Mack Memo

Mack Memo ~ Parent Newsletter

2/1/2021

Ms. Elaine Gibbs, 5th Grade Teacher

Dear Mack Families,

Hello, my name is Ms. Gibbs. I’ve been teaching for the past 48 years and have had the great pleasure of teaching Mack 5th graders for the past 20 years.

My Deep Hope for my class this year is that they become Creation-Enjoyers while witnessing God’s amazing handiwork in Earth’s oceanic environment. We began our marine biology study with the Scripture verses in Genesis which tell us how God created the oceans and the great creatures of the sea, followed by in-depth study of ocean zones, cycles, vocabulary, sand types, sea creatures and pollution. The students were inspired to become Earth-Keepers; to personally connect their learning with a desire to protect and preserve God’s oceans and sea creatures.

Our class' Teaching for Transformation tagline is “Think Globally, Act Locally.” We looked closely at how plastic is destroying the world’s oceans (globally) and launched a discussion of how we could each make a difference (locally).

Fifth-grade students reduced the amount of disposable plastic that they bring to school. Many students now bring reusable utensils to school with their lunches rather than using plastic ones and help to recycle plastics at home.

Each student chose a sea creature to research, including the sea creature’s scientific name, habitat, feeding type, prey, predators, young, and its connection with people. They developed a multi-media PowerPoint to share with the class, and then used their facts to create three types of poems to display on a hand-drawn picture. The final product was a product called a perimeter poem. Below is one of many very creative projects.

Reminders & Announcements

2021-22 Reenrollment

Thank you to families who reenrolled for the next school year during our Priority Reenrollment period, which concluded yesterday. If you have not yet completed reenrollment and would like to do so, please contact Admissions at admissions@bellevuechristian.org to inquire about space availability and to request access to the enrollment portal in RenWeb.

Feb.

Early Release Day

Elementary Only, No PM Preschool

Thank you!

The faculty and staff are immensely grateful for the parent community who come along side us day and day out.

We felt especially blessed last week with a cornucopia of yummy treats that were provided by the PTF. Your heart for generous giving and encouraging words of affirmation filled our hearts.

So, thank you!

Valentine's Day Celebrations

Below are guidelines for our upcoming Valentine's Day celebrations. If you have specific questions, please reach out to your child's classroom teacher.

Similar to Christmas parties, teachers may allow individual treat bags (no home-baked goods please)

All items in the bags need to be individually wrapped.

Students are encouraged to bring their Valentine cards in early, ideally by this Thursday or Friday, 2/4 or 2/5.

Students will deliver their Valentines to bags in a specific part of the classroom, one at a time, distanced from one another.

The Valentine bags/holders will be sent home on Thursday, 2/11.

Valentines will be sent home, and not opened in class. This will allow the parents to decide if they want their child to eat any attached treat(s).

If students attach candy to the Valentines, they need to be store-bought, sealed and individually wrapped.

Thank you!

Chipotle Fundraiser - Save the Date!

BCS Theatre presents, "Alice in Wonderland"

The BCS theatre program is offering a FREE viewing of their performance of "Alice in Wonderland". The play is student-produced and will be ON DEMAND on February 12 & 13.

You all know the story of how Alice tumbles down a mysterious rabbit hole and finds herself in a strange land where everyone is raving mad. With the help of a Cheshire Cat, an astute Caterpillar, and a righteous Humpty Dumpty, Alice must find her way home and discover who she really is. This is a darker, more faithful version of Lewis Carroll's classic tale that reimagines the experience of Wonderland, and ends with an unexpected new twist.

Join us for this entertaining, student-produced play. It will be available on-demand on the dates above via this link:

https://bit.ly/2XEKi1J.

BCS 2021 Auction

Blake DeYoung '93

Chief Advancement Officer

Registration opened last week for our 2021 Auction set for Saturday, March 20! We hope you'll make plans to check out our online bidding starting Mar. 15 and register for the free event Mar. 20.

Livestream Event:

March 20

6:30pm: Tune-in and view auction items

7pm: Livestream event begins

This year's theme is "Together in Spirit," and features a live stream program straight to your home, including a silent and live auction with Auctioneer Fred Northrup, Jr, and Asst. Principal and event Emcee Mike Olson. We will have delicious food and wine packages available for pickup in advance of the event, and an opportunity to "Raise the Paddle" in support of Bellevue Christian's Fine and Performing Arts programs! Our fundraising goal is $450,000.

Elementary News

Growing Up Godly (4, 5 & 6th Grades)

Parents of fourth, fifth and sixth grader, please be sure to click HERE for more information, waivers and in class curriculum surrounding sex education coming up next month.

Please email Devon Woodard, elementary counselor with any questions.

Chapel

Each week we set aside time to worship and learn about God together. Click on the box below to watch this week's Chapel, hosted by Rev. Daniel Rogers.

Watch this week's Chapel

Preschool Highlights

All of Bellevue Christian utilizes a framework for helping our students to understand what it means to live as children of God.

This framework, “Teaching for Transformation (TfT),” centers on ways for the children to understand and experience ten different habits and practices, including beauty creating, God worshiping, creation enjoying, and community building.

Over the next month we are going to highlight some ways these ideas are incorporated into the preschool classroom.

Perhaps the most frequently exercised TfT habit in our preschool program is beauty creation, as the children spend time every day in the classroom creating all sorts of fun things for the joy of doing so (and the pleasure of taking them home to Mom and Dad)! While creating beauty, the children are also developing their focus and fine motor skills, as they draw and paint, use scissors and glue, sprinkle glitter, and so much more.

These are a few recent photos of some of our beauty creators in action, as well as a display of the oldest class’s creations.