Build Your Kingdom Here

A goal in writing an article in the Express each month is to keep parents in the loop regarding the happenings at school. An advantage the elementary campus has is that most of the students are quite eager to share what is happening at school. I am hoping that means that you have heard your children singing our theme song for the school this year, Build Your Kingdom Here. Every time we sing that song, I am impressed by the depth of understanding contained in the lyrics. And it is just fun to sing. Mr. Bakker has pointed out that we need to be careful not to sing it too often as that can dampen the vibrancy of the song. Still, if you would like to experience it at home, here is a link you might enjoy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=sbdJXKqVgtg A second link below gives a little more background into the Rend Collective Experiment, the group who originated the song. I am particularly struck by the focus on breaking down walls, and being a community in which we can share our hurts, our joys, and our struggles. The gratitude to God that infuses the Rend Collective is something that we all would like to see driving what we do in our learning community. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Vk2MpaTEzXw The truth that it is God who builds his kingdom is clear. The excitement comes in that God invites us to be part of that. Discerning what that means for ACES in what we do here on a daily basis is both challenging and inspiring. One way that we recently saw that happening (though a little beyond the normal day-to-day activities) was when the UP classes acted on the question, what if learning about our Abbotsford community meant learning how to serve. That meant visiting the Food Bank, Gleaners and the Salvation Army to see what they do and to contribute to that. It also meant cleaning up garbage at Mill Lake and handing out plants at Seven Oaks mall. It was gratifying to read on our Facebook site that this had an impact on at least one person who received a plant. As one person wrote on our chalkboard wall, "We get to build God’s kingdom every day." Thank you for your support in making that a reality.

Our New Lobby

“I love the colors!” “The school feels more cozy.” “Come see my picture!” “I bet no other school in Abbotsford has a lobby like ours!” Those were some of the comments from parents and students on seeing our newly renovated lobby. Regardless of whether you were as enthusiastically responsive as that, there is no doubt that the renovation is bold, and that it has brought even more excitement to the beginning of our school year. I like that. Two of my most enjoyable times at the beginning of the school year are the first day when staff gather for a continental breakfast during the teacher preparation week, and when all the students come into our opening chapel. The buzz during these times clearly tells me that this is indeed an exciting place to be. Excitement alone can be a fickle emotion, however. It needs to be grounded to have integrity. That is where the boldness comes in. I believe God is guiding ACS to be bold and innovative; to be a leader in quality education. That means taking risks. Julius Siebenga led the charge in developing our new lobby, and walked through the process most directly this summer, but we were all keenly aware of the risks involved. That is why the statements above were so gratifying to hear. Taking bold leadership in education is about more than colorful lobbies. It is discerning what is best educational practice; about letting God “unveil why we’re made”, to quote one of my favorite lines from this year’s theme song. Developing multi-age learning communities is one example of how we are trying to demonstrate that leadership. It is risky, it is a lot of hard work, and it requires continually praying for wisdom and discernment. And it means being fully invested in the process. That is why I love our new tagline – mind, heart, soul. As staff and students, we want to be fully involved in the process – engaging minds, nurturing hearts, and shaping God’s world. Our faithful God, who has carried us through 60 years, demands nothing less. We are humbled by that responsibility and by the trust the parents place in us in our endeavors. Together we rejoice in the sure knowledge that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever – Hebrews 13:8

How Do We Love Our Neighbor

October 4 and 5, the students had a couple of extra day to enjoy the wonderful weather we have been having. I know some families were able to take a bit of a holiday—camping, travelling, or just taking a day trip. The staff at ACS, meanwhile, joined with over 1000 other educators from BC and Washington for the annual CTABC convention, held in Lynden, Washington. A few of us also took advantage of the beautiful weather and cycled to Lynden. What a glorious way to start the day!

The theme for this year’s conference was “How Do We Love Our Neighbor”, based in part on Isaiah 61. Certainly the practical workshops at the convention are of great value for staff as we seek to provide quality Christian education. However, we were also challenged with the implications of this theme.

The highlight for most of us, I believe, was the two keynote addresses by Tony Campolo. He made the issue of social justice and loving our neighbor come alive with many insights and anecdotes; such as the time he threw a birthday party for a prostitute in a greasy spoon at 3:00 am. Dr. Campolo told us that to understand Isaiah 61, you need to go back to Leviticus and God’s command to hold a year of Jubilee. He called us to be a Jubilee people.

One of my favorite Campolo quotes is that we are not Christians unless our hearts are broken by the things that break the heart of Jesus. In our affluent, sanitized lifestyles I am not sure we are often confronted with the things that break the heart of Jesus, or we choose not to look.

But sometimes we do look, and then we need to act. Anything less is disobedience. The question for us at ACES is what does that look like for 3 to 11 year olds. What are the social justice issues that our children can learn to care about and do something about?

I believe one social justice issue that 3 to 11 year olds can care about, and have proven that they can act on, is providing clean drinking water for families in Ethiopia so that girls can go to school rather than walking many hours a day to collect water. The success of our Run for Water participation is surely one of which it can be said, “the Spirit of the Lord is upon us, to proclaim good news to the poor.” God be praised!

