General News
“Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.” Eph. 6:11
We have marched into March and are seeing the seasons change, and with it, we are enjoying different elements in the school. With Public Speaking behind us, we look forward to the Basketball Tournament which will be held at Guido on March 27, the week after the March Break. We are also moving toward the Chess Tournament, with the local games being held in Mr. Breukelman’s room under his watchful eye.
Our Defenders did very well at the exhibition games which were held at ACRES, Bellstone, and here at JCCS. From this, we will also see more learning in preparation for that tournament.
We have had Miss Naomi VanVliet in the Grade 4 classroom for the last four weeks, and it was good to see her grow and flourish as she learned about teaching at the Grade 4 level under the watchful eye of Mr. Reinink. We pray that she sees success as she finishes her learning for her teaching degree. May God continue to bless and guide her!
On Tuesday, we will be enjoying a School Spirit Day. The theme is “Don’t Dress for the Occasion.” We look forward to seeing how students will show us how not to dress for the occasion. This should be a fun day as we march on toward March Break.
The Grade 2B class will be enjoying a Pizza Lunch as they sold the most boxes of cards. Silas and Matthias did particularly well, helping their class out by selling 13 boxes. They received a little something extra. Congratulations for helping make this campaign a success!
On Wednesday, Grade 1 will head out to Agape Valley and enjoy some maple syrup as they learn about how it is produced. On the same day, the Grade 7 class will head out for the final skating session of the year. We thank Fallfest for sponsoring a good chunk of the cost of these outings. This has bolstered the students’ skills, for sure!
Finally, we wish Mrs. Kelly a wonderful birthday on Friday. May God continue to strengthen and bless her in the various tasks she carries!
I believe that is all for this week! May God grant His richest blessings over the proclamation of His Word!
JVI
Mon – Basketball Practice (Men & Co-ed)
Tues – School Spirit Day, Miss VanVliet’s last day
Wed – Skating – Gr. 7 @ 1:15, Gr. 1 to Agape Valley
Thurs – Ed Comm Meeting
Fri – March Break begins!
Classroom News
Kindergarten
Only one week until March Break! We have started learning our first song for the Ascension Day concert, the children have been doing very well and enjoy practicing with Grade 1. This week, we started a new science unit on Properties. We talked about how we can make observations and the differences between solids, liquids and gas. Next Tuesday, KB will be having a dress up day with the school. Come dressed for anything but school, we can’t wait to see what you come up with! We continued learning new letters this week, helping the students read more CVC words. Their excitement for reading and learning is wonderful to see. Next week, we will continue to hear about Samson during Bible. We are happy to see some warmer temperatures heading our way, make sure your child is dressed appropriately for recess. We hope you have a great weekend and a blessed Sunday! MV/DV
Grade 1
This week in Bible, we continued learning about Saul as the king of Israel. We saw that because of his disobedience, the Lord rejected him as king. Even though Saul had been given many blessings and responsibilities, he did not listen carefully to God’s commands. We also learned that God had chosen a man after His own heart to be king instead. This reminds us that the Lord looks at the heart and desires obedience and trust from His people.
In Language Arts, we began reading fables. The students greatly enjoyed these short and meaningful stories! We spent time identifying the moral of each story and talking about the lesson the author wanted us to learn. It has been wonderful to hear the thoughtful discussions taking place. We also added another word to our ring of tricky words and continue practicing them each day.
In art, we learned about warm colors—red, orange, and yellow—and how these colours can show feelings such as joy, happiness, excitement, and even anger. The students had a great time drawing and painting a “hot dog” picture using warm colors. Their creativity was delightful to see!
We experienced a bit of “false spring” this week, with some warmer temperatures. As the weather continues to change, please check that your child has an extra pair of socks in their backpack in case boots and puddles make for wet feet.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Grade 2
In our Church History studies this week, we’ve started our time learning about Martin Luther and his work as a translator. It’s amazing to discuss as a class how important it is for each of us individually, or as a family unit, to be able to read the Gospel for ourselves. We are also working through our Zimbabwe unit in Social Studies, and Unit 4 -The Job Hunt- in LA. In math we are again estimating and adding + subtracting double digit numbers. Grade 2 is looking forward to the Dress-Up Day on Tuesday – dress for anything -but school. While Thursday we will have Library Day, so please remember to send your child’s books That’s all for this week! Have a great week!
Grade 3
And just like that we are in March! We thank the Lord for providing for us day by day. May we continue to work to His glory.
We finished our church history unit with a test. Please check your child’s agenda for the results.
In our Bible classes, we will be hearing the stories of Moses and how the Lord will use him to deliver the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.
We are coming to the end of our social studies unit on Living and Working in Ontario.
Next Tuesday is another fun, dress up day. Don’t dress for the occasion!
That’s it for now.
Have a blessed weekend.
