In This Issue:
  • News from Ms. Linda Dahnke
  • Welcome To Fall Y'all Fun Day
  • SCRIP program up and running
  • School-wide Field Trip
  • NWEA Testing
  • Tardies
  • Security
  • More BCA News
  • Dates to Remember
News from Ms. Linda Dahnke, Head of School

Defective Recorders

My friend is a music teacher and still teaches students the ear-tingling recorder in her classes. Yesterday, she posted that one of her students told her that his recorder was defective because it was not making pretty sounds and playing the right notes. She reminded him that he was in control of the recorder and had to make the adjustment himself by either holding his fingers down harder or adjusting how hard he blew into it. She was able to give him a mini lesson on cause and effect. As I read this, it had devotion written all over it. 

I sometimes think that my "recorder" is defective. I think I am doing or saying the right things and either it gets misinterpreted or I never actually said it but thought it and things just do not go my way. I go through life expecting that things will always fall into place and will go as I planned without too much effort. To be fair, things normally work well and move along smoothly without much thought, until something goes wrong. Then, it is quite easy for me to either point fingers at those around me or to even look at God and question what He is thinking by allowing things to happen to me. I convince myself that I had nothing to do with the outcome of a situation and that it must be the fault of someone else. 

Matthew 7:3 reminds us that we need to take inventory of our own lives rather than looking at what others have done. What has been my responsibility in making things go wrong? What have I done to wrong another? Our bodies are instruments much like that recorder. We can either be shrill or soft, full of hot air or silent, beautiful sounding or ear-tingling. It is our choice and one that requires holding tightly to God as we realize that He has gifted us with a free will and a chance to do things as we choose or to do things as we should. The choice is ours. Let's make some beautiful music together.

Welcome to Fall Y'all
What a fun day to celebrate fall and to celebrate our students and faculty at BCA! The students were all decked out in fall colors and looked stunning. The also completed the day with an impromptu (at least for them) dance party during lunch. Look for pictures to be posted on our Facebook page . Welcome to Fall Y'all!!!!!

Trinity Hope Update
As your student may have told you, our $1 Jeans Day proceeds and our Chapel offerings for this quarter go to Trinity Hope , a Christian organization that works hard to raise funds that will allow them to feed children in Haiti. Each quarter will feed one meal to a child. As of this week, we have offered up enough money to feed almost 1000 meals to the children in Haiti. That is awesome! We will be collecting money for several more weeks, so remember to send in those quarters, dollars, etc. Every penny counts.

SCRIP
SCRIP is up and running and ready for your purchase. You must register before you buy so that we make sure your credit gets in your account. This can be done online, which you can access by going to shopwithscrip.com , or by filling out the form that comes with the information pages. Your friends and family from anywhere in the U.S. can buy physical gift cards, egift cards, or mobile gift cards with some of the rebates going directly into your student's account and a percentage of it going towards the BCA Student Scholarship fund. There is no limit on how many people can sign up and contribute to your account so start sharing with others. BCA has a code that you must use when you register. 

To register for a new account: Visit the website and click on "Create Account" and "Family Sign-up" on the left. Then complete steps 1-5. Accept your account information. The BCA School Enrollment Code is 464DEE2B5264L. This  will only have to be entered one time when you register. If you have questions after you receive your initial information, please feel free to call the office and let us know. 

8th Grade High School Visits
As we always like to do, we are beginning our 8th grade student visits to a few local parochial high schools as our students prepare to leave the halls of BCA for bigger things.  Tuesday, Sept. 27, will be the first visit for students. All 8th grade students will be visiting Notre Dame on that day. On Tuesday, October 4, they will be visiting Chattanooga Christian School. Finally, on Wednesday, October 26, they will be visiting Boyd-Buchanan. This is a great opportunity for our students to visit these schools.

