As the school year winds down, students at St. Robert are riding high as ever. Throughout every grade level, kids and teachers alike hold their breath until the final bell of the school year rings in June. Dempsey, a graduating member of the 8th grade class, says that “As sad as I am to leave St. Robert after ten years, I am excited to move on to high school.” Perspectives about the highs and lows vary from grade to grade as students reflect on the school year that is now coming to a close. 

Down in first grade, Olive has a very positive outlook on the year. The first grader thought that the year went very well, and she learned about a lot of new things. One thing in particular Olive was enthusiastic about was her writing. She has composed multiple stories this year, but her most notable piece was called “The Cake.” This story is about kids trying to make a cake, as the title states. Olive was also very fond of recess where she played soccer with her friends. One goal Olive would like to accomplish next year is her improving her writing and fluency. 

Stepping up into 2nd grade, Zachary (Or Zach) has also had a good school year. While very timid in the interview, Zach has felt that he has accomplished some great things with Mrs. Birkel. He says that he has improved on his math skills, specifically fact families and addition with two factors. Zach shared very fond comments about his teacher Mrs. Birkel, claiming she was “Very nice and helped me get my work done a lot easier.” Teachers like her are one of the main reasons St. Robert is such a loving school. Zach has also accomplished some ELA goals. He has composed many articles and is very happy with the way they turned out.

Moving into the middle of the school, Julian and Juliet, both 3rd graders, have interesting insight on the school year. Julian claims, “I have made a lot of progress throughout the Trimesters this year.” In the ELA, Julian wanted to read more chapter books this year, and he accomplished this goal as he has been reading the I Survived Series. Moreover, Julian has been learning a lot about cursive. Julian had to earn his cursive certification this past year, which is a very prestigious award for 3rd graders. Julian had to correctly write cursive letters in an album to earn his certificate. 

The other second 3rd grader, Juliet, has also had a great year. Not only has she earned her cursive certificate alongside Julian, but she has also accomplished her individual goal. Juliet’s goal was to beat her previous iReady score, which she did beat recently. Juliet was also very pleased with 3rd grade Social Studies class. Juliet and her fellow third graders learned about American history this year, and she expressed fondness for the unit on immigrating. 

Jumping into 4th grade, Henry is in Mrs. Sehkon’s  homeroom. Like many other grade counterparts, Henry learned a lot in math. This year it was long division and multiplication. Many students like Henry enjoy math because even though it is challenging, math is also very rewarding. Henry enjoyed either playing kickball or basketball with friends at recess and made many new friends throughout the year. Now one ELA side of things, Henry hopes to improve his writing skills in 5th grade. 

Reaching the end of elementary school, Nina,  a 5th grader in Mrs. Reitmans class, reflected on her work this year. Her year was very scattered as Nina accomplished many things in many different subjects. She thought she learned a lot of information and was very pleased with Mrs. Reitman’s teaching style. She had two favorite subjects: Math and Religion. She enjoyed learning new things in math and loved learning about God and how religion has become so profound. Currently, Nina is working on a science experiment involving acids. 

Cruising into middle school, Katherine shared about her first year with the “big kids.” Katherine is a 6th grader in Ms. DeLapp’s homeroom. She thought the school year went well. While COVID was still around, she thought that St. Robert did a good job of keeping things open. Katherine’s favorite subject this year was social studies as she thoroughly enjoyed the ancient studies with Ms. Matthews. Throughout the year, the 6th grade class learned about Egypt, Greece, Rome and more. Finally, Katherine’s favorite recess game was Ms. Zehren’s new 9-square. She said it was a fun and hectic iteration of the original 4-square.

7th grade had been an interesting year. While many new concepts were taught, students were able to deepen their knowledge on previously learned skills. Oliver, a 7th grader in Mr. Wilson’s homeroom thinks that 7th grade has gone by “Very fast!” Oliver was in the school play and in the after school mathematics club. Oliver was very happy with his math scores and was very happy with Mr. Wilson. Oliver accomplished his goal of accomplishing his work on time, and not letting assignments pile up. 

Moving into the oldest grade, Dempsey is an aspiring High school student. Dempsey was very happy with the school year, especially the re-opening of activities previously shut down by COVID. Dempseys Literature class was a highlight for her, as she was able to read one of her favorite books, To Kill A Mockingbird. Finally, Dempsey would like to grow in her faith when she moves onto high school.

This year was packed. Many new teachers, students and customs were all adopted by the school. While there were a fair share of hardships, students and teachers at St. Robert was able to weather the storm and push through. As new 8th graders roll in, and say goodbye to some teachers, next year is sure to have some surprises in store.