Wednesday 2 December 2015

December 2nd, 2015 Journal

The ICS Journal  

Wednesday, December 2nd 2015


Mission:  The mission of Immanuel Christian School is to prepare students to meet the challenge of the world and culture they live in as young and growing Christians.  Thus, students are taught the skill of discernment in the light of God’s Word, the practice of stewardship for creation, the required commitment to a life of Christian service, and the beauty of witness through modeling God’s love in a broken world.

Upcoming Events

Dec 3-4 Principal away at OACS Expeditionary Learning site visit
     7 Bluewater Jr Volleyball (Triple Ball) - Strathroy Christian School
        9 Chapel - Advent #2
     10 Grade 7/8 Field Trip to Woodstock Museum
     11 EESS representative to speak with Grade 7/8 students
     15 NEW DATE “Christmas Stories”  2:00pm Matinee
     16  Chapel - Advent #3 - Pastor Peter Barbour
          “Christmas Stories” 7:00pm
     17 Sub Lunch - order form at end of Journal
          Last day of school and skate 2-3pm
          LDCSS Christmas Concert 7:30pm
     18  PA Day - Expeditionary Learning
     21 - Jan. 3 Holidays
75 Caverly Rd, Aylmer, N5H 2P6
Telephone: 519-773-8476
Facebook: facebook.com/ICSAylmer       
Twitter:  twitter.com/ICSAylmer

LDCSS:  www.ldcss.on.ca   519-455-4360
Foundation (endowment): www.ldcef.org  

From the Principal’s Desk:
Our mission sits at the top of every Journal. At recent Board meetings, and at the Fall Membership meeting, we discussed some possible changes to our mission. At the time of my hiring as Principal in 2011, our Board put forward a vision of  excellence in Christian education. Feeling that we have made substantial progress, our board vision has now shifted to the challenge of “inspiring Christian community to sustain and prosper ICS.”
Rather than an end, a vision achieved becomes part of who we are… in other words, our mission. What would all activities at ICS look like through a new lens? We are seeing it as our mission at Immanuel to “assist parents in raising children to follow Christ with an excellent elementary program and a focus on Christian character growth.” That would hold true in our classrooms, in our sports, in our student school families, in our community, with our community, in all our school!
Established 60 years ago, God has given us a great gift in this school, and we are called to sustain it for the next generation. Paul exhorts the Corinthian church to seek excellence in their faith, and to prove the commitment with finances: “But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving” (2 Cor 8:7). At the Membership meeting, our Treasurer spoke to this challenge, for our parents and for our wider community. If the cost of operating the school was paid by tuition dollars only, on average our current fees fall short by $5,300 per family! The balance needs to be made up by increased donations, fundraising, and adjustments to our tuition rates, incentives or bursary. You will see further communication in the next few weeks as we seek to undergird our school growth with a balanced financial base.
in Christian education, Keith Cameron, Principal and Chief Operating Officer
Praying for our families: Please join our staff as we pray for Darrell & Helen Klassen as well as Hank & Marg Klassen.
Praying for our staff: Please pray for Mrs. Schuurman
REMINDERS:
Tuition Reduction Incentive Plan (T.R.I.P): Order form attached, due by Dec 10th with pickup on the last day of school Dec 17th. Please attach payment to order form.
Cheese orders: Delivered today. Next order will be sent out Dec 9th with delivery on Jan 6th.
Meat & Baked Goods: Pickup on Dec 17th. Coolers with names on them can be dropped off ahead of time.

Christmas Stories logo.pngMark your calendar! - The ICS Christmas program, “Christmas Stories” will take place on Tuesday December 15th (new date) for a 2pm matinee and in the evening on December 16th at 7pm. This is considered a mandatory event for all students. “Sunday best” attire. Parents, grandparents, friends welcome!
- class presentations, readings or readers theatre on the stories behind some of our     Christmas carols
- community carolling
- special features from our gr 5/6, 7/8 music classes, our band and our choir.

Friday Family Fun Night - profits to date are $2080.90!! That is more than double the original goal of $500 per evening!! What a wonderful school community we are blessed with- THANK YOU! We wish everyone a great holiday season full of fun family meals around your own tables, and we will see you all for the next Friday Family Fun Night in January. Merry Christmas!

Auxiliary - The Ladies Auxiliary still have some beautiful outdoor Christmas decor pots available for sale. The prices are $15, $25, & $40. Stop by the school to see them for yourself, before they are gone

Service Projects for this Christmas Season
Food Drive for the Corner Cupboard: Dec 1st starts the “The Food Under the Tree” drive. We will be collecting non-perishable food under the decorated Christmas tree located in the front entrance. These items will be picked up by the Corner Cupboard and distributed to needy families at Christmas time. Please help us by picking up a few extra items with your weekly groceries and send them to school with your child(ren). We’ve themed our donations this year:
- Dec 3: Tuna Thursday
- Dec 8: Pasta Tuesday
- Dec 10: Babyfood Thursday
- Dec 15: Toothbrushes and Paste Tuesday
- Dec 17: Cereal Thursday
Hat/Mittens/Socks: We will try to bless the less fortunate in our community by collecting new hats, mittens, or socks to put under the tree. The Optimist Club works together with the Corner Cupboard. They both appreciate our school being involved in this project as well. Thank you!

