General News

“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called…” (Ephesians 4:1) Throughout the year, the teachers will be taking the theme text and weaving into it the six components of the Armour of God.

We are engaged in a spiritual battle— all believers find themselves subject to Satan’s attacks because they are no longer on Satan’s side.  Thus, Paul tells us to depend on God’s strength and to use every piece of God’s armour to resist Satan’s attacks and to stand true to God in the midst of those attacks.  This week we pay attention to The Belt of Truth, the first of the pieces of armour mentioned in Ephesians 6.  Satan fights with lies, and sometimes his lies sound like truth; but only believers have God’s truth, which can defeat Satan’s lies. (NIV Life Application Bible)

Greetings from your school everyone on this more temperate Friday morning, and welcome to Volume 20 of our weekly newsletter, the Chronicle.  Through this newsletter we will keep you informed as to the goings-on at John Calvin School on a regular basis.  If you have anything to contribute to the Chronicle, please make sure you send it to the office on or by the Thursday evening prior to publication.

We have had a wonderful first week.  After the heat wave, and the heat day on Wednesday, the Lord blessed us with cooler weather so we could go about our work in more comfortable conditions.  We pray for His blessing and guidance as we continue with our learning and teaching at John Calvin School for the next 10 months or so.  We look forward to working with you, parents, as we assist in the nurture of your children, helping develop in them the talents freely and graciously given by God, to the end that they may serve Him in a life of responsible, Christian stewardship.

At the opening assembly, we could sing praises to the Lord, reflect on this year’s theme text and our calling to be prophets, priests and kings who must follow our Chief Prophet, Priest and King; and listen to words of encouragement and support from the board chairman as he shared with us the importance of having vision using the story of Helen Keller and her teacher, Anne Sullivan. (The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision.)  It was great to get together with a large number of parents, grandparents, and other interested members of the supporting community and usher in a new school year.

During the assembly, we welcomed the new kindergarten students (in absentia) and the new students in other grades (Cooper Porter in Grade 1A; John Bosscher in Grade 1B; Parker Kelly in Grade 5B; Ava Pierotti in Grade 6A and Special Needs; and Paige Kelly in Grade 8A.  Five new teachers/support staff— Miss Linde (Special Needs EA, Mrs. VanEs (Grade 1B), Miss Boersema (Grade 2B), Mrs. Kelly (Grade 5A), and Mrs. E. Holtvlüwer (Grade 8A- VP relief) were also introduced.  Once all was said and done, the students and their teachers headed back to their respective classrooms to get the school year underway.

This year, along with the rest of the Reformed Christians around the world, we are celebrating the 400th anniversary of the Synod of Dort which, amongst other items on its agenda, produced the third of our confessions, the Canons of Dort.  This event will be the focus of Mrs. deVisser’s Reformation Day assembly on October 31, D.V.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Br. P. Oosterhoff (who resided at Deerpark) who passed away earlier this week and whose funeral was yesterday.  May our God of all comfort surround them with his love and grace.  Two of his great-grandchildren attend John Calvin School.

We congratulate William and Deanna VandenOever with the birth of their son Elias William, who is a brother to Ezra in KB, Aubrey in 2B, and Liam in 3A; and Garret and Leanna VanIperen with the birth of their son, Quinton George (I like the name!), who is a brother to Joshua in 2A and Mark in KB.  All is well with the moms, babies, and the rest of the respective families too.  (Our children all are gifts of God, our sons and daughters his reward— each one a blessing from the LORD, as heritage on us bestowed.”  Psalm 127:3, BoP)  May our Heavenly Father provide the parents with all they need as they raise Elias and Quintan, and the rest of their children in the fear of His Name.

A few items for your attention:

*Today, Grade 5 was able to spend the morning at the West Lincoln Fair.  Their main purpose in attending was to be in the audience when five Grades 4&5 students participated in the Spelling Bee hosted by the Fair.  We wish Taylor VanderHoeven (Grade 4), Logan Tenhage (Grade 4), Teagen DeBoer (Grade 5), Rebekah Stel (Grade 5), and Morgan DeKlerk (Grade 5) all the best at the Spelling Bee.  While there, the students were also able to take in some of the displays and activities of the fair.

*Parents and grandparents are reminded that there is no parking by the kitchen and the storage room during the day.  Once again, we request that when you come to school to pick-up or drop off your child(ren) that you refrain from parking inside the “pyloned off” area, particularly during recess times and at the end of the day.  There is an additional exit on the north side of the school (Special Needs wing) from where parents can pick-up their children.  Thank you for your cooperation.

*Also with respect to drop-offs and pick-ups, we remind parents to come to the main office so that office staff can inform the classroom teacher via intercom of a pick-up or drop-off, and the parent can then proceed to pick-up her child(ren) or bring him to his classroom (more so in the case of younger children).  We also thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

*The chocolate bars for the annual chocolate bar sale arrived yesterday and will be going home today with participating students.  All students from Grades 4-8 are encouraged to participate so that the work is shared as well as the profits.  The profits are placed in the Student Fund to support the costs of class trips and such items of direct benefit to the students.  If everyone sells at least one box, we will be a long way to our goal.  The cost of the individual bar/box is the same as last year, $3.00.  Thus, those students who sell an entire box need to bring in $90.00 to the school.

