IMPORTANT EVENTS & DATES FOR MAY

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

  • May 12th-Safety Patrol (4th Grade) & Library Aide (5th Grade) Field Trip-Fun Spot
  • May 12th: Rising 4th Grade Parent Meeting 3:15-4:00PM (Lower School Room 210)
  • May 13th: 6th Grade Missions Fest 1:00-2:45PM (Faith Hall-3rd Floor)
  • May 13th-4th Grade Millionaires Club Limo Ride
  • May 16th: Kindergarten Field Trip-Legoland
  • May 19th: K-6th Grade Awards Chapel 1:00-2:00PM (Faith Hall)
  • May 20th: 4th Quarter AR Deadline
  • May 23rd:  Royal Choir Party 11:15-2:30PM (McDonald’s)
  • May 25th: End of the Year Chapel & Celebration/Last Day of School of School/12:15PM Dismissal

CHAPEL VENUES, DATES & TIMES

The following is a list of chapel dates and times for May:

  • May 19th: K-6th Grade Awards Chapel 1:00-2:00PM (Faith Hall)
  • May 25th: Lower School End of the Year Chapel 8:15-9:00AM (Faith Hall)

A NOTE FROM MRS. JACKSON

Summer is right around the corner and for many of us, that means that we will have more time with our children because of the break from school.  I wanted to take the time to share something with all of our families that ties in with our look at Obedience these last two months.    Ephesians 6: 1-3  says Children, obey your parents as believers in the Lord. Obey them because it’s the right thing to do. Scripture says, “Honor your father and mother.” That is the first commandment that has a promise.  “Then things will go well with you. You will live a long time on the earth.”  

In the book, Shepherding a Child’s Heart by Ted Tripp, he talks about the Circle of Behavior and the Circle of Blessings and these relate directly the verses in Ephesians.  When children are obedient, they stay inside the Circle of Behavior and they benefit from the Circle of Blessing.  These blessings may include getting along with others, being trusted by others, or even experiencing peace.  When they step outside the Circle of Behavior, there are consequences.  It sounds very simple but it really does have such great importance for our children.  As you go about the summer, remind your children about the importance of obedience, particularly in relation to you as their parents.  We will all reap the benefits!

RECOGNITION

5th Grade Quilt Project

After reading the novel, Number the Stars, by Lois Lowry, the 5th grade class completed a “Remembrance Quilt” in honor of those who lost their lives in the Holocaust.  Number the Stars tells the fictional story of a very real event in world history.  The quilt was inspired by the final passageway exiting the Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC.  Students from all over America contributed a tile quilt square to create a remembrance of this tragic event. People from all over the world visit the museum every year to remember and honor those who died.  Students encountered many life lessons as they read through the journey of a Jewish girl named Ellen and her best friend Annemarie.

IMG_1701 IMG_1703 IMG_1704 IMG_1706 IMG_1708 IMG_1710

 

Mother’s Day

Last week, we were blessed to honor our TFA Moms through many different classroom events in the lower grades.  The students had a great time celebrating that special person they call MOM!

IMG_6173 IMG_6167 IMG_6165 IMG_6147 IMG_6145 IMG_6141

IMG_4051 IMG_4044

unnamed-2 unnamed unnamed-1

IMG_1222

unnamed-2 unnamed unnamed-1

 

Bible Buddies Celebration!

For the second half of the school year, our 6th Grade and 3rd Grade classes have paired up each month for Bible Buddies.   The older students prepare a bible study that they use with the 3rd Graders when they meet.  This has been a really special experience for all of the students and it is fostering leadership potential in our 6th graders as they mentor the younger students.  To celebrate the success of this idea, the students all had a pizza party together last week.

IMG_3630 IMG_3632 IMG_3633

6th Grade Technology/Science Elective

Our 6th grade boys enjoyed watching Cars while making motorized cars from everyday household matter. The boys have been learning about friction and acceleration through the process of trial and error.  They are excited to race their cars on Thursday.
image1 image2 image4 image5

3rd Grade Wax Museum

Our annual 3rd Grade Wax Museum was this past Tuesday.    We had 66 Famous Americans represented.  As part of this quarter-long study, each student was assigned a Famous Americans.   After reading a biography, each student wrote a paper and a 60-second speech on his/her Famous American.    On Tuesday, each student dressed up and created a scene in the gym representing his/her Famous American.    It was an impressive sight!     Not only was it fun for the students, but the other grade levels and parents learned so much from the speeches.    We love this patriotic event and it is one of the highlights of Lower School.

IMG_6776 IMG_6781 IMG_6782 IMG_6783 IMG_6784 IMG_6785 IMG_6791

NEW THIS WEEK

Library Aide Applications

4th Grade Students:  Library Aide application forms are available in the library if you are  interested in becoming a library aide for the 2016-2017 school year.  All applications and teacher recommendation forms are due back to the library by Friday, May 20th.  Please see Mrs. DeBoom in the library if there are any questions.

