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General News

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Hello again everyone as we bring another week of learning and teaching to an end at John Calvin School.  It is amazing how quickly the time goes by!  Next week, the month of November comes to a close and then it’s time to flip the calendar page to December.  We then enter the time of Advent during which we celebrate the coming to earth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.  We thank and praise the Lord for His many blessings.  We pray that He will continue to provide the students and the staff with good health, energy and strength during the final month of the calendar year. 

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 or challenging family circumstances.  

 It was good to have our fall membership meeting this past Wednesday, albeit via livestream.  The Lord willing, this will be the last meeting that will need to be conducted in this manner.  It’s so much better to meet in person.  We thank the Lord that the mid-year budget could be passed with a 93% majority and, thus, the wage freeze could be thawed.  We thank the outgoing board members (Mrs. Kristy Alkema, Mr. Henry Dekker, and Mr. Trevor Schulenberg) for all the work they have done during their four-year tour of duty.  We welcome on board Mrs. Sherri Mans who will be taking over from Mr. Dan Huizing as treasurer in the fall of 2021, Mrs. Miriam Bosma (Lincoln, and former staff member), Mr. Devon Hummel (Smithville), and Mr. Adam Stieva (Spring Creek).  May our Heavenly Father give the new directors the wisdom and strength necessary for their task in representing the school community on the Board of Directors.

A few items for your attention:

*Winterfest:  More/different items are available for purchase on the Winterfest website. Check www.johncalvinfundraising.ca and then place your order.  FYI, the Online Auction is coming your way on Monday, November 30. 

*With much thankfulness we can report that $2862.00 was raised in support of the Anchor Association. Excellent job all participating students!  We extend a big thank you to all those in our community who “hired” the students to work for them.  The money will be passed on to the Anchor Association.  

*Hockey for JCS students:  Several coaches and parents have organized an opportunity for students in Grades 6-8 to play/practise hockey at the Smithville arena.  The school has booked three ice times for the month of December for that purpose.  Students in Grades 6-8 will have opportunity to sign up at school but the practices will be run by the parent coaches.  Have fun!  Just a reminder that this year’s NACE hockey tournament has been cancelled.

*Triple Ball practices will continue off and on between now and then.  Students, and parents, will get plenty of advance notice for when an after-school practice will take place.  The re-scheduled tournament is planned for Wednesday, January 13.

*Lost and Found:  Our lost and found box is filling up.  If you are at the school at some point and time during the next three weeks, please check through the bin to see if any of you child(ren)’s missing paraphernalia is in it.  The box is located in the foyer for quick and easy access.  What is left in the box on December 18 will be taken to the GBF, Bibles for Mission, or Value Village.

Reminders:

*For the Dutch folk in our community—Happy Sinterklaas on Saturday of next week.

*News and Views material is due on Monday, December 7.

*The Ladies Auxiliary is planning a Pizza Lunch for Friday, December 11.  Yippee!  No lunches to make.  For those children with allergies, the Ladies Auxiliary will look after heating up/preparing the food that they bring for lunch that day.  Thank you very much Ladies Auxiliary!

Have an enjoyable weekend and a blessed Sunday.  The Lord willing, we will be touch again next week Friday.    G. Hofsink

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Classroom News

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Kindergarten

We had a great week in kindergarten.  The students were very excited about the snow and playing in the snow.  They cannot wait to go sledding at school followed by a nice warm cup of hot chocolate and marshmallows.  Parent teacher interviews also concluded this week.  It was nice to be able to meet all of you and to spend time talking about your child!  We are so thankful for the different parent volunteers that come in to help us every day with our centre work!  We wouldn’t be able to do it without you.  A highlight this week was the arrival of a giant box for the students to play with in the activity room.  The students were able to decorate the box with markers and stickers.  They absolutely loved transforming the box into a house complete with windows and doors.  If you ever have a large box that you are looking to get rid of please let me know.  Kindergarten would love to play with it! Have a great weekend.  JB/NV

Grade 1

We have come to the end of another Bible unit.  Look for a notice about a test in the agendas.  In Math, we are beginning to work with fact families and practise basic addition and subtraction facts.  Thanks for helping your child to learn their spelling and sight words.  It is beginning to pay off.  We have a bit of a strange request.  Our students absolutely LOVE special shirts which have sequins that can be reversed by rubbing them.  They LOVE them so much that they don’t pay attention to their lessons.  Can we please limit the number of times those shirts are worn to school, especially if your child already struggles to keep attention focused. Now is the time of year when it is also a good idea to pack an extra pair of socks in their backpacks.  When there is snow on the ground, snow pants or splash pants are also a good idea, as well as boots.   

Memory Work:  Hymn 7:1,  Ruth 1:16-17a

Sight words: none, from, their, my new

Spelling words:  many, so, them, then, these

Grade 2

We welcome snow to our school year!  Albeit a chilly start to the week, there is nothing quite like the first snowfall.  Grade Two, enjoyed building and playing in the snow.  On that note please remember those hats and mittens as the days become colder.