*The first few weeks of the fall season in the athletics department are devoted to soccer and the cross-country run.  Training has begun for soccer and will begin soon for cross-country.  John Calvin School is once again hosting the soccer tournament at the school and the West Lincoln Leisureplex.  The tournament is scheduled for Saturday, September 29th.  The cross-country runners will be participating in the annual Guido de Bres invitational meet scheduled for Friday, October 5th.  We thank the coaches (teachers and parents) for giving their time to get the athletes ready for these events.

*School Teams Procedure:  Included with today’s Chronicle is the JCS School Teams Procedure.  It consists of a cover letter and the sport teams procedure.  Please add it to the policy, procedure and protocol section of your parent handbook, even though it pertains primarily to parents with students in the older grades.  Parents with students in Grades 7&8 have already received the procedure in anticipation of try-outs for the JCS soccer teams.

*Later this month, a bus evacuation drill and review of bus expectations will be held with all the students.  Stay tuned for when that will be.  At this time, I would ask that parents also remind their children of the expectations that are listed in the Parent Handbook.  Bus behaviour needs regular monitoring and, if a problem arises, it would be appreciated if you let the transportation committee or the principal know about it.  We can only address those situations that we are made aware of.

Reminders:

*Please note that the volunteer/class mom forms must be returned to the school on or by next week Friday, September 14.

*If your child has music lessons in the school or in the church, please ensure that they are aware of when the lesson takes place.  Even though they may have written a permanent note on the board, it is not the teacher’s responsibility to remind the student of their lesson.

*Please have the Emergency Medical Treatment form and any other forms returned to the school by Monday.  The school has purchased student accident insurance which covers the students only on school days and school hours.  This does not include any other school or Saturday events.  We strongly encourage you, if you do not already have insurance, to check out the flyer and the FAQ`s that you received from Reliable Life and pay a small amount to get 24/7, 365 day coverage.

*We would like to remind parents that if they have any questions or concerns about the procedures and routines of the school to please contact the school either by telephone or by email as opposed to discussing questions and concerns via other means of communication, e.g. social media.  In this way, we can keep each other better informed about what is happening in and around the school.

*All medication, e.g. puffers, epi-pens, needs to be properly labelled.  For those students who require oral prescription medication, Tylenol or Aspirin, the school has a form that parents will need to fill out so that the medication can be administered by the classroom teacher.

*John Calvin School is planning a Fall Food Drive for West Lincoln Community Care from September 17 to October 5.

*Picture Day is scheduled for Tuesday, September 18.

*The first Fire Drill is planned for Wednesday, September 19.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone and may the Lord grant you a blessed Sunday.  We hope to touch base again next week.      G. Hofsink

Calling Four More Library Volunteers:  Because of changes we are planning to the Library component of our Language Arts program, we will be in need of 4 additional Library volunteers.   We would like to have two volunteers in the library per library class; one to sign out books and the other to help the children locate books.  Please note that the job description has changed from what was previously advertised in the June Chronicle and the August News and Views.  If you are interested in becoming involved with the revamped Library program or if you have any questions, please give the school a call and/or speak to one of the committee members (Mrs. I. deVisser, Miss P. VanderZwaag, Mrs. D. Ravensbergen, Mrs. A. Tenhage or Mr. G. Hofsink)

Classroom News

Kindergarten

Hello Everybody! This week has been a busy yet very exciting week for kindergarten. For starters KA missed their first day of school due to a heat day, however Thursday was a lovely first day for them. School is brand a new concept for most of the children, therefore during this first week we are going over a lot routines. In Bible this week, we are learning about Gods awesome creation. The children loved talking about the sun, moon and the starts and of course all of the different animals that walk on the earth and swim in the sea. During math this week we discussed top, middle, and bottom. This is a fairly easy concept for most children to grab and they were all excited to learn about it! In language we are learning to recognize our names as well as learning the letter “C”. At school we teach the hard C sound, if you could re-enforce this at home that would be very helpful. Our memory work this week is “The Battle Belongs to the Lord” as well as Ephesians 4:1. I hope you all have a blessed weekend!

Grade 1

It has been a very warm, but short first week of school.  The students are settling into the routines in Grade One.  A lot of the forms have been returned to school already.  If you have not filled them in please do so asap.  Thanks.  Each Friday, one student will be bringing home a Star of the Week sheet to fill in.  Please help them fill it in and return to school by Monday. Please check your child’s newsletter with further information about this.  We have started the Reading A to Z program this week and are enjoying the stories. The microwave schedule is also in the newsletter.  Have a good weekend and a blessed Sunday.  JvB/JVE

Memory Work for Friday, Sept. 14 -Ps. 10:1;  Ephesians 4:1

Spelling words: a, and, of, the, into

Grade 2

Hello! What a start we have had with a heat day on our second scheduled day! The students (and teachers!) have settled into some routines, and we are looking forward to a great year! You will soon be receiving a letter that gives more information on our math fact program. Please look for this letter to come today or Monday. We will have a Bible test on Thursday of next week. We will prepare for this in class, but will also send home the duotangs for those who would like to prepare further at home. Please remember to send the duotangs back to school the next day. Please remember to send in a box of Kleenex if you haven’t already done so. As well, your child should have a sharpener to keep at their desk. We ask for your prayers as we spend this year learning more about our Lord and about this world He created! BB/RG

