General News

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Greetings readership as we wrap-up another week, albeit an abbreviated one with the impromptu days off, of learning and teaching at JCS.  This past week was a first for me and, I am pretty sure, for everyone else on staff; not just one snow day but two this early in November. For me, the previous record was November 23 when I was principal at Covenant Christian School. We thank the Lord for His blessing and guidance on our work throughout the past week.  It was good to get together as teachers and parents on Tuesday and Thursday evenings to discuss the progress of students at the mid-point of the first semester. It was good to speak about matters that may help us to teach your son or daughter more effectively, and for you, as parents, to support the teachers on the home front.  Please feel free to touch base with your child(ren)’s teacher any time should you have a question or concern about their progress.  Teachers’ emails are published every other month on the back of the front page of News and Views. May our Heavenly Father continue to bless this important communication between home and school as together we instruct His covenant children in the fear of His Name. We thank the Lord for His many blessings during the first half of the first semester and we pray that He will continue to provide for the needs of the students, staff, and parents for the remainder of the term.

Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with all who need the Lord in a special way, whether they are grieving the recent death of a loved one, coping with serious illness or are dealing with difficult family circumstances. In particular we think of our colleague, Mrs. vanBrederode and her extended family with the recent passing of Fred. We are thankful that Mrs. Brandy Stieva could return home earlier this week. At this time, there doesn’t seem to be any deficit from the surgery. We thank the Lord for this blessing. May our Heavenly Father continue to surround her and her family with His love and care.

                Unfortunately, because of the two snow days, we did not have a Remembrance Day assembly or participate in the Remembrance Day service at the Smithville cenotaph.  However, some staff, students, and parents did attend the ceremony inside the Smithville Legion hall on Monday. One of our students, Isaac,  was presented with a two pins and a recognition award for his entry in the Legion’s poster contest. The Smithville Legion is planning to appeal to Legion Canada to include a special needs category for next year’s contest.

                 We had an excellent presentation by Mr. Tim Barnett on Wednesday afternoon. He spoke to the students in Grades 5-8 about, The Heavens Declare the Glory of God. There were quite a few Wow! and Amazing! moments during his talk; just ask the students.

                 We hope to see you all at some point and time at Winterfest tomorrow. The gym opens for breakfast and flowers at 7:30 a.m., and the rest of the rooms and activities open at 9:00 a.m.  We are looking forward to a great event.  The weather looks good for Saturday albeit a bit chilly; a mixture of sun and cloud with a high of -2º C .  Once again we thank everyone involved in Winterfest for making the event happen.  Your hard work is much appreciated.

A few items for your attention:

*Three weeks of practicum are completed for Miss Ravensbergen, Miss Jongbloed, and Miss Petter.  We trust that their practice teaching sessions at John Calvin School were a positive and beneficial experience. We wish the ladies all the best and the Lord’s blessing as they return to the CCRTC for regular instruction and preparation for exams.

*Pretty much all the money from the Anchor Work Days has been brought in.  I think only one or two students still need to bring in money and then the fundraiser is over for another year.  We extend a big thank you to all those in our community who “hired” the students to work for them.

*Volleyball practices for all three teams continue after school every Monday and Thursday (except for next week Thursday because of the Grades 7&8 all day field trip to the ROM and the AGO) for the next two weeks leading up to the Guido De Bres Invitational Volleyball Tournament scheduled for November 29.  The tournament is scheduled to take place at the Arcelor-Mittal Dofasco Center in Stoney Creek.  A schedule for the day will be sent our way in the near future.

*The third skating session at the Smithville arena is scheduled for Wednesday, November 20.  Grade 5 will skate from 12:15-1:15, and Grades KB and 1B will skate from 1:15-2:15.  In the interest of safety and concussion prevention, students in Grades K-4 must wear helmets when on the ice.  They can be either hockey helmets or bicycle helmets.  Students in Grades 5-8 are encouraged to wear them.  Those playing hockey must wear them.

*Next week Friday, November 22 is a PD Day for both John Calvin School and Guido De Bres Christian high school.  Students can enjoy a long weekend while the teachers of JCS will be busy with professional development coming out of the workshops they attended at the Teachers’ Convention.

*The Fall Membership Meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, November 27.  The plan is to place the membership packages in church mailboxes this coming Sunday.

