They got questions right and wrong the "right" way. We are lucky to have such wonderful students representing Belmont Elementary and wish the eight students who advanced the best of luck when they compete in the district Battle of the Books on Friday, March 28. Readers become leaders and we have some great ones in this year's fifth grade class!
Odyssey of the mind
This year we had several Belmont students participate in Odyssey of the Mind. Each Odyssey of the Mind team chose a long-term problem to solve. On competition day, they share their team's solution to that long-term problem and also compete in a spontaneous problem. Based on their overall score, teams can advance to State's and from there to World. Congrats to all the students who participated on OM Teams and best of luck to our students, Cole, Audrey, Amelia, and Seth, who have advanced to the World Finals!
Belmont Example of Excellence
Bradley Schaberg is Belmont's Example of Excellence for the 2024/25 school year. Brad was one of several fifth graders nominated by the Belmont staff. Students nominated for the Example of Excellence Award demonstrate strong character traits such as kindness, responsibility, and integrity. Additionally, students nominated are role models for their peers and go above and beyond for their school and community. Brad is a wonderful example for all of our students, and we look forward to him representing Belmont at the school board meeting in June.
To hear about previous Examples of Excellence, please click on the link below. Thank you!
Belmont Elementary School Spelling Bee
We have two fifth graders who have advanced to the Regional Spelling Bee and several more who competed in our school spelling bee. Watching students compete against each other, while also cheering each other on was the best part of this year's spelling bee! We couldn't be prouder of the students who participated and wish both Oliver and Brad the best of luck at the Regional Bee!
Dk/K Information
We had a nice turnout for our DK/K information night on March 18. If you know of a Belmont family that was unable to attend, please share the link below with them. We look forward to welcoming new families next school year and want to do all we can to answer their questions. Thank you!
Belmont DK/K Information
New student Enrollment is open!
New student enrollment for the 2025-2026 school year is now open! We welcome our new class of Rockford Rams! The district encourages families to enroll their future Developmental Kindergarten or Kindergarten student PRIOR to June 1, 2025, to take advantage of an early, required placement screening. Children who turn five years old on or before December 1, 2025, are eligible to enroll for the 2025-2026 school year. Current Developmental Kindergarten students do not require an additional enrollment. Please see the flyer below or visit rockfordschools.org/enrollment/ for more details and enrollment procedures.
Earth Day Poster Contest
Mrs. Dzirbowicz, RPS Outdoor Educator, wants to let students know about the Earth Day Poster Contest. The EGLE (Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy) invites students in kindergarten through 5th grade to enter the annual Michigan Earth Day Poster Contest! Prizes are awarded to 1st and 2nd place winners in each grade. For more information, click HERE. Entries are due by March 31.
Steam wish list - march edition
Relationship skills
Classes at Belmont are heading into their fourth unit in TRAILS with a focus on relationship skills. We are excited to build upon what we have learned about thoughts, feelings, actions, and empathy in previous units.
Please check out the "Spring Edition" of Well-Minded Matters for additional resources and ideas about how to support your child socially and emotionally.
lunchroom Rams
In addition to our Recess Ram program, we are also looking for volunteers to help in the lunchroom. With the weather getting colder, we are hoping to have extra hands in the lunchroom AND in the hallways after lunch with students getting their winter gear on. Thank you in advance for considering! We appreciate our Belmont families more than you know!
Recess Rams
Our students love it when Recess Rams are on the playground! So if you want to build a snowman or just play with some awesome kids, sign up to be Recess Ram!
Volunteers should always check in at the main office and grab a Recess Ram vest before heading to the playground. To sign up for Recess Rams, please click on the link below. THANK YOU for sharing part of your day with us...our students love seeing you at recess!
Drop-Off and Pick-Up
When dropping students off in the morning, please remember the following:
- Doors (main entrance only) open to Belmont students at 8:25. Students dropped off by families in the morning will now enter through the main entrance.
- Vehicles should form a single line along the sidewalk and pull ahead as far as they can (until the sidewalk ends).
- Drivers in this line must stay in their vehicle and continue to pull forward when space allows.
- Students may not exit the vehicle until the vehicle is completely off the main road and at a complete stop.
- Students must walk on the sidewalk to the main entrance.
- Please keep your goodbye routine short and sweet.
- If you have to pull off and wait on the main road, please consider putting your hazard lights on.
- If the driver is exiting the vehicle, they must park in a parking space and walk their child to the sidewalk.