Library Closed (May 23rd-25th)

The Boyd Moline Library will be closed May 23rd-25th.  Students must report to the Gym for Morning Care on these dates.

PE News

The Presidential Fitness test is complete.  This year, 79% of our students made the National or Presidential list. Please continue to encourage your child to practice and maintain his or her fitness level throughout the summer.  The qualifying standards for the Presidential Fitness Award are listed below for your information.   Please contact Coach Grove – scottgrove@thefirstacademy.org  or Coach Sagraves – stevesagraves@thefirstacademy.org  if there are any questions.

Screen Shot 2016-05-11 at 10.37.54 PM

Summer Access to Accelerated Reader (AR)

Accelerated Reader will be turned off on Monday, May 23rd to allow time to set up the 2016­-2017 school year.   Summer AR testing will become available beginning Monday, June 6th.  The library will not be open for testing over the summer, but students may take tests on iDevices via the AR app Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM-­3:00PM.  If students don’t have their own iDevices, there will be iPads available for AR testing in the Lower School lobby.   Students must be on campus logged on to either the TFA Guest or TFA wifi to take AR tests.  All tests taken during the summer will apply toward the first quarter goal of the 2016­-2017 school year.

4th Quarter AR Deadline

The 4th Quarter AR deadline is Friday, May 20th.  Students hoping to earn the AR 200% Club Award for the 2015-2016 school year at the LS Awards Chapel must have all necessary AR tests completed by the end of the day on Monday, May 16th.  Any tests taken after Monday will still count towards the 4th quarter goal, but not for the purposes of the 200% Club End-of-Year Award.  Please contact Mrs. Lisa DeBoom at lisadeboom@thefirstacademy.org if there are any questions.

Library Books

All library books are due to the Boyd Moline Library by Friday, May 20th to avoid incurring a lost book charge.

Rising Grade Level Meetings-Mark Your Calendars

It’s hard to believe that it is already time to start thinking about next year.  If you would like to get a sneak peek at the next grade level, please plan to attend our Rising Grade Level Meetings.  At these meetings, the current teachers will share information pertaining to grade level curriculum, important projects, field trips, and general expectations.  If you are unable to attend, please do not worry because we will send home the grade level presentations to all families.   We will have staff available to stay with your children (K4-5th grade only please)in the hallways while you attend the meeting.  Younger children may join you in the classroom for the meeting.  Here is the list of meetings still left this year.

  • May 12th: Rising 4th Grade Parent Meeting 3:15-4:00PM (Lower School Room 210)

Classroom Placement

The TFA Faculty and staff are committed to providing the best educational experience for each child.  The Principal and Assistant Principal work with teacher(s) to prayerfully consider the needs of the student when making final decisions for student placement.  Class placement decisions are based on many factors which include, but are not limited to, the student’s individual learning styles as well as emotional, social, and academic needs.  Classroom structure and current teacher recommendations are also closely considered.

Faculty and staff may not be prepared—at this time—to share information regarding their assignment for the next year since we are currently in the process of finalizing teacher grade level assignments. However, God continues to bless us with a strong Lower School team.  Please continue to keep our faculty and staff in your prayers throughout the summer as they prepare for a new school year.

 SummerQuest

Have you started making summer plans for your children?  We have camps available for all students ranging from K4 – 12th grade.  Be sure to register as soon as possible, as some camps have a limited number of spots available.

SummerQuest is also open to students who do not attend TFA.  We would love to see students from other schools have an opportunity to visit our amazing campus and experience our wonderful teachers and coaches.  Please feel free to share the link below with anyone who might be interested.

To register, please visit https://thefirstacademy.org/academics/summer-quest/ and be sure to select the appropriate grade level for your child to see all available courses.  We look forward to another year of record enrollment in SummerQuest camps.  If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact Doug Cohen, Summerquest Coordinator, at dougcohen@thefirstacademy.org. or 407-206-8634.

TFA’s Preschool Summer Camp 2016

Many of our families have preschool-aged children so we want to notify you of a summer camp opportunity here at TFA.  Introducing TFA’s Preschool Summer Camp 2016!  Children ages 8 weeks to 3 years old are invited to join in our summer fun and “dive into reading”.  The first camp session runs from Monday, June 6th through Thursday, June 30th.  The second camp session runs from Tuesday, July 5th through Friday, July 22nd.  Core program hours run from 9:00AM-3:00PM, with wrap around care available 7:00AM-4:30PM.  For more information and to register today, please visit https://thefirstacademy.org/academics/preschool/summer-camp/.

REMINDERS

 Calendar Link

The TFA Calendar is a wonderful way of finding 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 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 of chaperoning on a field trip.