Tiger Tracks San Jose Christian School | January 12, 2015 This Week at SJCS See Sports Section for Practice & Game Schedule
Monday See Sports Section
Tuesday
1/12 1/13
Word of Mouth Training 2:30pm SJCS Auditorium
Wednesday
1/14
No Events
Thursday See Sports Section
Friday
1/15 1/16
SJCS In-Service Day No Classes PS-8 Extended Care Available for JK-8
Attendance Line (408) 371-4815
A message from Jenn Thompson Dear SJCS Community, I am so excited that God has called me to join the San Jose Christian School family. What a blessing to have the opportunity to serve the Lord at a truly Christ-centered school that enjoys such a rich heritage. I am looking forward to joining your team and working together for God’s glory and His Kingdom. My fifteen years at Westminster Christian School have been years of growth, joy, building friendships, and watching the Lord work in the lives of students, teachers and families. It has filled my heart to serve my Savior here, and it is difficult to leave a place I love so much. I know that with God’s strength and in striving to fulfill His purposes, I will have those same experiences at SJCS. I am looking forward to meeting each of you personally when I relocate in June and perhaps sooner as my schedule allows a visit. May this year be filled with God’s grace and mercy as we seek to know and follow Him. I am looking forward to what God has in store for us. Joyfully Serving, Jenn Thompson (Recently appointed SJCS Superintendent beginning July 1, 2015.)
Infant Care Available for Caterpillars
Advanced Dates January 19 SJCS School Holiday - No Classes Campus Closed
January 20 SJCS Word of Mouth Training 2:30pm & 5:30pm (rsvp to bphillips@sjchristian.org)
January 24 Prospective Family Open House at SJCS 10am - 1pm
February 2 Minimum Day - Early Dismissal at 11:45am
February 2 All School Open House (for new and current families) 6:30pm
Frozen Friday Frozen Friday will begin on Jan 23rd for students in grades 1st through 8th. The sign up form is online.
Let’s Celebrate with the Fung Family We are excited to celebrate with one of our 5th grade students. Miss Fung won Best Elementary/Middle School film at the recent CreaTiVe Awards in San Jose, California. Her film, “Checkmate” first debuted here at SJCS at our Inaugural Film Fest last spring. Miss Fung gave a a heartfelt acceptance speech and we are so excited she is sharing her talents with the community.
8th Grade Graduation Photos Still Light Studios will be taking 8th Grade Graduation photos on Thursday, January 22. Please remember to have boys dress in a button down shirt and tie. Both a formal and "street clothes" photo will be taken along with a class photo. Be sure to submit your completed order form including payment on the 22nd. Contact Mrs. Singh in the front office should you have any additional questions.
Tiger Tracks January Series Lectures Every January, SJCS serves as a satellite location for a series of lectures from Calvin College. The talks are from renowned speakers and cover a wide range of topics. Hear from an amazing list of guest speakers. For a full list of speakers and topics, visit www.calvin.edu/january. January Series brochures are available in the office and on the credenza in the auditorium as well.
Re-Enrollment Paperwork is being mailed home this Friday. January 15 SJCS will launch re-enrollment for the 2015-2016 school year. The office team is working on the paperwork and details will be mailed home this Friday.
Spread the word… The SJCS Board is offering a 10% discount to new students enrolling in classes that, according to SJCS guidelines, currently have space for more students. This begins immediately and continues throughout the 2015-2016 school year.
Volunteers REALLY Needed! With the Open House coming up, we are looking for volunteers to help with exterior cleaning and landscaping to get our campus looking its best. Please contact Mrs. Phillips she needs your help.
Email today for SJCS Parent “Word of Mouth” Training! Tomorrow, January 13 will be your first opportunity for SJCS Word of Mouth Training! Betsy Phillips will be training parents on how to tell their SJCS story and how to invite families to SJCS. This is a critical piece in growing our enrollment. Sessions will be held in the Auditorium. RSVP for your session by emailing bphillips@sjchristian.org. Tuesday, January 13 | 2:30pm - space available! Tuesday, January 20 | 2:30pm or 5:30pm -space available!
January Open House On Saturday, January 24, we are hosting our second Open House event of the year. We have attached a copy of the event agenda for you to use to invite potential friends and family. Remember the Open House event is Saturday, January 24 from 10am-1pm.