NWEA Testing
During the next two weeks, our students will be taking the NWEA (Northwest Evaluation Association) test. This test will take the place of Iowa Basics that are given in the spring. The NWEA will be given now and in the spring and is designed to predict student growth and then to measure it again towards the end of the year. It will help us, as a faculty, to determine any issues that need to be corrected in our curriculum or overall program. We will share those results within a couple of weeks of the test with explanations on how to read them. If your student is in Kindergarten, 1st, or 2nd grade we would ask that you send in a pair of headphones, just for your student, to use during the computer-based test. K-2 will be given their test orally. We will send a schedule of testing along with more specific details you might need to know by Monday of next week. 

All-School Field Trip Day for PK3 - 8th Grade
Please mark your calendars for  Fri., Oct. 7 for a school-wide field trip to  the Chattanooga Zoo. We will leave the school at  9:15 a.m. and return around 1:15 p.m. Permission slips were sent home today. 

Transportation: Students in kindergarten through 8th grade will be riding on buses. We have rented two buses for that day.

Students in Pre-K3/4 will need to ride with parents due to the requirement for children of that age to be in car seats, which bus seating cannot accommodate. Parents may drive their own child to the Zoo, and may carry other children, only if they have at least the minimum required car insurance that allows them to carry other non-family passengers. Please see Mrs. Slaten in the front office for a form to complete if you would like to drive on the field trip. 

Please pray that the weather cooperates that day as we continue to build community among our student body.

End of First Quarter
The end of first quarter is fast approaching. October 7 is our last day for the first quarter. If your student has work to complete for the quarter, please encourage him/her to work on that to get that completed. Encourage your student to talk with the teacher if he/she has questions for clarification. Students, you can do this! Finish the quarter strong!

Tardies
The tardies are creeping up on many students. As a reminder, the bell will ring at 8 a.m. for students to go to their classrooms. At 8:15 a.m., if a student is not in the classroom, he/she will be marked tardy. It is crucial for ALL students from Pre-K3 - 8th grade to be on time every day. The work habits we form in our young students will stick with them for life. Also, if a student comes in late, it disrupts everyone else and whatever is happening in the classroom at the time. Please continue to work on this. Thank you in advance.

Security
A parent was asking about our security procedures at BCA this week. First of all, we work hard to lock the exterior doors to the building throughout the day. Sometimes, we forget to lock them behind us but the doors are checked often. Second, if anyone wants to come into school, they have to buzz at the front office. Most of the time, we know who is coming through the doors so it is not a big deal. If not, there is no hesitation to ask the person who they are and what they need to do. Usually, if they do not belong here, they will just leave.
We have also found that just letting strangers know that we see them usually causes them to leave and not return. You have to know that we would not hesitate to call the police at any time. We would rather be wrong and safe than have even one tiny incident. 

This year, we will be participating in more yellow and red lockdown drills, too. In the case of an active shooter on campus or in the neighborhood, we would want to be prepared and know what to do next. If necessary, we will also make changes to the crisis management plan based on what has worked here and what has not. Please know that your student's safety is of the utmost concern. When your student is here, they are our babies and we love them very much!
MORE BCA NEWS 

Chapel 
Everyone is welcome to join us for our Chapel Service on Wednesday, September 28 at 8:30 a.m. at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church. Pastor Pingel from First Lutheran Church will be our chapel leader. Our first quarter chapel offerings will to go Trinity/HOPE. Trinity/HOPE's Haitian Feeding Program's Mission Statement is "Bringing HOPE to the children of Haiti one bowl of beans and rice at a time." Our goal is to contribute to them in providing at least one good meal each day for approximately 20,600 children of Haiti.

Birthdays
We would like to wish a very Happy Birthday to the following this week:
9/28 - McKenzie West (6th) 
9/29 - Jeffrey Polley (8th)

Cross Country
9/26/16 CC Meet at Woodland Park Baptist Church
9/27/16 Practice (3:30 - 4:15)
9/29/16 CC Meet at Camp Jordan (grades 3-5 only)
9/30/16 End of Season Celebration

Soccer 
The first soccer practice for grades 4th - 8th will be on Thurs., Sept. 29 from 3:30 - 5 p.m. All players should bring shin guards, cleats, soccer ball and a water bottle to practice. If you have any questions, please see Mr. Streufert.