Reminders:

*The fourth skating session at the Smithville arena is scheduled for Wednesday, November 27.  Grade 7 will skate from 12:15-1:15, and Grades KA and 1A will skate from 1:15-2:15.  In the interest of safety and concussion prevention, students in Grades K-4 must wear helmets when on the ice.  They can be either hockey helmets or bicycle helmets.  Students in Grades 5-8 are encouraged to wear them.  Those playing hockey must wear them.

*Grade KA is scheduled to visit Anchor Home on Wednesday, November 27.

*Grade 5A is scheduled to visit Kilean Lodge on Thursday, November 28.

*Grade 1B is scheduled to visit Shalom Manor on Friday, November 29.

Enjoy your Winterfest Saturday and have a blessed day of worship.  We’ll be in touch again next week Thursday, D.V.

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Classroom News

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Kindergarten

It was an unexpected short week with the snow days!  The students have loved playing in the snow at recess time. We have started our zipper club and the children are very eager to demonstrate this skill.  Please allow your child to show you how well they can do their zipper.  We continue to learn about the life of Joseph in our Bible stories.  Next week we will see how the Lord fulfills his promises to Joseph when Joseph is freed from prison. On Wednesday, KB will be going skating in the afternoon.  Parents, please let me know if you are going to be there with your child to help them skate or tie their skates. The more parent volunteers the better!  I also will be posting on SeeSaw the songs that we are learning for the Christmas concert. Please try to practice these songs at home as well. Hope you all have a great weekend and perhaps I’ll even see you at Winterfest on Saturday!

Grade 1

We have come to the end of a very short week.  We are all enjoying playing in the snow.  Please label all your child’s outdoor clothing.  An extra pair of mitts and socks in their bags would be greatly appreciated.  If you have any extra plastic bags at home to spare we would love to take them off your hands.  On Thursday we wrapped up our Math unit with a test.  In our new unit we will be dealing with time and money.  Grade 1B will be skating this week Wednesday @ 1:15 – 2:15.  All children must wear helmets-hockey or bike. We will be taking a bus from the school (no loonie required).  If parents would like to come along, please meet us at the arena shortly after 1 to help tie skates.  Thanks. We look forward to seeing you at the Winterfest tomorrow.  Have a  blessed Sunday.

Memory Work for Thursday, Nov. 21: Hy. 66:1; Isaiah 9:2

Grade 2

We’ve had a very short week, but it’s been busy! The students are enjoying all the snow at school; eager to get out and play at recess. We also had a wonderful time skating on Wednesday.  Thank you so much to all the parents and grandparents who come out and gave us an extra set of hands! As teachers we were also quite busy this week with parent/teacher interviews.  We appreciated speaking with you all about your child’s progress! Hopefully you also found it to be a fruitful evening. In math,  we wrapped up our Geometry unit and look forward to learning more about place value in the next few weeks. We also hope to complete our Science unit on Investigating Health and Safety.  We’re very excited to be going on a first-ever trip with this unit! On Wednesday,  we will be going to The Grand Oak in Vineland, where Chef Jan-Willem will be speaking to the students further about what we have learned. If you’ve ever been there,  you’ll know we’re certainly in for a treat! Grade 2A must say farewell to Miss Ravensbergen.  We’ve enjoyed having her in our classroom, and certainly hope that it was a rewarding experience for her. May God bless her in all her further studies! That’s all for now. We’re looking forward to seeing many of you tomorrow at Winterfest! BV/RG

Memory Work: Hymn 1

Spelling words: won, one, who, thing, had

Science Test: Thursday

Grade 3

It was nice to enjoy our first two snow days! We are enjoying the stories connected to our Church History unit about the communion of saints. A quiz will be coming. In Spelling we are focusing on the words their, there and they’re. Practise these words in context as well. Multiplication facts are introduced. Practise the flashcards daily! In Language Arts we are working on gathering information for our penguin poster. We have learned quite a bit about these creatures. We are in awe of how God has created the circulatory system. A quiz is coming up. Thank you to all who came out to tie, watch, and/or skate with us. Thank you as well for coming out and meet with us to speak encouraging words at parent-teacher conferences. We continue to pray God will bless you in raising your children in the fear of His name at home, and our assisting here at school. We wish you a blessed weekend.