Hat and Gum Day Fri Jan 8: This is an annual fun day held to raise funds for Christian teaching materials through the EduDeo Ministries (www.edudeo.com).  Students may buy $1 licences to chew gum and wear hats in class for the entire day. Tickets are sold for $1 each for fun activities in the gym (face painting, hair braids or washable colour, basketball shooting, bake sale, etc) are also available. Students may bring a small amount of money (no more than $5) to participate. Our grade 8s help run this, with parent volunteers. Can you come in on Friday Jan 9 between 8:30 and 10:45 and help in any way? Please call Chantelle Bakker  from Education Committee or the office.

ICS BIANNUAL GOODS, SERVICES AND TALENT AUCTION: SAVE THE DATE – JAN 30, 2016
The G.S.T. Auction is one of our biggest fundraisers at Immanuel Christian School and features live and silent bidding. This year our auction will be held on Saturday, January 30th, 2016 in the school gym.  If you are able to donate or would like to make a cash donation, simply fill out a form and drop it off at the school office or, alternatively, send an email to jtvannoord@amtelecom.net. Extra donation forms are available in the office.

Festive Fun at Aylmer Library- As the holidays approaches, Aylmer Library has seasonal fun and activities planned for kids of all ages. Until December 24th, please visit the library to make and take home a weekly seasonal drop-in craft. On December 21st at 6:30pm, we will be sharing the classic story “Polar Express” at our Evening Family PJ Storytime. All family members are invited to put on PJ’s and join us for stories, songs and a take-home treat!

Christmas Carols & Hymns- Derrick Drover one of our private music teachers will be holding a Christmas Concert at the Richmond United Church Friday Dec 4th at 7pm,  performing Christmas Classics & Treasured Hymns. All are welcome to enjoy an evening of praise and worship celebrating the Christmas season.

Christmas Recital - Paula Richardson another one of our private music teachers, will be holding her annual Christmas recital Monday, December 14th 7pm at Faith Church, St. Thomas (corner of Fairview & Southdale)
All students, their families and friends are invited!

Bluewater District Volleyball News - Last Fridays both the ICS girls’ and boys’ teams travelled to LDCSS in London to compete with five other Christian Schools in the “small” school Bluewater District Volleyball championships.  It was great seeing weeks of practices on display as both teams  controlled the ball much better than the competition.  The boys played well but inconsistent serves let them win only their last game.  The girls were very deserving in capturing the runners-up banner with strong play under coaches Penny Bosma and Mr. Cameron.. Thank you for the your leadership and  expertise.  

LDCSS - We invite you to join us for our 2015 Christmas Concert: Joy To The World! Thurs Dec 17th at 7:30pm. With alumni joining and special guests - A Christmas Celebration of our Musical History

Board Report. Our board meets monthly, and minutes are at: www.immanuelchristianschool.net/boardminutes
The Board met on Wed, Nov 18, 2015. Our Chair, Cliff Janssens, led the meeting. Plans the upcoming Membership Meeting were discussed in detail. Finance put together the actual tuition cost per Family and will present the figures at the Membership meeting. Committees have been busy updating policies in order to stay current with ongoing changes in the school (see below). Next Board meeting is scheduled for Wed. Dec 9, 2015.  

The Annual Fall Membership Meeting was held Wed. Nov 25, 2015. There were 35 people in attendance, 28 members and 7 non-members. Finance shared the financial outlook for ICS and the importance of supporting and giving back to the school through fundraising and donations. Can families blessed financially consider donating the bursary back to ICS? With upcoming events in the new year, Finance would like to remind the school community that by supporting ICS you are sustaining and prospering ICS.  Can you also reach out to grandparents to also help support their grandchildren’s school? The group discussion was: “How do we convey the value of being a member of the ICS Society, to our new families?” The importance of taking part in the meetings extends much farther than the meeting itself. We're striving to "Inspire Christian Community to sustain and prosper ICS" through all aspects of the school. We would like to thank Ladies Auxiliary for providing the delicious Sparkle & Cheese!

