Wow! 5th grade was awesome! As we were preparing to move back to the USA, I was really concerned about returning to Texas public schools after spending 1st-4th grade in Canada. The curriculums differed dramatically and school days were managed in completely different ways. I worried about her grades, whether she would be behind, and how she would adjust to time management. Turns out it was all unwarranted. She jumped right in with both feet and really flourished this year!
Of course, I've already covered that she joined the choir, but she was also admitted into the Groves Rangers. Rangers is a leadership development program that students were selected to based on their responses to written essay questions describing their views on leadership, responsibility, and community involvement. While school hours were from 8 am until 3:30 pm, Rangers were required to be on duty at 7:20 am and stay until 4:15 pm. The kids were responsible for an array of different duties. They would help with set up and take down at all school functions, they assisted in car rider drop-off and pick-up, they helped the younger kids in the cafeteria during breakfast, they managed the school's recycle program, they raised and lowered the flags each day, and they assisted teachers with special requests. She loved the program and it really helped instill a stronger understanding of responsibility and community service.
One of the reasons we had such an awesome year is because we had such an awesome teacher! Mrs. Amanda Kopp and our team of 5th grade teachers worked so hard to make sure these kids had a year to remember. There were so many special events throughout the year. We had Colonial Day, where the kids dressed in pioneer clothes, made wax candles, sewed satchels, and churned butter. We had Spy Day where the kids all dressed in black like secret agents, Groves Olympics where Brenna was chosen to carry the flag for 5th grade, CSI Day where kids solved science mysteries, Star Wars Day where they made there own light sabers, Karaoke Fridays where the whole school would break out into song and dance during lunch in the cafeteria, Career Day where Brenna chose to be a chemical engineer, Field Day, Book Tastings, a Snow Day, Kickball Tournaments, Manner's Banquet, and so many others. It was a jammed packed year.
The kids also got a very personal lesson on how hard work pays off. Our teach was nominated as Groves Elementary Teacher of the Year. She continued on through written essay submissions and interviews to be selected as Humble ISD Teacher of the Year and she won a new car! I had the opportunity to get to know Mrs. Kopp well throughout the school year and saw first hand the work and effort she poured into these kids. The honor was very well deserved and we were so blessed to have Mrs. Kopp as our teacher!
Also, Brenna really shined in her studies. Not only did she pass all of her STARR tests, but she mastered Reading and Science scoring in the 99th percentile. She made all A's for the year and received the "All A Honor Roll" award during the year end awards ceremony. She also received the awards for "Out of the Box" thinker and "Author's Eye" insightful reader as voted on by her peers. Finally, our school focused on five primary mindsets to instill during the year. The kids began every day with the phrase "We are Reflective. We are Innovative. We are Connected. We are Intentional. We are Global. We are Groves!" The staff and principal selected one boy and one girl that most represented each of these characteristics and Brenna was presented the award for "Innovative Mindset" We are so very proud of all her hard work and her accomplishments this year!
Our school functions on a strong social media platform, with the idea to teach kids the impacts and responsibility of using social media correctly. Thanks to this, the parents got glimpses into the classroom daily. I didn't take a lot of school photos this years, but it didn't matter because nearly all the pictures below were curtesy of our teacher!
