In This Issue
Senior Camping Retreat October 9-11
3rd-5th Grade ACT Aspire October 11-14
6th-7th Grade ACT Aspire October 12-13

Monday 10/10:
NO SCHOOL TK-12th Grade : Teacher Development Day
The Preschool is open!
 
Tuesday 10/11:
MS Flag Football at SRVCA | 3:30pm
 
Wednesday 10/12:
Women's Varsity Volleyball at Quarry Lane | 4:00pm
 
Thursday 10/13:
No Events
 
Friday 10/14:
Carline Coffee | 7:45-9:00am
Women's Varsity Volleyball hosts Athenian | 4:30pm
JV Football at Mesa Verde | 5:30pm
_____________________________________________ Back to Top

Chapel News
This week in Middle and High School Chapel we continued our chapel series entitled, Mosaic: Perspectives. Our students took a holistic approach to perspectives on prayer. Our Chapel formation team introduced different postures of prayer and then our students were released by grade level to breakout groups across campus. Each grade was able to learn 2 of 5 ways to communicate with the Lord.
  1. Lectio Divina: Praying the scriptures
  2. Ignatian Method: Virtual Experience of Scripture
  3. Praying the Psalms
  4. Intercessory Prayer: Praying For Others
  5. The Examen- Remembering the Day
We saw our entire community come together with respect and humility before the Lord. It was a moving and memorable time in our week. We encourage you to ask your students about which session they were a part of and how it impacted them. 




Spirit Wear
As the seasons are changing, don't forget to purchase your Vikings sweatshirts and outerwear at our online store! Go to www.vcsathletics.com and click on STORE to customize your order! Specials are running through 10/16, so don't wait to get your spirit wear! Sweatshirts or jackets from the Spirit Store are allowed as a part of the Elementary School uniform.

Oodles of Noodles
The Oodles of Noodles campaign has been extended for one more week! Elementary classes, Middle School clubs, and High School advisory groups will be competing to see which group can donate the most cup of noodles to help the Livermore Homeless Refuge prepare for their upcoming winter season. Learn more about the amazing work the refuge is doing here.  
  ____________________________________________ Back to Top


Parent/Teacher Conferences | October 17 & 18 
You will have the opportunity to sign up for conferences directly with your child's teacher. Be looking for a sign up sheet to be emailed by your child's teacher. CREW will be available for full days on a pre-registration basis only. You may register by filling out this form and returning it with payment to the elementary office or to CREW in Room 2. CREW is not available on a drop-in basis or for siblings of students.
 
Standardized Assessment | October 11-14 & 19.
This year grades 3-5 will be taking the ACT Aspire. This is a summative test measuring student progress and potential.  Please see this overview of ACT Aspire.

The ACT Aspire assessments will be the only standardized assessment administered this year. There will not be a spring assessment. T he test results we receive before the beginning of second semester will give our teachers data to inform their instruction through the late winter and spring quarters. At this time, Valley will not be administering TK-2 standardized assessments.

Car Line Coffee
Join us for our next Car Line Coffee on Friday, October 14 from 7:45-9:00am. Start your Friday off right and enjoy delicious food and coffee provided by Zorba's restaurant in Fremont! Drop off your kids and join other VCS parents and staff for a hot cup of coffee. It's a great way to connect with friends, meet new people, and see what's going on up on the hill! Coffee and goodies will be flowing from 7:45-9:00am in the parking lot near the Softball field. 

After School Enrichment | Spanish  
It's not too late to sign your child up for Spanish with our very own Sra. Romero. Sra. Romero has been teaching Spanish at Valley Christian School for many years. She has a contagious passion and excitement for all things Spanish and loves sharing her experience and knowledge to students of all ages. Classes are available Mondays for grades K-1 and Wednesdays for grades 2-5.  Fill out and return the registration form to the school office.
 
Enrichment Newsletter
See the attached monthly newsletter from our wonderful Enrichment teachers. 
_____________________________________________ Back to Top 
&


Parent/Teacher Conferences | October 17 & 18
We have set aside Monday, October 17 from 11:00am-7:00pm, and October 18 from 8:00am-4:00pm for Middle and High School teachers to be available for ten-minute conferences with parents.  There will be no classes in session, so no students need to come to campus. We encourage you to select 1-3 teachers to request a specific ten-minute appointment time for these days. Email these teachers directly to set a time.  For the others, plan to drop in when you can. For longer conferences, arrange an after school appointment during the regular school week, also via email.
 
First Quarter Progress Reports will be available at Parent/Teacher Conferences.

Standardized Testing - Coming Soon!
PSAT - October 19 (Wednesday) for Grades 10 and 11
ACT Aspire - October 12 & 13 (Wednesday & Thursday) for Grades 6 and 7
PSAT - November 29 (Tuesday) for Grades 8 and 9
 
Note: During second semester, students in grades 8-11 will take the ACT Aspire.

ACT Aspire assessments for grades 6 - 7, October 12 & 13.
  Our younger Middle School students will participate in this national norm-referenced test during the first half of their day on   Wednesday, October 12 and Thursday, October 13 . There is no extra study or preparation for these tests other than to ensure a good night's rest and a nutritious breakfast. ACT Aspire is a product put out by the same organization that publishes the ACT exam taken by juniors and seniors for college entrance. The test results we receive before the beginning of second semester will give our teachers data to inform their instruction through the late winter and spring quarters. The Aspire test also measures college and career readiness and, when used year over year, is one tool Valley Christian uses to prepare students incrementally for the college entrance exam they will eventually take.  Click here for more information about the ACT Aspire exam.

Senior Camping Retreat
Our seniors will be enjoying a trip to the beach this coming Sunday through Tuesday. It will be a fantastic time of connecting and building on solid friendships.

Middle School N.E.W.S
The Middle School N.E.W.S team is excited to announce their blog valleychristiannewsblog.wordpress.com .
 
Please visit and check out our work so far! We update each week with new content in the areas of sports, weekly themes, interviews, entertainment, and more!
 
P2P Tutoring
We are excited to introduce a new peer-to-peer tutoring program focused on building a solid mathematics foundation for 8th, 9th, and 10th graders. The program will pair a high school upperclassman with an underclassman together for a minimum of one quarter, during which the two will meet each Tuesday after school. The tutor will be in communication with the teacher to determine areas that need extra work, and reinforce those topics through individualized lessons using physical and online resources. This program is completely free of cost, but space is limited. 
 
If you believe that your student would benefit from this individualized tutoring and is available Tuesday after school, please email gary.zhuge@valleychristianschools.org with your student's name, grade level, and current Math course. 
  _____________________________________________ Back to Top  


This week, as part of a unit on African music, Global Music Appreciation students had the opportunity to learn from Kele Nitoto, a professional percussionist and educator hailing from Oakland.  Students began the 2-day workshop by playing various percussion instruments from Africa such as gankeke cowbells of various sizes.  They progressed to learn the difference between a bass, tone, and slap when playing a djembe, as well as the relationship between drumming and dancing.  Students used their voices in the typical call and response manner of African vocal music, lead by Kele, combined with drumming on djembes and ultimately joined by our own faculty, Samantha Whitley, in dance!  



____________________________________________ Back to Top