Policy Highlights.  Our committees and board review school policies on a three-year cycle, or more frequently if needed. Did you know that our policies can be found at: www.immanuelchristianschool.net/policybook? Some recently reviewed policies:
4.07 Vacation Withdrawal - there’s a form to let teachers know if your child will be away from school. Ask at the office! It is a parental responsibility to ensure the needed catch-up happens afterwards.
11.06 Tuition Incentives - for 2016-2017 new registrations, the New to Immanuel incentive is changed to a 20% reduction the first year only, based on a lack of “extra”space in gr 1-8. Our existing incentives are “grandfathered” and will continue until families graduate to full tuition.


FROM THE CLASSROOMS:

JR / SR KINDERGARTEN - Mrs. Penner (s.penner@immanuelchristianschool.net
Some of the things we have done in Kindergarten…..
Bible: Zachariah’s Surprise, Surprises for Mary and Joseph
Letter and Sound: g
All About Numbers: 15 and 16
Science: Winter Wonders. How is the weather changing? How can we prepare?
SK- We have been working on memorizing our Christmas poem.
       Sight words: with
       Beginning sounds
       Counting by 5’s, Counting to 100
       Numeral recognition
JK - We have been working on our new Christmas song.
       Rhyme matching activities
       Counting to 15
       Shape: Oval

GRADE 1 - Ms. Pieters  (m.pieters@immanuelchristianschool.net)
Memory Work: for Wed. Dec. 9 are the spoken words your child will say at our Christmas Program.
Your child took home a separate sheet highlighting what he/she needs to memorize.
We will also be singing Go, Tell It on the Mountain
Spelling: words to learn for Friday, Dec. 4
Spelling List for Unit 12: cats, pigs, beds, bugs, tops
A reminder list of things to bring to school:
  • library books to return and an A.R. book you have read so you can do a quiz on any school day
  • Sub lunch order forms

GRADES 2 and 3 – Miss Loewen (a.loewen@immanuelchristianschool.net)
THANK YOU again to all of the parent volunteers and bus drivers for coming along on our trip to the Gay Lea Heritage Museum. We learned how to draw cartoons (Making Minions was a special treat), tasted ice cream we had made, and saw how dairy farming was done in years past.
Memory Work: for Dec. 8 -  The Twelve Days of Christmas (c. 1780)
On the twelfth day of Christmas
my true love gave to me:
12 Drummers Drumming
11 Pipers Piping
10 Lords a-Leaping
9 Ladies Dancing
8 Maids a-Milking
7 Swans a-Swimming
6 Geese a-Laying
5 Golden Rings
4 Calling Birds
3 French Hens
2 Turtle Doves
and a Partridge in a Pear Tree

Dictation Quiz on Friday, December 4.
Spelling words grade 2: place, make, making, help, here, want, nice, to, two, into, space, finally
Spelling words grade 3: children, search, teacher, reached, think, together, with, where, everywhere, short, push, finish, sure, who, whole, chocolate, then
Library class will be Thursday, so please return any books that are due.
Bible Studies Test - Next week Thursday, Dec. 10. *A Study Guide will be sent home with your child this  Friday, Dec. 4.
Reminder: Phys. Ed. classes are Tuesdays and Thursdays, so please remember your gym clothes!
Accelerated Reader: Our new goals were sent home and many of you already have a made a great start! Keep reading and bringing your books back to take AR quizzes.
Student of the Week: Our next student will be Promise Atkinson (Dec 7- 11). Our last student of the week before Christmas will be Kahlen Hiebert (Dec 14-17).
LifeTouch photos: As you are aware, there has been a delay in receiving the Life Touch photos for the Grade 2/3 class.  We have been following up on this with some success, but have heard from some parents that they have called the company regarding their individual child in order to bring faster results.If you have ordered and did not yet receive your child's photo, please call the Life Touch hotline, and they will send it on to the school.  The number is 1-866-516-8426. For reference, the school picture day ID is QT105300Q0.
A reminder list of things to bring to school:
  • library books to return and an A.R. book you have read so you can do a quiz on any school day
  • Gym clothes on Tuesdays and Thursdays
  • Sub lunch order forms

GRADES 3 and 4 – Ms. Buma (t.buma@immanuelchristianschool.net
Wed. Dec. 9 - Memory Work - The Huron Carol by Jesuit missionary, Father Jean de Brebeuf (1593 - 1649).
(Verses 2 and 3)
2.) Within a lodge of broken bark the tender Babe was found.
A ragged robe of rabbit skin enwrapped His beauty ‘round;
And as the hunter braves drew nigh the angel song rang loud and high:
Refrain:
“Jesus your King is born, Jesus is born.
In excelsis gloria!”
3.) The earliest moon of wintertime is not so round and fair
as was the ring of glory on the helpless infant there.
The chiefs from far before him knelt with gifts of fox, and beaver pelt.
Refrain:
English words by J.E. Middleton, (1926)