Memory work: Hymn 19:3

Spelling words: way, black, very, off, them

Bible test: Thursday

Grade 3

Greetings from grade three and their teachers Miss B. and Mrs. Poort! Our covenant God has been good to us and protected us this summer.  I hope you all had time to enjoy His creation. Mr. Hofsink lead us in the first assembly on Tuesday and welcomed us all back! He spoke briefly of our school text, Ephesians 4:1 and the armor of God, encouraging us in our fight against sin and reassuring us that the battle belongs to the LORD. Grade three is settling into their new routines nicely.  We heard lots of exciting summer stories. We can’t wait to read their journals for the full details! Just a heads that we are having a pioneer dress up day later in October (DV).   If you need ideas for costumes, please let us know. In our Bible classes we are beginning with the Genesis stories. The LORD establishes a covenant with Adam and Eve and also with us…how thankful we must be! Congratulations to Liam VandenOever with a baby boy.   We thank the Lord for this gift of life. That’s it for now. Have a blessed weekend. J.B./M.P.

Hymn 63:4; School Theme Text:  Ephesians 4:1

Words:  have, into, off, said

Gym clothes on Monday and Thursday

Library on Tuesday; Mission $ on Friday

Grade 4

We hope that the Grade 4 class enjoyed their first week of school!  As teachers, we certainly did! Here is a look at next week!  Friday, September 14, we have a Bible Test on Lesson 1-7 in our Samuel unit!

Spelling Words (Due Sept. 14): hop, mud, there, hunt, frog, buzz, their, rocks, such, swam, clock, shop, bug, cup

Memory Work: Psalm 122:1 (Sept. 14) Psalm 66:1 (Sept. 21) Text: Psalm 32:1,2 (Sept. 21)

Grade 5

It has been a short first week of school, but also a very good first week. As teachers, we’ve enjoyed getting to know our classes so far. Next week we will be diving further into the units we have already started, and we are excited to be able to learn more about Ancient Rome, Jesus’ early life, and much more. Because this week was a short week, we had very little time to sing our first memory work at school, so Psalm 16:1 will be due for Tuesday, Sep. 11. At the time of writing, we have not yet gone to the West Lincoln Fair, but by the time you read this, we will have competed in the Spelling Bee at the fair. We will write more about that next week. 🙂 Have a wonderful weekend and a blessed Sunday. RK/KV

Memory Work (Sep. 14): Ps. 22:1; Text: Ephesians 4:1

Devotions:

5A – M. RaeAnna, Tu. Landon, W. Teagan, Th. Merrit, F. Hannah

5B – M. Gabrielle, Tu. Mya, W. Isaac, Th. Kelty, F. Morgan

Grade 6

We are excited to start another school year teaching God’s covenant children. Despite the very warm classroom the students are beginning to learn some of the routines. We are pleased to have Ava join us and are trying to make her feel welcome. In our unit on flight we hope to understand that God’s sustaining power in His orderly creation makes flight possible. The students are reminded to bring in leaves and seeds for next week. We have made a start with learning our vocab words. The students will have to know how to spell their words, know the meanings, and be able to use their words in a sentence to show the meaning. Their first quiz is next week and the list of words and meanings are glued in their agendas. Have a blessed weekend. IdV/CVA

Grade 7A

All in all it was a good start to the year this past week. Students familiarized themselves with the new schedule, some new subjects and new teachers. Next week Friday there will be a Wordlist Two vocabulary quiz. Students have chosen their Independent Study topic and are beginning to research. To help with that research we visited the St. Catharines Public Library Central Branch and learned how to use a library. Ask your child what their topic area is. Enjoy your weekend.

Grade 7B

It has been a wonderful start to Grade 7B this week! We had a great trip to the Library where we could begin learning how to research and use the resources that are available, including Librarians, online databases, and good old fashioned books! It was a good introduction to our Independent Study projects. In Bible History, we will be starting with looking at the book of Samuel and how the LORD provides a prophet in times of trouble. In Language Arts, we have begun with Public Speaking, evaluating our present speaking ability and moving forward into developing our public speaking skills. Devotions – Kiera D. Have a great weekend!

Grade 8A

It certainly was an interesting way to begin the year. Here we are all preparing and bracing ourselves for the coming routines, new grades, BIG changes and…heat day. Nevertheless it was a great first week of school. For now the heat has subsided and cooler temperatures have brought much relief to the classroom. This week our discussion has been centered around routines, starting on the right foot and being servant leaders in the school. We also talked about the importance of working together as a unit, a body of Christ and serving each other always. Enjoy a restful and blessed weekend. Cheers, Mr. J

Grade 8B

We’ve made a great start in Grade 8B!

Memory work – Psalm 103:5,7

Devotions – Avery, Denver, Natasha, Aidan, Lucas