Tiger Cubs|Preschool News! Preschool Learning Centers Preschool classrooms are usually organized around interest areas or learning centers. These defined areas allow children to play and explore materials with the guidance of the teacher either individually or in small groups. Children are encouraged to move freely among the areas. Skills that lead to reading and writing and math are not confined to specific centers, but rather reinforced in different ways throughout the centers via communication, exploration and play. What are they? A center is a collection of materials designed purposely with a goal in mind. They are intended for the learner to develop new knowledge, reinforce concepts and/or extend their thinking or skills. Students work with the materials to develop, discover, create and learn a task at their own pace. Students are responsible for their learning during the center time. There is always an established purpose for each center. Why do we use centers? Centers allow for: • Thoughtfulness in student choice • Creativity • Multiple Intelligences • Levels of Readiness • Independence and Interdependence
Chess Club Starts Tomorrow! The chess club, led by Chess Wizards, begins tomorrow from 3:15-4:15 in room 19. Mr. I has only received 4 registrations, but many more people have expressed interest. We need a minimum of 7 students to run the program, so please email Mr. I today if you plan for your child to attend. If you did not turn in the registration flyer, you can still send it in or register and pay online at www.chesswizards.com. Because Chess Wizards is a third party vendor, we have less freedom in accepting late registrations, so please be sure to email Mr. I and register as soon as possible.
Tiger Tracks Tiger Stripes Reflections on Who We Are by: Bart Den Boer This is the fifth article in a series reporting on some strategic objectives identified by Board, staff, and community members at our fall strategic planning sessions. I welcome your comments at bdenboer@sjchristian.org. Strategic Objective #3: Expand and Enhance Educational Offerings For High Achieving Students With our students averaging two to three grade levels above their counterparts in other private schools, SJCS obviously has many high achieving students. We designed our Learning Center to meet the needs of students who are developmentally below their peers. Highly achieving students have different needs. So far the Education Committee of the SJCS Board is investigating a more challenging math program generally, but also including extension activities appropriate for high achievers. It also plans additional after school programs like our successful Robotics offering. As we move forward to meet this objective, we are also considering appointing a faculty advocate for high achievers, and tracking our efforts to meet such individual needs from grade to grade.
Teacher Tales!
Check this section each week for exciting stories about teachers doing great things in the classrooms of SJCS.
Words of Gratitude For their winter service project the 3rd grade, with their 6th grade buddies, spread Christmas cheer to shut-ins, those grieving the loss of loved ones, and those simply in need of a smile. Students sent cards to people outside our school community. They included warm Christmas wishes, personalized greetings, and a class picture of all the students who participated in this project. Since writing these cards we’ve received words of thanks and notes from several of the people we’ve blessed. Ms. Veurink shared these words about the project, “I received a phone call from the daughter of my friend, Suzie. Suzie just finished her 5th round of chemo. She's usually a very upbeat and positive person but this latest round of chemo has been difficult and has gotten her spirits pretty down. Her daughter, Jolee, shared that the cards arrived on a particularly hard day. Her mom, Suzie, was brought to tears--good tears--by the cards. She was so grateful and amazed that a group of kids were thinking of her and praying for her. Jolee was also brought to tears by the words on the cards and the love the kids showed her mom. So thanks for brightening up the life and spirit of someone going through a rough season of life.” Through this project these students demonstrated compassion and love for those they’ve never even met. It was great to see SJCS students demonstrating “Love Does.”
Sports this week
Girls Basketball:
The girls defeated Achiever Christian by a score of 40-22 this past Wednesday. The Lady Tigers took an early lead with a score of 18-0 after the first quarter. The girls were in total control of the game from start to finish. All of the Tigers scored in a well earned victory. Girls Basketball This week: Monday: SJCS vs. Baymonte 3:30 @ Lincoln Glen Church Tuesday: SJCS vs. Achiever 3:30 @ Almaden Comm. Center Wednesday: Practice 3:15-5:00 Thursday: SJCS vs. Campbell Christian 4:45 @ Campbell Christian
Boys Basketball: The Boys Basketball Team lost both games last week and will need to increase their intensity and mental toughness if they plan to make it to the playoffs next week. They are working on playing their brand of basketball again with pressing their opponent, forcing turnovers and scoring in transition. The Tigers continue to play for God and each other and are an example on and off the court. Boys Basketball This week: Monday: SJCS vs. Baymonte 4:45 @ Lincoln Glen Church Tuesday: SJCS vs. Achiever 4:45 @ Almaden Community Center Wednesday: 3:15-5:00 Thursday: SJCS vs. Campbell Christian 3:30 @ Campbell Christian