Christ-Centeredness at HVCS

A handful of teachers, a board member, and I recently had an excellent discussion that I believe will help you understand the core of what we do and who we are at Hickory Valley Christian School. We were evaluating our Bible curriculum. Instead of reviewing various curricula, we started out with one basic question: When a student graduates from HVCS, what spiritual qualities and characteristics should he or she demonstrate? This question brought forth an hour's worth of fruitful discussion.

At the conclusion of the meeting, we agreed on four characteristics that we want our students to have when they leave HVCS:
(1) Our students should be Biblically literate
(2) Our students should demonstrate a godly character
(3) Our students should begin to take ownership of their faith in Jesus Christ
(4) Our students should demonstrate the ability to apply Scripture in their own lives

These four characteristics will define what we teach in Bible, how we interact with each other, parents, and students, along with what curricula is selected.

Based on this discussion, our next meeting will involve defining what "Biblical literacy", "godly character", and "apply Scripture to their own lives". We need to determine what those mean at HVCS. These four ideal goals are the primary reasons why those who serve in the capacity of faculty, staff, and administration do what they do at HVCS. We strive to help our children develop a strong foundation in their faith in Christ by partnering with families. We see ourselves as here to help families as they raise their children.

I hope your Thanksgiving was a great one! May the Lord bless you as you seek Him!

Globalization at HVCS

We are in our second year of what I call our "global perspective" at HVCS. Our global perspective began as a desire to expose our students to a variety of cultures because we recognize that the world in which we live is getting "smaller" and more "flat". By smaller and more flat, I mean that our world is much more connected than in prior years, and our children are exposed and interact with various peoples and cultures much more than the generation before the one now coming through K-12 schools. Technology is the primary factor that has moved the world in this direction. This will continue for the foreseeable future. Given this different world, HVCS is and will be taking steps to address what and how children should learn.

Over the past two years, we have celebrated India and Brazil. Our students have learned songs in Hindi, Indian cultural dance, received henna tattoos, learned greetings in Portuguese and Hindi, and they have celebrated holidays from both cultures. These countries are integrated into the classroom experience and each grade learns about one continent per year. Our fifth grade has partnered with a school in Mexico to create a proposal to make an impact on global poverty. Our service organizations focus on poverty in other countries and in our own country.

What is my dream about where HVCS goes from here with our global perspective?
(1) Over the long-term I would like us to weave global issues into our curriculum. In this way content is taught with these key issues in mind that our children will face in the future
(2) Continue to celebrate at least one country per year to learn more in-depth about its culture and people
(3) To increase respect for cultural differences that exist in the world
(4) To develop the skill of collaboration and to believe that one can make a significant contribution to the world
(5) To use our existing and future technology to enhance the children's global perspective

Globalization has and is impacting us; however, in the future, it will have an even more significant impact for our children. We want to prepare our children for the world they will live in not just the one they live in now.

Academic Excellence at HVCS

There are many Christian independent schools in Chattanooga, and each school serves in reaching students for Jesus in its own way. HVCS strives to develop each child's maximum potential. Today's blog post is one way we pursue our mission. Over the next several weeks, I will introduce how HVCS influences the development of each child.

 

Our mission is "We strive for the development of each child's maximum potential: intellectually, spiritually, socially, physically, and emotionally, within a warm and caring environment through an individualized program. We exist to enable students to become productive, contributing citizens with Christ-like faith and Christian commitment."

 

This week's focus is on our honors critical thinking/reading class offered to fourth and fifth grade students. HVCS attempts to individualize its program. In light of this, we group students by ability and/or skill in our core subjects (math and reading). The reason behind this approach is that a teacher better meets each student's needs by teaching to a homogeneous group as opposed to a setting where the children have a wide diversity of acadmic abilities. As a part of this philosophy, HVCS created an honors course for those who scored in the 85% on the SAT 10 test in the area of critical thinking. This group has been reading The Count of Monte Cristo, The Chronicles of Narnia, and they will be reading King Arthur soon! Students complete five-paragraph essays and work on a multitude of writing activities.

 

Mrs. Carlone teaches this course. Mrs. Stynchcombe teaches those not attending the honors class. In Mrs. Stynchcombe's reading course, the students experience a thorough study of vocabulary, grammar, and literature where the group is further divided into three groups. She has them debate topics, try various countries food, along with other fun and exciting opportunities. Both groups are currently writing an argumentative essay on whether leadership is innate or developed based on certain readings.

 

Next school year, if the Lord wills, we want to have an honors math course for fourth and fifth grades to go hand-in-hand with the critical thinking course. More information on that as the school year continues.

 

HVCS offers the National Elementary Honors Society to our fourth and fifth grade students who have a 90% average in their school work for at least three semesters consecutively. This is a prestigious club to be involved in that not only focuses on academic achievement, but also focuses on community service and leadership- two aspects I will discuss in a future blog that focuses on developing a different part of the whole child.

 

Academic excellence at HVCS is strewn throughout the grades. In this blog I want to give you a picture of the end result or product of the education your children receive at HVCS. This week's blog focuses on one way in which we strive to meet our mission. This blog focuses on developing the intellectual potential of our children.

 

Over the next two weeks, we will continue this discussion by focusing on what we do to fulfill our mission by helping students develop socially and spiritually.

Who are we (HVCS)?

It has been quite a while since I added a blog post to the Hickory Valley Christian School blog! I am excited to get moving on this on a weekly basis. We have 39 new students this year who God has blessed us with at HVCS. Our enrollment is up in an unstable economy and last year we saw the greatest amount of funds raised on behalf of the school in its history!

We have introduced an honors course for fourth and fifth grades and a chapter of the National Elementary Honor Society! HVCS continues to offer a leadership class for fifth grade, K-Kids for grades two through five and a global perspective school-wide. This year we are delving into the culture of Brazil (Brasil)!

Who are we (HVCS)? We are more than a private nonprofit institution and there are several qualities that distinguish us:
- Christ-centered staff and instruction- Christian principles are integrated throughout the school day (not just the curriculum)
- Learning is centered on the child- We do not use one particular curriculum. Our teachers use a multitude of approaches based on the needs of the children. I call this their "tool belt" of instructional strategies and materials.
- We stretch, not push- We believe in challenging each child to his or her greatest potential- not to drive the child to the point of frustration. This leads me to the next point...
- Learning should be fun!- I want our children to leave HVCS after fifth grade LOVING school...not dreading it.
- Global perspective- As a school, we explore one country's culture per school year. In each grade, children are exposed to a continent per year. We want our children to understand that being global is certainly a Christian concept where we maintain our distinctiveness yet embrace the diversity that exists in our country and the world around us.

Please visit our website: www.hvcs.org or our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Hickory-Valley-Christian-School-Official-Fan-Page/113606058657458