3/31: Early Release day
- 2:30 - 2:45 is for students with the last name A - I
- 2:45 - 3:00 is for students with the last name J - Z
4/1: Portfolio Day, alternative schedule, see details below
4/2 - 4/10: Spring Break, No School
4/14: MStep testing window for 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students opens
4/14: Early Release day
- 2:30 - 2:45 is for students with the last name A - I
- 2:45 - 3:00 is for students with the last name J - Z
4/15: Community Meeting, 3rd - 5th feat. TBD, 8:30 - 8:45 AM
4/16: Community Meeting, K - 2nd feat. TBD, 8:30 - 8:45 AM
4/18: GRCDC Spring Outdoor Clean Up, 1:00 - 3:00 PM
5/2: GRCDC Family Dance, 1:00 - 3:00 PM
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Portfolio Day, Wednesday, April 1st:
We are looking forward to having our students and families in the building to honor the children and their learning on Wednesday, April 1st. The schedule for the 30 minute session for each class is below. If you need to make changes to the schedule on or after 3/30, please contact your child's teacher or the school office.
This event is for parents and students to attend together. There is no other academic instruction happening outside of the portfolio session.
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No new questions this week. If you have thought of any new questions, please add below!
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Behind every smooth school day are substitute teachers and paraprofessionals whose dedication, flexibility, and compassion make it possible for students and classrooms to flourish- even when a staff member has to be out! |
Lora Sieg-Chamberlain, known to students as Miss Lora, brings eight years of experience in education, including volunteer work, to the classroom. She has worked with students of all ages, but has spent the most time with preschoolers, where curiosity and discovery are part of every day.
Miss Lora loves working with elementary students because of their openness, curiosity, and resilience. While she doesn’t have a favorite grade level, she enjoys the unique energy each classroom brings and finds joy in connecting with every group of students.
Her strengths include organization and building strong relationships. She approaches each assignment with an open mind and open heart, seeing it as a chance for both her and the students to learn together. She believes learning is a shared experience, not a one-way process.
Miss Lora works to create a safe and supportive environment by listening to students and reminding them that mistakes are okay. She encourages them to do their best without fear of judgment, helping them feel confident and valued.
Students also enjoy learning that she is a swim instructor, which is a fun way she connects with them outside of academics.
She is excited to be part of GRCDC because of its strong sense of community. Above all, Miss Lora believes it’s important for every child to feel safe, valued, and accepted for who they are.
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2026 - 2027 School Year Calendar Key Dates:
- Back to School Night (required for all students), Thursday, August 20th, 4:00 - 7:00, you will sign up for a time slot for this event at a later date
- First Day of School, Monday, August 24th
- No School, Labor Day Break, September 4th - September 7th
- No School, Thanksgiving Break, November 25th - November 27th
- No School, Winter Break, December 19th - January 3rd
- No School, Spring Break, Thursday, April 1st – Friday, April 9th
- NOTE: This is not a finalized calendar. Other dates will be added for events such as parent teacher conferences, portfolio day, and professional development days. However, the major holiday breaks are confirmed as days off from school. Please use these dates to plan family vacations and avoid taking days off for reasons other than illness on days school is in session.
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Lost and Found Weekly Post: Please look through the Lost and Found when you attend the portfolio session. It can be found on the main floor around the corner from the main office. |
Spring Flower Fundraiser
Brighten up your space this spring with beautiful flowers from Rinzema Greenhouse. A portion of the proceeds will support this year's Family Dance as well as continued support of classroom project work! Orders due Wednesday April 15. Pickup on Saturday May 2 at the Family Dance. Order today at https://givebutter.com/spring-2026-flower-sale-ffw4vk
Book Swap at Portfolio Day
The Book Swap is back! Find the book swap carts near the office on Portfolio Day. Bring a book, take a book! Don’t have a book? Take a book anyway! Book-themed stickers will be available for purchase for $1; payment through Give Butter.
What Exactly Do 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 - mums, wreaths, spring flowers - fund the bulk of our large events like Fall Fest, Winter Wonderland, Mosaic of our Stories, 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.
Our Narwhal Nation merch sale was quite successful! This extra money for Family Team has bolstered the general fund and will set us up nicely for next school year.
This year we are funding Connected by Curiosity project work by contributing to admission and transportation costs for field trips and other experiences. We're also working to re-establish classroom mini grants for teachers.
How can you help? Aside from monetary donations, you can get 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. We need help with requesting donations from community organizations and businesses. If you have irregular pockets of time, this could be an opportunity for you!
- Help plan special events like Fall Fest, Winter Wonderland, Mosaic of Our Stories, and Family Dance.
- 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.
Mosaic of Our Stories - Art Installation
Instructions were sent home in the Friday folder for your narwhal to create a hand to be included in the Mosaic of Our Stories art installation in the front entryway of the school. We'd love as close to 100% participation as possible. Please return the hand back to your classroom teacher as soon as you are able.
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Upcoming Events
- Book Swap at Portfolio Day - Wednesday April 1
- Spring Clean Up - Saturday April 18, 1pm - 3pm
- Family Dance - Saturday May 2, 1pm - 3pm
Family Team Meetings
- The next Family Team meeting is Thursday April 16 after the Community Meeting.
- Dates for the year are: May 14
Find Family Team on ParentSquare!
The GRCDC Narwhals - Families of Current Students Facebook group has been archived, so stay up to date through the Family Team GRCDC Narwhals Group on ParentSquare.
Let's Connect
We want to hear from you! If you have an idea, question, or suggestion for the Family Team email us at grcdcfamilyteam@gmail.com. |
Upcoming After School Club meetings:
3/31 - GOTR
4/14: GOTR
4/15: Girl Scouts
4/16: GOTR
- Girl Scout Troop 9140 would like to extend a big thank you to all the families in our Narwhal community for their incredible support during this year’s cookie season! Whether you purchased one box, many boxes, or chose to make a donation, we truly appreciate your generosity. Your support has helped our troop to reach its goals for future adventures, including camping, horseback riding, and rock climbing.
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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.
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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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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
- 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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