BCA Post Office 
BCA has a great opportunity for students to practice their reading and writing skills including addressing an envelope and writing a letter. Our student postal workers will develop valuable life skills as they organize and deliver the mail and "sell" and cancel stamps. Students are able to send letters to each other, teachers and staff, and you are able to send letters as well. If you want to "mail" a letter to your child, please place it in the "special" BCA mail box at either the front or back entrance, or give it to the postal worker at the post office which is located right outside the library. We will deliver the letters as soon as possible. Please not do use the post office to return permission slips, make payments, or conduct any other official school business.

Blue Jean $ Day
We will have a blue jean $1 day on Fri., Sept. 30. Students may wear acceptable jeans and a dress code shirt for $1. Proceeds will go to Trinity/HOPE to buy meals for children in Haiti.

Fall Pictures 
Oct. 5 - Mark your calendars for fall pictures to be taken on Wednesday, October 5. This will be for Infants - Middle School students as well as sports pictures for Volleyball, Cross Country and Soccer. Chapel dress code is required for K - Middle School students.

Fall Break 
BCA will be closed Oct. 10 - 14 for Fall Break. For children in the CCC (Infants - Pre-K4), we will remain open as usual, and BCA Day Care will be available f or students in K - 8th who need child care that week.  

There is a $15 per day, per child, non-refundable, pre-paid fee for students in K - 8th. In order for your child to be counted, you will need to sign up and turn in your money to Melissa Swafford.  The K - 8th grade students will need to bring a lunch and drink each day. Please see Melissa Swafford if you have any questions. Deadline to sign up for K - 8th students is 3 p.m. on Wed., Oct. 5. 

News from Thrivent Financial - OCTOBERFEST 
Thrivent Financial announces their Ninth Annual Oktoberfest on Sat., Oct. 1 from 1 p.m. to 6 pm. The event will be at the First Lutheran Campground, at 1621 Lee Pike, Soddy Daisy, TN, right on the beautiful waters of Possum Creek before it empties into Chickamauga Lake.  

Lots of games and prizes from 1-3 p.m. Dinner starts at 3:30 p.m. and includes bratwurst & sauerkraut, German potato salad, baked beans, desserts and drinks. For the children, there will also be roasted hotdogs and potato chips. Tickets are $5 for adults and No Charge for children 14 & under. For more information and to purchase tickets, contact Elaine Burns, phone (423) 236-4660 or email at [email protected].

MENU
Mon., Sept. 26 - Chicken Pot Pie, Rice, Peaches
Tues., Sept. 27 - Cheese Omelet, Hash browns, Sausage, Fruit Cocktail
Wed., Sept. 28 - Swedish Meatballs, Noodles, Peas, Fruit
Thurs., Sept. 29 - Hot Dog, Chips, Carrots w/ranch, Pears
Fri., Sept. 30 - Mexican Pizza, Salad, Fruit
Dates to Remember...
  
Fri., Sept. 30 - Blue Jean $1 Day

Wed., Oct. 5 - Fall and Sports Pictures

Fri., Oct. 7 - Field trip to the Chattanooga Zoo (Pre-K3 - 8th)

Oct. 10 - 14 - Fall Break (No School, CCC will be open)

Mon., Oct. 17 - School Resumes

Sat., Oct. 22 - Fall Festival (10 a.m. - 2 p.m.)

Tues., Oct. 25 - Open House for Prospective Families (4 - 7 p.m.)

Fri., Oct. 28 - Parent/Teacher Conferences (No School, CCC will be open)

Wed., Nov. 9 - Community Heroes Chapel at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church

Fri., Nov. 11 - Family Cookout and Hayride (6 - 8 p.m.)

Sat., Nov. 19 - East Ridge Christmas Parade (6:30 p.m.)

Nov. 21 - 25 - Thanksgiving Break (No School, CCC open Monday & Tuesday)

Mon., Nov. 28 - School Resumes

Dec. 5 - 9 - Candy Cane Shop

Thurs., Dec. 15 - Christmas Program (K - 8th grade) 7 p.m.

Fri., Dec. 16 - Dismissal at 11:30 a.m.

Dec. 19 - Jan. 3 - Christmas Break (No School)

Jan. 4 - School Resumes
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