Let's Explore

Exploring with a Purpose. That is the logo at ACS. Sometimes logos such as this can become so familiar that we lose our appreciation for them, but for someone coming in from the outside it is fresh and new – and exciting. That is exactly what happened at the elementary school. While I don’t think this logo has become stale for most of us at ACS, someone new to our staff last year spoke about how much she appreciated what this logo means and the possibilities it has for a school theme. She convinced us and we will be using this as a guide for the learning that happens at ACES this year.

So what does that look like? Well, first of all, this theme is based in Psalm 24:1 –The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it. At ACS, we believe that everything we learn about reveals something about who God is. He is revealed to us in creation, and that is so much more than the majestic mountains, awesome sunsets and trickling brooks. It is our bodies, the gift of language, technology, structures, how numbers work and, well, everything… The really exciting part, I think, is that we don’t know exactly what it looks like. Each exploration by different individuals or groups reveals new insights, new discoveries and new opportunities for praise.

A twist on a familiar plot line

A Story

   “An Arab sheik was getting along in his years and he felt that it was time to name one of his sons as his successor.  Now he had three sons who were triplets.  He loved them all equally and did not know which one of them to choose as a successor.  So he sent them off to a distant land and promised them that the one who came back with the most useful learning would get the birthright.

   The three went off to distant lands; they attended universities and visited exotic places.  The first brother invented magic glasses with which he could see any place he wished to see.  The second son perfected a flying carpet on which he could travel to any part of the earth in five minutes.  The third son discovered a medicine that could cure any sickness.

   After some years the three brothers came together and shared what they had done and found.

   The first son looked through his magic glasses and saw his father dying.  The second son invited his brothers to hop on his flying carpet and within five minutes they were at their father’s bedside.  As soon as they were there the third son took out his medicine and cured their father at once.

   Now the Sheik was more confused than ever, since it took the work of all three of them to save his life …” (author unknown).

   The truth of the importance of working together contained in this story is something we strive for at ACS in a variety of ways:  grade level teams, educational assistants and teachers, collaborative groupings of students, to name a few.  Perhaps the most important is working together with the parents. We are grateful for that privilege.

Collaboration and Communication

The elementary staff have been having some rich conversations during our Thursday morning collaboration time and the Professional Development day on October 21. Grade level teams have been working on curriculum units with the intent of making them more integral, making the learning more meaningful, creating real life connections, thus improving opportunities for students to "explore, experience and evaluate all of life under God" (ACS Mission Statement). There is a great deal of excitement around the discussions and developments that are taking place. Some of our discussions have involved mixing up the grade level teachers as well, so teachers from grades Kindergarten to grade five talk about their practices and, specifically, about Professional Learning Communities. Our Special Education department and our Learning Assistant department also have regular discussions about the best ways to support the learning of the students they work with. Collaboration and communication focussed on student learning is a major factor in improving student learning.
Stating that and believing it is one thing. Realizing it is another. I do hear many positive comments about the learning that is taking place in our school. These comments, along with a very positive response from our recent government evaluation (see last month's posting) affirms for me that we are a leader in providing quality Christian education. I think more people need to know that so that the blessings we have received can be a blessing to even more families. I also recognize that we need to be continually improving and we value parental input as we do that. Put simply, if parents in our school think we are doing things well, I hope they are telling others. If they think we should be doing things better, I hope they are telling us. Again it all comes down to communication.
If you would like to know more about how collaboration is improving student learning at ACES, I would love to chat with you or even show you around so you can see it for yourself.

Evaluations

At the time of this writing, ACS is in the midst of a major government evaluation. An incredible amount of time and energy goes into preparing for these, with the process beginning nearly a year ago. Fortunately, these evaluations occur only once every six years. The primary purpose is to determine whether we should remain eligible for Category 1 funding, so meeting the criteria of the evaluation is extremely important.

At worst, this process seems like a bureaucratic exercise that simply must be endured. When we see it in that light, it is easy to become resentful of the apparent waste of time and energy. There is another way, a better way, to look at this process. I am somewhat ashamed to admit that I was too caught up in the anxiety of preparing for the evaluation, and it took the members of the evaluation team to open my eyes to this better way. They have been extremely impressed by what they have seen.  We meet the criteria of the evaluation, but so much more. One evaluator talked of the positive spirit that was prevalent throughout the school, something many other visitors to Abbotsford Christian School have commented on over the years. Another commented on the confident and polite attitude of the Secondary students. Those comments affirm what I/we already know – God is in this place!

Is the evaluation worth it? Yes! We must be held to the highest standard of education as measured by the society we are part of. But we need to do so much more. So we are challenged, but also have much reason to celebrate and give thanks! Having visitors to the school for whatever reason – government evaluations, prospective parents, outside professionals, even couriers is always exciting for us. It gives us a chance to share what God is doing this place as we seek to provide quality education the opens up God’s world to our students. Our desire is that all will be enriched in spending time here.