The purpose of John Calvin School is to assist and support parents in the education of their covenant children to the glory of God.  In accomplishing this mission, the vision of John Calvin School is to provide excellent Christ-centered education in service to God and our neighbour.

Good Friday morning everyone as we bring to a close another week of learning and teaching at John Calvin School.  We thank our good and gracious God for all the work that could be accomplished in and around the school as we enjoyed some nice spring weather for most of this week.  May our Heavenly Father conintue to bless the work of the students, staff, and parents as we move ever closer to the end of another school year.   

Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with those who need the comfort, encouragement and guidance of our Heavenly Father in a special way; be it those who are sick, are dealing with difficult family circumstances, or who are grieving the death of a loved one.  In particular we think of the family of Mr. Albert Smouter who passed away quite unexpectedly earlier this week.  Three of his children have grandchildren currently in JCS(Gabrielle Alkema; A.J, Izabelle, Quinn, and Scott Smouter; Emily (Guido co-op student), Nate, and Nadia Schulenberg.  Grandchildren from two other daughters (VanSydenborgh and Lof) have also attended JCS.  There are also a number of other relatives in our school community  We also think of the family of Mr. Yul Krikke (member of Covenant-Grassie) who passed away on the weekend. May our God of all comfort continue to surround the Smouter and Krikke families with his love and grace. 

We congratulate Ed and Morgan Stinellis with the birth of their third daughter, Collyns Tina-Leigh.  All is well with mom and daughter, and the rest of the family too, including Noa (Grade 1A).  (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 the Lord provide Ed and Morgan with all that they need as they raise their children in the fear of his Name. 

A few matters for your attention:

*If you have any outstanding monies collected from the Hike for Hospice, please return it as soon as possible.  Just a reminder, that the t-shirt allotment is one per participating student.  Thank you.

*This past Wednesday, the students in Grades 7&8 wrote the Gauss Math Contest.  The response sheets have been sent off for marking and we should know the results by the middle of June.

*The final practices for the boys’ and girls’ teams are scheduled for next week Tuesday and Thursday. The tournament is scheduled for May 28 in Dorchester which is about 20 minutes on this side of London. The tournament schedule is as follows (all the players received one today):

JCS Girls                                               JCS Boys

9:30        DACS vs JCS                        8:30        ACRES vs JCS

12:50      JCS vs ACRES                     11:30      Timothy vs JCS

3:50        JCS vs Timothy                    1:50        DACS vs JCS

4:50        Finals (if either or both of the teams make it that far)

*Included with today’s Chronicle is the Protocol for Class Re-distribution.  Please read through the document carefully.  Class lists for the 2022-2023 school year will be developed in early June from the considerations, criteria, and procedures included in the document. The class lists will be emailed to parents on Friday, June 24.   

Reminders:

*It’s that time of year again, so when you are outside please continue to be wary of ticks and mosquitoes.  Here is some information from Niagara Public Health about identifying ticks.

Identifying Ticks During COVID-19

Now that the warmer weather has arrived, so has tick season in Ontario. Regional Public Health offices are currently closed to public access, but if you remove a tick, you can have it identified by:

• Downloading a free app and uploading photos of the tick for identification

OR

• Take a picture of the tick and submit it to inspect@niagararegion.ca

If more information is required once the tick has been identified, individuals can contact a Duty Officer directly at 905-688-8248 ext. 7590. Tick identification services will resume when our offices reopen to the public. General tick information can be found on our Niagara Region Public Health website.

*With the onset of warmer, sunny weather comes the spring and summer wardrobe for students.  We would like to remind parents and students of the dress code regarding shorts and tops as found in the Polices and Procedures section of the Parent Handbook.

*There are still a number of rapid test kits at the school.  If you would like a box or a partial box, please contact the school and arrange to pick one up.

*Victoria Day on Monday, May 23

*For Kindergarten parents:  Just a reminder to return the Kindergarten registration form and student information form as soon as possible; also, Kindergarten Day has been moved to Tuesday, August 30.

*Ascension Day on Thursday, May 26.

*The School Spirit Team is planning a School Spirit Day for Friday, May 27.  The day will consist of two parts:         

1.  All students will trace their hand on a piece of paper and write out their favourite Bible version it; then colour it and cut it out.  The hands will be taped to the walls in the foyer to be displayed for the remainder of the school year.