Memory work: Come Thou Long Expected Jesus

Spelling words: they’re, there, their, went, when

P.E. clothes on Tuesday and Friday, Library on Thursday, Mission $$$$ on Friday

Grade 4

Next week is another shortened week. This means memory work is due Thursday, not Friday (Psalm 60:1). Students should know their Bible memory Isaiah 9: 6 & 7 by the end of the month. Spelling Lesson 9 was delayed due to snow days (art, master, smart, sisters, bar, finger, bark, paper, part, barrel, sand, says, matter, because — 4B extra words: temporary, participant)

Tues: 4A/4B Math Test

Wed: 4A Bible Test Lessons 1-10

Thurs: Spelling Lesson 9 Test, Memory Work

Next Memory Work is Psalm 5:1, Isaiah 9: 6&7

Grade 5

We have completed our Social Studies unit on Ancient Rome and have begun a Science unit about nutrition where we learn about the foods we eat to keep our God-given bodies healthy!  Bible lessons continue about Jesus’ ministry on earth. Be prepared for a test on Thursday. Skating will happen on Wednesday; please bring your helmets if you plan to play hockey.

Devotions for 5A: M. Morgan S., Tu. Meghan, W. Madden, Th. Maraya.  And for 5B: M. Logan, Tu. Taiya, W. Jenna, Th. Camrynne.  Hope to see you all at Winterfest!  RK/KVL               

Grade 6

The students are enjoying the snow. Please make sure that they have extra socks, gloves, and plastic bags. We hope that the discussions during the interviews to discuss your child’s progress were beneficial. May the LORD continue to strengthen teachers and parents to raise His covenant children in His name. Have a blessed weekend. AF/CV

Grade 7A

Recently in Independent Study we wrapped up our “author profile”. Next we learned what makes a good documentary and compared the good with the bad. Students will now have to find a documentary on their topic. Please ask your child how they plan on doing this; students are to forward the doc link to me at   theodore.witten@johncalvinschool.com From fractions and decimals we’ll move on to plane geometry in Math; a nice change. In Church History, Dr. Luther will travel to Worms under the Emperor’s protection; what will happen when the time of safe conduct ends? In connection with our trip to the ROM and AGO next week Wednesday, we reviewed proper etiquette in museums and galleries. Enjoy your weekend.

Grade 7B

In Church History, we have discussed Martin Luther’s attempt to stay with Rome and still return to God’s Word with no avail. The next step is the break with Rome. In Math, we have come to the end of our Fractions and Decimals chapter, and will be flying into Plane Geometry next week. In History, we have come to the conclusion of our research phase and will be moving into the construction phase for our projects. In Independent Study, we are moving into the documentary phase of the process. Expect a permission form to be coming home soon for permission to watch a documentary. Next week we also look forward to our ROM/AGO trip on Thursday as well as to the PD Day on Friday. Devotions – Noah T. Memory Work – Ps. 132:5 and “O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings to Zion” (has a tricky tune that we are still working on). Enjoy your Winterfest weekend!

Grade 8A

A short week = A short chronicle report? It was a busy week for teachers and parents as we had the privilege to meet on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings to discuss student progress. Thanks for taking the time to sit down with us! Our L.A. quiz got bumped to this past Friday and our Math test moved to Tuesday. We also moved most of our presentations to next week. We also have skating coming up and a field trip to the ROM/AGO on Thursday. Next week is a short one as well with the coming PD day on Friday. Enjoy Winterfest. Cheers, Mr. J

Grade 8B

Today was the final day for Miss Petter in our classroom.  We have enjoyed having her among us and we wish her the LORD’s blessing as she picks up her studies at the Teachers’ College. Due to the snow days on Monday and Tuesday, we have moved our Science test to next week. (probably on Wednesday).  Bible, Math and Geography tests have been returned. Ask to see the results. Students will have been busy with the Winterfest set up this afternoon. Many of them have also signed up to help on Saturday. We are continuing our study of Tom Sawyer and students will be given an assignment to write and perform a soliloquy. History projects should wrap up soon.  Students should continue to give time and attention to their Art and Music projects. Grade 8B will accompany KB and 1B on their skating outing on Wednesday in order to help tie skates and help the little ones stay upright on the ice. Grade 8s own skating session will come on December 4.