Fri. Dec. 4 - Spelling Dictation, Unit 10 - Grade 3 words are: children, search, teacher, reached, think, together, with, where, everywhere, short, push, finish, sure, who, whole, chimes, shovel
Grade 4 words are: across, alone, among, brother, again, front, banana, appear, compass, pedal, given, heaven, mountain, ocean, cousin, purchase, often, colour, mention
Accelerated Reader: AR goals for Term 3 will be sent home with your child tomorrow, Dec. 3
Bible Studies Test - Next week Friday, Dec. 11. *A Study Guide will be sent home with your child this  Friday, Dec. 4.
Student of the Week: This week’s Student of the Week is Sharon Klassen. Next week: Delilah Krahn.
Scholastic Book Orders: *Please return any completed Book Order Forms by Friday, Dec. 4. Thank you.
A reminder of events and  list of things to bring to school:
  • library books that are due, and any completed AR books
  • Scholastic Book Orders for December
  • Sub Orders Forms

GRADE 5 and 6 – Ms. Jones (k.jones@immanuelchristianschool.net)

Next week’s Memory Work: Acts 9: 1-4
“Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
Spelling: List 10 -  stalk, off, because, brought, called, drawn, awful, awkward, lawyer, daughter, fault, author, always, already, although, belong, office, haul.
L.A.: Grammar will be due each Wednesday.
Bible: We are preparing for Christmas presentation.
French: French quiz on Thursday Dec 8th on clothing words. Use your flash cards to study
Music: We are playing recorders in class.  Please bring your recorder every Monday and Wednesday.
Social Studies: Students will be conducting a mock election. How can they create a government that can build unity and create positive change. Presentations will be this Friday, Election is Fri Dec. 11.
Math: Students are starting a routine of lesson work, check work and centres. They check their own work now to see how they did, this helps them reflect on learning and be accountable for corrections.
Christmas Exchange: Please plan to bring a small gift for a gift exchange by Thursday Dec. 17th.
Art: Learning pastel skills. We will be starting a Christmas craft next week. Please bring $2 to cover supplies. Students will have a nice craft/gift when they are done!
Lunches and Snacks: please send (or remind your child to pack) healthy lunches and snacks. They have a long day at school if they do not have proper nutrition to help them focus. Some students have been “snacking” on candy. Save candy for end of the day treats when school is over.
Triple Ball Tournament: The Grade 6 class will be traveling to Strathroy for a Triple Ball tournament on Monday, December 7th. We will be going by bus, leaving the school at 8:45 and returning at 3:15. Please pack a lunch, snacks and water. Sportswear and ICS gym shirts are required. Parents are welcome to join us.

GRADE 7 and 8 – Mr. TenBruggencate (e.tenbruggencate@immanuelchristianschool.net)

Please see our class wiki page (linked from the ICS website, https://immanuelchristianschool.wikispaces.com)

Memory Work: Psalm 139:13-16
Mathematics: On Thursday, Dec.3 a test is scheduled on Ch.4 “Probability”
Science: Signed tests due today. WHMIS introduction and classifications mini-units complete by Dec 3.
ART: Please bring in $4 to cover cost of Christmas Crafts. Students will be at 2 different craft stations the next 2 weeks. They will bring home completed crafts. Thanks!
French: Thurs, Dec 3rd bring one French Christmas word to class.
Quiz on futur proche and adjectives Tues Dec 8.
French and Science Field trip: Thursday, Dec 10
location: Woodstock Museum National Historic Site, 466 Dundas St, Woodstock,
depart ICS: 12:25
return to ICS: 3:15
2 parent chaperones needed!


<<Découvrez la science!>> Permission Form (hand in to Mrs Schuurman by Tue Dec 8:

  • Yes, I give my child _________________________ permission to attend the French / Science field trip on Thursday December 10.
  • Yes, I can attend as a chaperone!

_______________________________________________
parent name and signature

Subway order Form - Thursday, December 17th
Due Monday Dec. 14th

Name:______________________Gr. _______
Teacher: ____________________

White or whole wheat (circle one)

Turkey  (2.75)_________
Ham (2.50)_______
Roast Beef (2.75)________

toppings I would like
___  lettuce
___  tomatoes
___  green peppers
___  cucumbers
___  black olives
___  green olives
___  hot peppers
___  jalepeno peppers
___  sub sauce
___  pickles
___  mayo
___  mustard

Total enclosed ___________
_________________________________
Parent Signature
Subway order Form - Thursday, December 17th
Due Monday Dec. 14th

Name:______________________Gr. _______
Teacher: ____________________

White or whole wheat (circle one)

Turkey  (2.75)_________
Ham (2.50)_______
Roast Beef (2.75)________

toppings I would like
___  lettuce
___  tomatoes
___  green peppers
___  cucumbers
___  black olives
___  green olives
___  hot peppers
___  jalepeno peppers
___  sub sauce
___  pickles
___  mayo
___  mustard

Total enclosed ___________
_________________________________
Parent Signature