2.  Students and staff will be participating in Comfy Clothes Day which will conclude with a whole school movie afternoon in the gym.

*Teachers College graduation on Friday, May 27

*Year End Trips:  Before we know it, it will be the month of June and all of what that month represents on the school calendar (after two non-event Junes).  One of the exciting events is the annual year-end class trips.  This year, Grades K-3 are planning to visit Safari Niagara on Tuesday, June 21 and Grades 4-6 are planning to travel to Wet ‘n’ Wild in Brampton the same day (along with about 600 other students from LCRSS schools; lots of fun). Grade 7 is planning to participate in a number of activities in Niagara Falls on June 17, and Grade 8 is looking forward to spending the week of June 20-24 at Wilderness Tours in Canada’s National Whitewater Park on the Ottawa River.  Please stay tuned for more details about these trips in subsequent editions of the Chronicle.  FYI, this year there will be no extra fees required from the parents for the Grades K-7 trips.  The JCS Student Fund has sufficient funds to cover the entrance fees to all three destinations for all the children.

*You are invited to join us for the Ascension/Pentecost assembly planned for Friday, June 3rd beginning at 8:15 a.m.  Rev. Swaving will be the guest speaker. 

Enjoy the Victoria Day long weekend everyone whether you are spending it at home or camping or at the cottage.  May our Heavenly Father grant us a blessed day of worship.  We hope to touch base again next week Friday.   G. Hofsink

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Classroom News

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Kindergarten

In Language Arts this past week, many of the students were able to finish writing a story they created. Each of the stories has a beginning, middle and end as well as a problem that the main character solves. The students worked very hard on these projects and are eager to share these stories with you. The stories will be coming home next week some time. Next week we will begin our “how to” illustration unit in Language arts where the students have to create their own “how to” books. In math we will be continuing the unit on measurement by measuring different classroom items where students will compare the different sizes of objects in the classroom.  In previous years, the students have always really loved this unit and I am sure that this class will be no different. In science we will be continuing our unit on plants and we will be starting an experiment to discover where plants grow best and what plants need in order to grow. The students will have taken home their grass plants this past week. Next week Wednesday is a very exciting day in kindergarten. We will be celebrating black and white day as well as going on a class trip to Happy Rolph’s. We will be gone for a large portion of the day taking in nature and the different animals at the petting zoo.  Please ensure that your child is wearing sunscreen before leaving the house for school.

Here’s what is on the schedule for next week:

Monday: NO SCHOOL

Tuesday – SH: Owen

Wednesday – Happy Rolph’s, Black and White Day

Thursday – SH: Addisyn

Friday – SH: Thatcher

Friday – Comfy day

Have a great weekend. JB/SV

Grade 1

Our exciting news this week is that Noa has a new baby sister!  Congratulations Stinellis family! We have transitioned from enjoying Bible stories to Church History stories. We have completed our first unit about the Church. Students very much enjoyed the stories about Maria and her questions about how the church works. Our next unit will include stories about specific people in Church history. The first stories are about Peter and Stephen from the books of Acts and Ephesians. Grade 1B has completed all of the activities in our Purposeful Design Math book and Grade 1A will be finishing up soon too. Students will continue to review and consolidate what they have learned using teacher made resources. Work continues in grade one, but many of the children are struggling with a bad cough or sniffles or headaches and sometimes just a general feeling of fatigue.  Hopefully they can enjoy some extra rest during the long weekend.

Memory work:  Hymn 72:1

Spelling/Sight words:  sounded, lifted, painted, parked, waved, grinned, tripped, have

Grade 2

This week, we have continued with Bible stories from the book of Acts. The students have been enjoying the stories about Paul and his missionary journeys. We’ve been focusing on how the good news is for both the Jews and the Gentiles! In Math, we’ve moved on to a unit on fractions. Many students are relieved to have a break from triple digit subtraction to counting and colouring equal parts! This week, we were able to watch some of our painted lady butterflies emerge from their chrysalis! We look forward to releasing them soon! Have a relaxing long weekend! RG/BV 

