Manheim Christian Day School Newsletter December 2023 I̯̾͢Χ̔ T̸̔̾Β JͬίΒ̔͢ώ For this reason, I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God which is in you. 2 Timothy 1:6a In order to have fire, four elements must be present...oxygen, heat, fuel, and a chemical reaction to ignite the flame. Take one of these elements away and the flame will die out. Our spiritual flame is similar in that the Holy Spirit ignites our faith and it is fanned by the church, family, and community around us. Throughout most of a child’s life, the most prominent community is their school. Thus, education becomes an extremely important factor in the spiritual growth of a student. Over the past few years, Manheim Christian Day School’s Board and Administration noticed a growing desire of parents within our area for Christian education. Since the school did not have the space to handle the increase, we felt God leading us on a path to expand our current facility to accommodate the demand. Our vision is to ignite the journey of faith in a new and growing generation of students and be that community that educates and fans a child’s spiritual fire. The goal of the building expansion is to allow us to add an additional 100 students while keeping a small teacher-to-student ratio, add needed renovations to produce a conducive 21st century learning environment, and provide instructional support for a diverse student body. The addition to the building will include: · 4 new classrooms · Library · Space for small group study · Kitchen expansion · Bathroom renovations · Elevator · New HVAC and Septic Systems · Parking Lot improvements These improvements will make MCDS a more effective educational and discipleship institution that will impact Northern Lancaster County and beyond. We are excited to share that our expansion project is gaining momentum, and we plan to break ground in the summer of 2025. This marks a significant milestone in our journey to improve our learning environment and foster a space where our students can grow as devoted disciples for Christ. How can you help? 1. We covet your prayers. We have already faced hurdles but we know this is the direction God has for us and He will make a way. 2. Visit our website at manheimchristian.org and click on the “Build” tab. This will provide you with more information, updates, and pictures of the proposed addition. 3. Consider donating to our “Build” project. You can either give a check to the school or donate by credit card through our website. By supporting our building project, you are not just contributing to bricks and mortar; you are investing in the future of the Church and your community. Thank you for being an essential part of our journey and playing a role in fanning the flame of faith in our students. - Justin Sauder, Director of Operations Scan to see a preview of the building project!
W̔͗̆ͬ̔͠ N̔ψ SΧ˨̮̮ڂ EDEN BARBUSH, Librarian Welcome also to MRS. PIDCOCK in her new role as Resource Teacher! CAITLIN GABERS, Kindergarten Aide KRISTI BRADFIELD, Hot Lunch Assistant AMANDA GEIB, Custodian KERRY GEIB, Custodian LORI GREENLY, First Grade Teacher ANAH MARTIN, Intermediate Aide RUTH RHINIER, Middle School Language Arts Teacher LEXI NAUMAN, Kindergarten Teacher LIZ NAFF, Fifth Grade Math Teacher NICOLE WENGER, Hot Lunch Assistant MEGAN WENGER, Second Grade Aide M˨Χ̸ G˨̔͠Κ N̸̯̾Χ Bώ MΒΚڈ P͓̾̍̆ͬ̆ In tandem with Parent- Teacher Conferences and the Paper Pie Book Fair, MCDS hosted two “Math Games Nights.” Children who accompanied their parents for conferences enjoyed hands-on time in the gym where they measured distance of paper airplanes thrown, compared place value using playing cards, structured 3-D shapes using toothpicks and marshmallows, and learned how to graph quantities by sorting colorful candy. The aim of the math games was to show that practicing math at home and school can be done with few supplies and in fun, various ways. Studies show that success in math is even more indicative of academic success than reading, and all careers, whether in culinary or agriculture, medicine or construction, use some degree of mathematics. L̾̅Β˨Βώ C˨Β̍ ڂ̯̔̔͗͗͢˨̸C Bώ MΒΚڈ B˨Β̅ίΚ̸ During the month of October, MCDS partnered with the Manheim Community Library to encourage students to get their own library cards. To make things more fun, we held a competition between the classes to see who could achieve the highest percentage of participants. The goal of the program is to encourage young readers to be excited about visiting their local libraries and reading. In total, just under 100 students participated in the contest and applied to be new library card holders. The winning classes were 1B, with 16 participants and 5 th grade, who had 19 students receiving their first library cards. As a reward for winning the contest, both 1B and 5th grade received a pizza party from the Manheim Community Library. Y̔˨Β-̔̍͢ G̾χ̯̾͢ Year-end donations to MCDS can be made online until 11:59 pm on December 31 at manheimchristian.org. Click the General Fund Giving tab. Donations sent by mail will need to be postmarked by December 30. Thank you for considering a gift to MCDS in your year-end giving!