This week, we finished another Bible unit continuing the study of Jesus’ Ministry.  Two favourite stories were the Good Samaritan and the Good Shepherd.  Ask us to tell you about them!  

Our study of Canada continued this week with learning about where we live compared to the rest of Canada.  We also learned about the globe and the hot and cold regions of the world.  The children are so fascinated by this unit! Next week we will start to focus on the arctic and the territory of Nunavut which means  “Our Land” in Inuktitut, the language of the Inuit. LS/BV

No tests this week!

Spelling words – shook, about, once, goes, many

Memory Work – 2A –  Psalm 42:3 Deuteronomy 6:4,5 2B – Psalm 150:1 Deuteronomy 6:4,5

Grade 3

Bonjour! Another busy week has passed in Grade 3. We continue to hear stories regarding church life. Ask us how we share in each other’s’ joys, sorrows, and troubles. In our Science lessons, we are exploring the Respiratory System.  Ask us how the Lord made this system for our benefit and to His glory. Math is still all about subtraction and regrouping. We started memorizing the times table of 2.  It’s all about doubles, right Grade 3? Finally, THANK YOU for the loot bags for the students. The students were so happy and thankful and so were the teachers.  Much, much appreciated. The communion of saints is indeed alive.  Praise God! J.B./M.P.

Spelling Words:  can’t, don’t, won’t, wouldn’t

Hymn 17:1,3; Text:  Psalm 23:1-3 (two weeks)

Library Books in a LIBRARY BAG on Thursday.

Mission $ on Friday.

Grade 4

We have made good progress on our new Social Studies unit about Canada. We are blessed to live in such a beautiful country! In Math, we continue working on the geometry unit. Please continue to encourage your children to read and practise their math facts at home.

Thursday: Family of Churches Test 4B

Friday: Psalm 5:1/Spelling Test

Upcoming Memory Work: S: Ps. 54:1/T: John 1:1-4

Spelling Words: hunting, learned, heard, climbing, dreamed, reading, stuffed, watching, passed, thinking, watched, talking, started, falling

Grade 5

Another week is done! Next week, we will be finishing off the last couple stories from Unit 2, and then we will be having a Bible test on Friday for the second half of Unit 2. We have just finished reading through our novel, Call it Courage. Everyone enjoyed the action and suspense in the story. We will be doing a little bit more work with the book, and then we will do some group projects to wrap it up. In Math, we finished off our unit about multiplication today, and next week we will be starting with a unit on division. Have a great weekend and a blessed Sunday. RK/KV

Devotions: 5A – M. Chloe, Tu. Madelin, W. Evan, Th. Emersyn, F. A.J.

5B – M. Blake, Tu. Kali, W. Liam, Th. Kensi, F. Reuben

Grade 6

The students have been busy writing their paragraphs for their bird research project. They have also started typing them and aim to have them done soon. The rest of the time before the break will be putting their display together. If they haven’t collected any pictures yet, they should begin to do so. Our Bible lessons on Genesis are connecting very well with our unit on trade in Social Studies. The students should be able to tell you what was traded by the Sumerians, where they lived, and  some of the challenges they faced while trading. They should also be able to describe a ziggurat for you and explain what it was. Have a blessed weekend. SO/CV

Grade 7A

In an attempt to discuss the errors in the RCC, Luther has organized a debate; we’ll see next week the response to this challenge and the Papacy’s reaction. Our Math class will write a test next week wrapping up expressions and equations. We’ve focused much of our time on simplifying, evaluating and substituting. Our next few classes in Science will involve constructing our popsicle stick bridges and an evaluation of group work. Also in groups, students will teach the rest of the Gr.7 P.E. class how to play low order cooperative games. Parents, your permission will be required as students will need to view a suitable documentary in connection with their Independent Study topic. Enjoy your weekend.

Grade 7B

In Church History, we have seen how Martin Luther came to the light through God’s grace, realizing that we are righteous through faith in Christ alone. Next week we will see how his 95 Theses marked the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. In History, we have moved forward into conflict and change in New France, focusing on the Seven Years’ War. In Geography, we are nearing the end of our Climate unit, where we will be completing a final project. We will be focusing on a particular city and using our knowledge of climate factors to explain the climate of that region. Independent Study continues on, and next week we can look forward to researching, choosing, and watching our own documentaries on our own topics. Memory Work – Psalm 1:1. Enjoy your weekend!

Grade 8

The last full week of November has been filled with dark weather. Although the volleyball tournament was postponed, lunch time practices will be held on Wednesday to keep working on our skills. Our new units are off to a good start, and students seem to be enjoying our new bucket drumming unit in Music. Mrs. Bos came in to demonstrate and guide the students in watercolour painting. Have a blessed weekend! Mr. J and Ms. P