Home/Royal News/Lower/Lower School Blog, Week of August 10

IMPORTANT UPCOMING EVENTS & DATES 

Parents, please take a moment to mark your calendars. The following are important dates that you do not want to miss:

  • August 10th:  Alternative Lunch for K4-8th Grade
  • August 11th:  Alternative Lunch for K4-8th Grade
  • August 15th:  Lower School Curriculum Night (6:00PM & 7:00PM)
  • August 16th:  Happy Birthday TFA!
  • August 22nd:  Parent Association Volunteer Breakfast 8:15-9:45AM (Student Center)

CHAPEL VENUES, DATES, & TIMES

The following is a list of upcoming chapel dates and times:

  • August 24th:  K4-5th Grade Chapel 8:30AM (Faith Hall)
  • August 24th:  6th-12th Grade Chapel 9:25AM (Worship Center)
  • August 31st:  K4-5th Grade Chapel-Mrs. Bell’s 5th Grade Class Presentation 8:30AM (Faith Hall)
  • August 31st:  6th-12th Grade Chapel 9:25AM (Worship Center)

A NOTE FROM MRS. JACKSON

You officially have one day of the school year under your belt.   Let’s talk about an important event that is coming up next week:  Curriculum Night.    I recognize that many families are very busy with after-school activities such as sports, fine arts, and possibly even service groups or church events because I am one of those families.     Sometimes these events make attending nighttime events during the week challenging.   Curriculum Night is one you do not want to miss!   Our Lower School teachers share important information that can make the start of the school year go a little smoother.   They are also available to answer questions specific to curriculum and special projects within the grade level.    We will host two different sessions for those families with multiple children with one beginning at 6:00pm and the other at 7:00pm.  I promise you that it will be an hour of your time that is very well spent.   For those of you who are unable to attend, we will be sending out the grade level presentations later in the week.  Hope to see you there!

I am very excited about something we are doing this year.  Each morning, I will be reading a Bible verse over the morning announcements in Lower School.

Here are the 3 verses we will be doing this week (Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday):

  • “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” – Matthew 6:33-34
  • “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” – John 3:16-21
  • “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” – Romans 12:2

Here are the 5 verses we will be doing next week:

  • “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” – Phil. 4:4-9
  • “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” – Psalm 103:2-5
  • “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” – 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
  • “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.” – Psalm 19:14
  • “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” – Hebrews 4:16

 I would love for all of our Lower School families to partner with us and read through each of these daily Bible verses.   Scripture tells us in Psalm 119:11 about the importance of hiding God’s word in our hearts and we believe these daily verses are a simple way to make a really huge impact in the lives of our children.

NEW THIS WEEK

Happy Birthday, TFA!

Mark your calendars for Wednesday, August 16th as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of The First Academy.  Classrooms will be doing different activities to celebrate as they enjoy cupcakes.  We are encouraging students to dress up in their best 80’s attire as part of the celebration.    It’s going to be a fun day for all!

WT Cafe-New Lunch Program

We are so excited to be partnering with WT Care for our school lunch program.    Many of you were able to sample some of the offerings during New Family Orientation.    The process for Lower School Instructions for registering your account and adding funds:

  • Visit www.wtcafe.com
  • A box should pop-up in your browser window with “Welcome to WT Cafe” at the top. In this window select your location, which is Orlando
  • Once “Orlando” has been selected, click “Order Now” (located in a big red box on the right side of the page, at the top)
  • Once on the next page, you will need to sign-up. Find the area labeled “Not A Customer? Sign Up” and click there
  • Continue on, completing the required fields
  • Once all of the fields have been successfully filled out, your registration will be complete and you will receive an email from WT Cafe with your login information
  • You will need to follow the instructions provided in the email to login to your newly registered account, add funds, and view the menu. You can even sign up for Auto-Reload so you don’t have to worry about manually re-filling your account. As long as your account is funded, your student will come through the line and enjoy a fresh, delicious, made from scratch lunch!

Frequently Asked Questions:

  1.  What if I had a balance on my “GetFunds” account from last year?  Once your account is created in WT Cafe, First Baptist will transfer your funds balance to your new WT account. First Baptist will NOT cut checks and mail them.
  2. What if the site won’t let me register because my email is already in their system?  We have run into several instances already where parents cannot register at WTCafe.com because their email is already in the system from when they were a past customer. If this happens, please contact WT Café via their online Chat Helpdesk or via email at orlando@wtcafe.com.
  3. My child is in K4 or TK, are they able to purchase lunch as well?  K4 and TK students will have the ability to purchase lunch and it will be delivered to the classrooms as has been done in years past. Please follow the same registration and account funding instructions above.
  4. What if the form asks for a “Teacher Name” when I am trying to register? I don’t know who my child’s teacher is yet.  WT Cafe has added an option called “TBD” under TEACHER NAME. Lower School parents should choose this option for now, and then update it later once their teacher assignments are known.
  5. What if my child has food allergies?  If your child has food allergies, you will be able to pre-select their allergy-friendly meal by ordering online at WTCafe.com. Children with pre-orders will not be permitted to add A La Carte items to their meals, and their side items will always consist of one fresh fruit and one fresh veggie (no dips, dressings, or sauces will be provided).
  6. Who do I contact if I am having problems setting up my account or adding funds?  You can contact WT Cafe on WT Cafe’s online Chat Helpdesk or by email at orlando@wtcafe.com. You can also call the Orlando office at 407-618-5555.

Rowdy Reader Summer Reading Incentive

Don’t forget to turn your Rowdy Reader forms into the library by August 18th.  Forms may also be turned into the classroom teachers and they will pass them along to the library staff.

Sunshine State Book Lists for 2017-2018

Are you looking for a new book to read?   Check out the Sunshine State Books for this school year.

These books are chosen by the Florida Association of Media in Education and have not yet been pre-approved by the TFA Library staff. Parents, as always, please use your best judgment in helping your child choose books to read.

3rd-5th Grade Book List

6th-8th Grade Book List

Extended Library Hours

For the 2017-2018 school year, the Boyd Moline Library will have extended hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays until 4:15PM.   The library will be open on Mondays and Fridays until 3:45PM and on Wednesdays until 2:35PM.    It opens daily at 7:30AM.     Students may be in the library in the morning without a parent or adult but any student wishing to be in the library must be accompanied by a parent or another adult.   Any student in the library after school without a parent or adult will be taken to the After Care program in the Lower School building.

REMINDERS

Morning Dropoff-7:30AM

This is just a friendly reminder that students may be dropped off beginning at 7:30AM.  If you arrive to school prior to that time, we request that students remain with their parents until 7:30AM.  The library and the gym are open at that time.  Student supervision does not begin until that time.

AR HomeConnect

Many parents like to receive email updates when their children take Accelerated Reader and Accelerated Math tests.  You can set your preferences using Renaissance Learning HomeConnect.

Calendar Link

The TFA Calendar is a wonderful way to find the dates of upcoming events. Access our web-based calendar anytime. We recommend that you subscribe to all relevant calendars so you can keep up with all of the events going on around the school.

Parent Volunteer Background Check

If you are a new parent and would like to volunteer in your child(ren)’s classroom(s) or chaperone on field trips please complete our free background check.  Please note that the background check site only works on Internet Explorer or Firefox on a desktop computer. Safari and Chrome are not supported by the site. Approvals take a few weeks so plan ahead! All parents must have a completed background check before volunteering in the classroom or chaperoning on a field trip.