STEM I͢ OίΒ 2̍͢ GΒ˨̍̔ C͗˨ΚΚΒͬͬ͠ Bώ MΒΚڈ C̸Β̾ΚΧ̔͢Β Year to year, I always enjoy finding what the “personality” of a class is and what they have been gifted with. This year, it has been so much fun seeing the creativity of this group. From drawing whatever is on their mind during their free time, to drawing zoos outside with chalk, to the pictures they create for each other, this group loves to create and share their gift with others. One of the ways I incorporate creativity in our classroom is by having weekly STEM challenges where table groups must work together to complete the challenge. After we read a story together, the challenge is given. From there, students collaborate on how they want to solve the challenge as a table and then use the materials given to build. It is so much fun watching as they bounce ideas off one another and work together to incorporate all ideas given. This time together is something that they look forward to every week…as do I! M̾̍̍͗̔ S̸̆ͬͬ͗ E͗̔̆Χ̾χ̔Κ Bώ KώΒ˨ M̾͗͗̔Β (7Χ̸ GΒ˨̍̔) Forgetfulness. Many people forget things, including middle schoolers! In quarter 2, the middle school broadcasting elective, led by Mrs. Henry, worked together to help with this problem. As the year goes on, teachers are realizing more and more that the students are forgetting things like pencils, homework, and using their quiet voices. To help with this, Claire Gabers (5th), Mark Aaron Fasig (5th), Twain Shenk (6th), Kyra Miller (7th), and Mrs. Henry put together a video showing students how to come to class prepared, how to talk in the building, how to go through the halls, and more. The video also shows bad examples of all these things. Our hope is to teach students, including us, how to be respectful and prepared in the building and in the classroom. Some of the other electives this quarter are macrame, how to build a business, and inspirational art. Thank you to all the teachers who have helped with electives or with the Classroom/School Stereotype video. We all appreciate your help! E̍ίΏΒͬΧͬ̆˨͗Κ I͢ T̸̔ S̆̾̔̆̔͢ C͗˨ΚΚΒͬͬ͠ Bώ MΒڈ Z̾̔͠͠Β͠˨͢ This year, the staff has been working to incorporate a new set of fun and engaging activities into our classrooms. We are all using them in different ways and the science classroom has been able to use one in particular very well. This activity is known as an “iron chef,” which references a competitive cooking show where contestants are given a dish they must prepare, along with a special ingredient. In our class, the students are given ingredients that they must include in their “dish” which takes the form of a slide in a larger slideshow. They might need to include some pictures, facts, a YouTube tutorial, or a link to a helpful website. However, they also need to incorporate a secret ingredient, which might be a meme, cartoon, set of emojis, or a quote from a famous person. All their ingredients must help to explain the topic they are given and at the end, each student (or group of students) presents their slide to the rest of the class. Both 7th and 8th grade have had a lot of fun with iron chef activities and have created some amazing slides!
K̾̍̔͢Β̯˨ΒΧ̔͢ STEM Bώ MΒΚڈ N˨ί͠˨͢ In kindergarten, both classes have been completing fun, challenging Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math (STEM) activities once a month. In Mrs. Nauman’s classroom, the students were challenged to create hay bale catapults. They had to figure out how to create a working catapult and how to toss the hay bales into the bucket. In Mrs. Peachey’s classroom, students used wagons to learn about the forces of motion through push and pull. Kindergarteners were challenged to create a wagon that could carry a pumpkin and be moved by pushing or pulling it. Both kindergarten classes used such creativity, imagination, and skill to create their fun STEM activities. P̸ώΚ̾̆˨͗ E̍ί̆˨Χ̾ͬ͢ Bώ MΒΚڈ S̸̔͗͗ώ Since I only see the students one time each week, I have been squeezing in all the physical education and fun we can into our 40 minute classes. Still, the kids are begging for more!! Most classes begin with an Instant Activity—something quick that gets them moving, engaged, and interacting with each other. Sometimes the games are silly, like Plank Hand Tag and Hot Dog Freeze Tag. Sometimes the games take teamwork, cooperation, and strategy, like Frogs Across the Pond and Tic Tac Toe Relay. After these activities, we’ve completed units of fitness (leading up to Race for Education) and soccer. We are currently in a throwing and catching unit with the 3rd—8 th graders putting that into football and Castle Ball. My challenge to our families over the winter season: how can you be active together, inside or outside? Happy playing! M̾̍̍͗̔ S̸̆ͬͬ͗ L˨̯͢ί˨̯̔ AΒΧΚ Bώ M̾ΚΚ R̸̾̾̔͢Β What do a lion, a miser, and a clockmaker have in common? They all happen to be the main characters of stories that the MCDS middle school students are reading in Language Arts this quarter. The sixth graders have been exploring Narnia with Aslan and the Pevensie children in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. The seventh graders have been trekking through time with Scrooge and his ghostly visitors in a dramatic version of A Christmas Carol. The eighth graders have been experiencing the hardships of the Holocaust with Corrie Ten Boon in The Hiding Place. While reading these classics together, the students not only are developing their comprehension, writing, and grammar skills, but they also are learning important lessons about forgiveness, redemption, and sacrifice. So, next time you see a middle schooler, ask them if they have been to Narnia, London, or the Netherlands lately! GΒ˨̍͢Ώ˨Β̔͢ΧڐΚ D˨ώ Bώ MΒΚڈ KͬΚώ̍˨Β We were very excited to welcome grandparents back to the school again on Friday, November 10th! Students spent the morning with their grandparents doing fun activities in the classroom, playing bingo, getting photos together at the photo booth, eating snacks, and coloring pictures together. We feel blessed to help strengthen our students’ relationships with their grandparents through this special day!