Hymn 33:1,4
Text: Joshua 24:15
Grade 4
The week before March Break always comes with much excitement! First, in Grade 4B, we say farewell to Miss van Vliet. She has been with us for over seven weeks, and we have truly enjoyed having her in the classroom. This past week was her “induction” week, meaning she led most of the teaching. We will keep you in our prayers, Miss van Vliet, as you finish off your schooling, search for a job, and anticipate getting married this summer.
After March Break, we will also be saying farewell to our little brown trout. We have enjoyed watching the fish hatch and grow – learning to swim, float, and eat. It has been a blessing to see God’s creation up close and firsthand. They will be released into Lake Ontario near Port Dalhousie while the water is still cold enough for them to adjust.
In Math, we will be beginning a series of lessons on division and long division. We anticipate that this may cause some frustration, as the new concepts can be challenging to grasp. Please be patient as we work through these “hard” things together.
In Language Arts, we will be using the information we learned about the Middle Ages to better appreciate the story King Arthur and the Round Table. This promises to be an exciting story that will help us appreciate our Medieval Day all the more.
Lastly, in Science, we will be “switching gears” to learn about machines and mechanisms. If your child has anything related to this topic, they are welcome to bring it in, as we anticipate lots of hands-on learning during this unit.
Have a lovely weekend, everyone!
Let’s go Defenders!
FR/JB – Grade 4
Grade 5
We’ve had a full and productive week in grade 5! Next week, 5A will be having a Chapter 6 math test on Tuesday, and a grammar test on verbs on Wednesday. Both classes will be starting our last unit in Bible next week, where we will learn about the death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ. We’ll also be switching back from science to social studies, where we’ll learn about Ancient Egypt. Since we have finished reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (which we all thoroughly enjoyed) and doing comprehension and vocab work for it, we will be starting to build dioramas about the novel next week. Papers with more information will be coming home in the agendas. We will also be watching the movie on Thursday! We look forward to seeing which occasions everyone dresses for on our “Don’t Dress for the Occasion” school spirit day on Tuesday!
Devotions for next week are as follows:
5A – Hailey (M), Reid (Tu), Avery (W), Lily (Th)
5B – Sawyer (M), Shawn (Tu), Shepherd (W), Taryn (Th)
Have a wonderful weekend! CDV/KV
Grade 6A
Some students will be presenting their disease research slides next week. We look forward to learning more through their research. We faced the challenge of changing fractions this week from mixed to improper and vice versa. Most of the students improved greatly with their vocab results this week. Keep up the good work!
Grade 6B
Bible/Church History: We continue to explore how the Church in history clashes with Islam and how the Church experienced significant division.
Math: Our attention will be drawn to how we can add or subtract fractions together!
L.A.: We’ve crossed the halfway point in our novel, Underground to Canada. Students will continue to grapple with how people have been treated throughout history. We’ve also been putting ourselves into a runaway slave’s shoes by writing diary entries as we read through the novel.
French: We have practiced describing a person’s physical appearance as well as their personality, and we will start to put it all together in our next few classes.
Science/Social Studies: After a short dive into the medical world as preparation for a project on different diseases, we have switched over to a Social Studies unit focusing on our neighbours to the south.
Art: After creating rough drafts of our dream bedroom space, we will begin a good copy of what we wish our bedrooms could look like!
Phys. Ed.: Our unit on basketball continues. Feel free to test students on ready position, dribbling, and passing at home!
Tuesday’s “Don’t Dress for the Occasion” promises to be a blast! I’m looking forward to seeing many interesting outfits. We won’t have a spelling test this week, but will wrap things up on Thursday with a vocab test, L.A. journal entries due, and Math test corrections due.
Enjoy your weekend!
BK
Grade 7A
We continue to march forth in Grade 7A! Students have been introduced to intaglio and relief printmaking in art. Students will work with intaglio prints and use lino cutters to create their plates on linoleum. The Swiss Roman Catholic and Reformed cantons will begin to take sides and jockey for position as the possibility of war becomes real in Church history. The students have been introduced to several new terms in science as they work with mixtures and pure substances; homogeneous, heterogenous and solutions. In math we’ll keep flip flopping between the metric and imperial systems of measurement. Enjoy your weekend.
Grade 7B
This past week, we continued to learn about the Reformation in Switzerland through the work of Zwingli. Chapter 8 in math deals with measurement; we have been converting using the metric and customary units. This chapter will take us right up to the March break. In Monday’s history class, we will review chapter 6 and write the test on Tuesday during our French period. The graphic novels are progressing well, and should be done by the end of Wednesday’s class. Skating has been rescheduled for Wednesday afternoon. Have a great week! RK
Grade 8
It is hard to believe, but March Break begins next Friday! It has been a busy week in Grade 8 as we work to wrap up several units before the holidays. Next week will see the conclusion of several units. In science, we are finishing our unit on pressure, hydraulics, and pneumatics with a hands-on building project. In math, we are concluding our focused look at proportions and rates. Despite the excitement for the upcoming break, we will be sticking to our regular programming all through next week to finish the term strong.
Enjoy your weekend! — TB/RT