Grade 3

What is the meaning of the word tabernacle? Ask your child all about the tabernacle and its furnishings. We began a new unit on geometry in math. What are lines, line segments, intersecting and parallel lines? Don’t forget to practice your times tables too, grade three. We finished a short quiz on communities and now look forward to working in groups making a poster that will include urban, rural, and suburban sections. Our condolences to Quinn Smouter and Nadia Schulenberg with the loss of their dear grandpa. He was also a great uncle to Logan Smouter.  May the Lord continue to comfort them. He is in heavenly glory with His Saviour. On Wednesday, we welcomed a guest speaker, Miss Janine Breukelman. She gave us a lively interactive presentation on nursing homes and how they are an asset to the community. Thank you for coming in dear sister, and may the Lord continue to bless your services to the elderly and their families.

Memory Work:  Hymn 77:1,2; Text:  Galations 6:10

Words:  urban, rural, suburban, community, communities, steward

Library books on Thursday.

Dictation and Mission $ on Friday.

Grade 4

Thank you for returning the blue Medieval Day sheets and thank you for the offers of help. We will work on compiling a food and volunteer list and get that back to you as soon as possible.

Thursday: Grade 4A Bible Quiz – Ezra, Esther, Nehemiah

Spelling words: through, decided, mountain, pictures, surprised, suddenly, allowed, about, movie, true, frightened, wrong

Memory Work: Hymn 50:1/2 Timothy 3: 16-17

Upcoming Memory Work: Hymn 68:1,8

Grade 5

After a lot of hard work, the planet projects are in! Some are already hanging from the ceiling in our classrooms, and they look great! Thank you, parents, for all your help in making sure these were completed. We are eagerly anticipating our trip to the Science Centre on Thursday! Please ensure your child does not come with a microwaveable lunch that day. All food must be peanut free still as well. Although we are now taking a bus, we will still be arriving back at the school after the end of the school day, so the students will need to be picked up. We will be leaving the Science Centre at 3:00, and we will aim to be at school at 5:00, but we will let you know on the day of, via email, if that changes. Both classes will be having a Church History quiz on Friday for Lessons 1-4.

Devotions for next week are as follows:

5A – Tu. Judy, W. Audrey, F. Dylan

5B – Tu. Reanne, W. Evelyn, F. Reece

Have a wonderful long weekend! RK/KV

Grade 6

We had a very enjoyable class trip to Crawford Lake. In the morning our informative guide led us through the longhouses where we could see and touch a variety of items. How to make a fire was demonstrated to us. The students could also practice using a lacrosse stick and ball. The afternoon started out with an explanation of the special lake that was there. The students should be able to share some information about it. The students also went on a scavenger hunt looking for a number of different items. We were blessed with a beautiful day in God’s creation and adding to our knowledge about the indigenous people of this area. Thanks to Mr. Mans for coming along with us. We also thank our bus driver Mrs. VanLuik. Have a blessed weekend. IdV/CVA

Grade 7A

By all accounts our Niagara War of 1812 Battlefield Tour went well. We stopped and learned at Beaver Dams, Lundy’s Lane and Queenston Heights; it’s hard to imagine that carnage and violence here in the peaceful peninsula. We continue learning about credit and debt in Math as we work with Ramsey Solution’s, “Foundations in Personal Finance”; it turns out that the borrower is a slave to the lender. We’re learning about solutions and mechanical mixtures in Science with our new unit. In Church History, Jean Cauvin has arrived in Geneva for what he thinks will be a short stay, we’ll learn how the LORD through William Farel, changes his plans. Enjoy your weekend.

Grade 7B

This week 7B learned all about the Shot Put event in Track and field. In history we concluded our study of the war of 1812 and on Friday we hope to spend the day touring a few battlefields in the Niagara region. In art we printed the 1st edition of our line prints with much success! On Wednesday we were able to participate in the annual Gauss math contest. Have a great weekend. Cheers, Mr. J and Mrs. Ludwig.

Grade 8

We hope that everyone has an enjoyable long weekend. We are now in the home stretch before our Rafting Trip and graduation. Rafting $ is also due by the end of this week, please!

Wed: Ch. Hist. Ref. in the NL test

Thurs: Geo. Test Ch. 5&6

Memory Work: Col. 3: 15 – 17, Psalm 138v2