F̾̔͗̍ TΒ̾Ώ Tͬ T̸̔ Pί͠Ώ͓̾͢ P˨Χ̸̆ Bώ MΒΚڈ H˨Β͗̔ώ The Pre-K classes loaded up the big yellow school bus to take a field trip to the pumpkin patch at the Risser-Marvel Farm Market at the end of October. For most of the class, it was their very first time riding on a school bus! We arrived to learn all about the different kinds of pumpkins and what they are used for. We took a ride on the hay wagon to the pumpkin patch where we had lots of fun picking out our very own pumpkins to take home! We also rode around the track on big tricycles, jumped on bouncy llamas, floated boats with a water pump, and dug in a corn bin with big excavators. The ride back to school was much quieter with a bunch of tired kiddos! We had a wonderful day and made lots of fun memories together! 8Χ̸ GΒ˨̍̔ R̔ΧΒ̔˨Χ Bώ C˨ΚΚ̾̍ώ E̅̔ΒΚͬ͗̔, GΒ˨̆̔ G̸̔͠˨͢, ܀ J̔͢͢˨ H̔͢Βώ (8Χ̸ GΒ˨̍̔) The 8th grade retreat was held at Refreshing Mountain in Clay, PA on October 19th and 20th. The retreat was such a fun event and we all really enjoyed it! We had beautiful weather for all of our events including team building activities, the high ropes course, and four ziplines. In addition, our guest speaker was Greg Gehman, father of one of our classmates, Grace. During our four sessions, we learned that knowing God should be the center of our lives. Mr. Gehman encouraged the class to seek Jesus as our most important goal and greatest reward in both the good and difficult times of life. Overall, the retreat was such a fun time and it drew our class closer together! S˨χ̔ Χ̸̔ D˨Χ̔ڂ Our 48th Annual Benefit Auction and Family Fun Days is coming up on April 26 & 27th. Mark your calendars for a fun-filled weekend! SΧί̍̔͢Χ L̔˨̍̔ΒΚ AΧ MCDS Bώ KώΒ˨ M̾͗͗̔Β (7Χ̸ GΒ˨̍̔) SLICE is a student leadership group at MCDS. SLICE stands for Student Leaders Initiating a Christ-like Environment. It is run by Mr. Jon Sauder, the Bible and art teacher, and Dr. George, the Dean of Students. The group is made up of 7th and 8th graders. The purpose of the group is to be leaders in our school and in our community. Some ways they have helped already is by introducing middle school chapel speakers, delivering poinsettias to retirement homes, and leading a chapel. The middle school students get “star bucks” for going above and beyond, and can spend them on candy, fidgets, stickers and more at the SLICE star bucks stand. The group meets every Tuesday for forty minutes to discuss upcoming events, past events, and more ways to help. Thank you to everyone who has helped out with this group so far. We appreciate all your support!
Manheim Christian Day School 686 Lebanon Road Manheim PA 17545 (717)665-4300 www.manheimchristian.org MCDS Matters Newsletter [December 2023 issue] Or Current Resident Dͬ ώͬί Ώ˨ώ ͬ͠Β̔ Χ̸˨͢ $1000 ̾͢ PA ̾̆ͬ̔͢͠ Χ˨ύ̔Κډ If you report more than $34,000 of income on your PA tax return, the answer is probably, “Yes!” You may want to consider participating in PA’s EITC program to support Christian education. Working with a scholarship organization, you can have the full amount of your state tax liability go towards MCDS’ financial aid scholarship program and receive 90% of your EITC program participation back in state tax credits! In other words, most of what you would pay to PA in income tax can instead go to MCDS to be used to help students and their families afford tuition. Most PA residents qualify, so pass the word around to friends and relatives too. Contact Rebecca Nissly in the school office ([email protected]) for more information, to see if you qualify, and to find out if credits are available. T̸˨͓͢Κ̯̾χ̯̾͢ STEM C̸˨̯͗͗̔̔͢Κ Bώ MΚڈ K̾͢Χ̔Β This year, our 4th grade class participated in three Thanksgiving-themed STEM challenges. The first challenge was to use magnetic tiles, Lincoln Logs, and dominoes to build something that would hide a turkey. The second challenge was to build a table, using dominoes and craft sticks, that would hold an entire Thanksgiving meal. Notably, students went above and beyond this challenge: they made multi-level tables that would hold four of every Thanksgiving dish! The third, and favorite, challenge was to use Styrofoam, foil, and tape to create a boat that would hold up to 30 “Pilgrims” (pennies) without it sinking. The students had a great time planning and executing their ideas. Since they had such a great time, we will be doing STEM activities for Christmas too!