- Another option for morning arrival is to use the lot next to Book Comp across the street and let our crossing guard safely guide students to school at 8:25.
When picking your students up at the end of the day:
- Please form two lanes and pull ahead as far as you can (until the sidewalk ends).
- Please have your child's last name displayed in the window.
- If you need a new yellow sign for your vehicle, please let us know ASAP. These signs help us stay efficient and safe when getting students to the correct vehicle.
- Please avoid large gaps between vehicles. Pull ahead whenever space allows.
- If you choose to exit your vehicle, please park in a parking spot. You should not be exiting your vehicle if you are waiting in one of the two lanes.
- Some families have chosen to pick up their upper elementary students from the Book Comp lot across the road. This is another option and we have a wonderful crossing guard that will help students safely cross the street to you.
Student Absences and attendance letters
Absences MUST be called into the office 616.863.6362. If you need to email an absence, please email both Holly and Katie at hcombs@rockfordschools.org and ktrolla@rockfordschools.org.
Please leave a message on our general voicemail box if you are calling after hours. Whether you are reporting an absence on our voicemail or speaking with Karen or Jamie we need to know the following things:
- Student's name and teacher
- Reason for absence - if it is an illness we need to know the symptoms of the illness - vomiting, coughing, fever, cold, diarrhea, lice - whatever the reason may be
The Kent Intermediate School District (KISD) has given schools within Kent County additional guidance on how to communicate attendance concerns. Their "Strive for Less Than Five" campaign is detailed in the linked video. When absences exceed five and ten days respectively, you may receive a letter. If attendance continues to be a concern, a truancy referral will need to be made and families might need to meet with the school to create an Attendance Improvement Plan.
Belmont...It's wet, muddy, and still chilly!
Please make sure your child is ready for outdoor recess every day. Here's a quick checklist of recommended gear:
- Boots (recommended for wet and muddy field)
- Shoes (recommended for after recess/indoor wear)
- Warm Coat (must have...NO BARE ARMS WHEN IT'S BELOW FREEZING!)
- Hat (recommended, but hoods are good too!)
- Mittens/Gloves (must have...thank goodness for pockets when we lose one!)
Students will go outside for recess as long as the temperature (including wind chill) is above zero. When they do go outside, they need to be dressed appropriately.
Belmont Book Bingo and Art Show
Thank you to all those who volunteered to make the Belmont Book Bingo night and Art Show a success! We enjoyed celebrating our students as artists and readers! Special shoutout to our PTO and to Mrs. Brown, our wonderful art teacher. We are blessed with the best school community!
It's Yearbook Time!
Please use the link and code below to place your yearbook order. These are great keepsakes and students absolutely love looking at them.
To order yearbooks you can go to YBPay.com or click this link: Order Yearbooks | Lifetouch Yearbooks The Belmont Yearbook ID Code is 14576125.
Thank you!
Belmont's Annual Education Report:
Belmont's Annual Education Report for the 23/24 school year is now linked to the Belmont page on the district's new website. You can find the report linked at the top of the black textbox in the bottom right-hand corner. Paper copies are available upon request from our office. Please let Holly or Katie know if you'd like a paper copy of this report. Thank you!
Belmont's Annual Education Report - 23/24
GRASP IS BACK!
GRASP is a correspondence program for students in Kindergarten through 8th grades which helps students maintain reading and math skills while they are on summer break. Enrolled students will receive a packet of materials with a booklet containing nine lessons. It should take your student approximately one hour to complete each weekly lesson. They can complete one lesson a week or work at their own pace, as long as all lessons are submitted before August 8th. The students can mail the lessons to GRASP for scoring and the results will be returned to them, via the email provided. Or, new this year, lessons can be scored with a parent/guardian cell phone instead of mailing them in! Details regarding this process will be sent in May to the email provided on the order. There is also an online version of GRASP for students in 4th through 8th grade and these students will also receive results via the email provided.
Students who complete and submit at least seven lessons with 70% accuracy are awarded a certificate. Those who complete and submit all nine lessons with 70% accuracy will receive a medal! Certificates and medals will be distributed by your student’s school at the beginning of the next school year.
Please order your student’s CURRENT grade level. If there are extenuating circumstances, order the level that is appropriate for your student. The fees for the summer of 2025 are $26 for one subject or $48 for both subjects for each student. You can enroll your student for the book version (grades K-8) or the optional online version (grades 4-8) by completing the registration and payment online.
