September 2020

Welcome to First Grade at Bethany Christian School!  I am so glad that God has placed your child in my class for the upcoming school year!  

 

My name is Jackie McClure, and I am a 2001 graduate of Pensacola Christian College in Florida.  I have a daughter, Cadence,  who is in seventh grade at BCS this year.

This will be my sixteenth year teaching first grade at BCS, and I am very thankful for the opportunity to teach your child.

Our initial time together in first grade will be spent getting to know each other, and helping your child become familiar with the new environment, as well as the routines and rules that he/she will be expected to follow throughout the year.  I will also be completing some informal evaluations in order to determine reading levels for each child. 

 

I will be sending information to those who volunteered as homeroom parents/party helpers, as soon as I can get all of the necessary contact information together.  If you did not get to sign up at Open House, but are interested in serving as a Homeroom Parent or Helper, please let me know so that I can include your contact information on the list.  Thanks!

 

I would like each child to keep one silent reading book in his/her desk at all times. Please send a silent reading book to school for your child as soon as possible.  Thank you.

        

Each day, your child will be participating in a special class.  Our schedule for the year is as follows:

Monday – Spanish

Tuesday – Gym (Please dress your child appropriately, in comfortable clothing and sneakers.  No jeans, please.)

Wednesday – Music

Thursday – Computer

Friday - Art

 

I will let you know if the schedule changes at all during the course of the year.

Every Wednesday, your child will be attending a Chapel service..  It is our goal to teach your child more about God and His love and plan for them. Each year, there is a theme verse for all of the students at Bethany.  This year, our theme verse is Galatians 6:2, 9-10: “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.”  All Bethany students will be expected to commit this verse to memory.  I will test the students on the theme verse on Friday, October 2. Our overarching theme for the school year is bearing one another’s burdens and showing brotherly love.

In addition to weekly Chapel services, our class will have a daily Bible lesson in the classroom.  As a part of Bible class, children will be given Bible memory work throughout the year.  Our first Bible verse for the year is our theme verse, as mentioned above. This will be sent home in Bible memory books on Tuesday, September 8, and will be due to return back to school for recitation on Friday, October 2.  Please be sure to send Bible memory books back to school on the due date throughout the year. 

 

         We will celebrate four birthdays in our class in September:
Elsa - September 8

Lola - September 15

Nina - September 21

Gianna - September 30

Happy birthday, Friends!

                    

Save the Date!

 

                     Grandparents Day is scheduled for Friday, October 9.  This is also a half-day of school.  Children will need to bring a snack to school, but no lunch.  We are working on a plan for Grandparents day that falls within the guidelines of our safety plan. Please watch for more information to be sent home this month.

 

         If you do not have access to the internet, please let me know before the second week of school, if you have not already done so.  In the future, parent letters will be posted on our class blog.  Please check our blog often for more class information. You can find the blog here: https://jmcclurebcs.blogspot.com/

When you visit the blog for the first time, you can choose to follow by email by entering your email address in the space on the right side of the blog. This will notify you when the blog is updated with new information. Those families without internet access will receive a hard copy of each month’s parent letter in their child’s white folder on the first Tuesday of the month.

         Also, please be sure to join our Class Dojo ASAP so that you are able to keep up with what we are doing throughout the day. Class Dojo is also a great way for us to communicate via their messaging option. I can get messages very quickly and easily throughout the day.  If we should need to switch to remote learning at any time this year, having all families already connected to Class Dojo will help with a smooth transition. If you need your code again, send me an email and I will get that to you.

Scholastic book order forms were sent home at Orientation. Orders will be due by September 14. Our class code for online ordering is GYCG9. If you pay by check, please write it to Jackie McClure. Scholastic is a great way to get books for your budding reader while supporting our classroom. 

 

         Once again, welcome to our first grade class!  If you have any questions or concerns throughout the year, you may contact me by calling the school office, at (610) 998-0877, and I will return your call at my earliest possible convenience.  You may also send a note with your child, and I will contact you in the way that best suits your schedule.

If you prefer to email, my email address is jmcclure@bethanychristian.org.

 

         I am very much looking forward to getting to know your child this year, as they grow and learn in a Christ-centered environment.

 

In Christ,

Jackie McClure

May 2020

Hello, First Grade Families!

Thank you all for everything that you are doing to keep up with your child's school work from home. I know that it is not always easy and I appreciate each one of you and the help that you are providing. 

Thank you for your responses to the survey that I put out on Dojo. I am taking all of your responses into consideration as I continue to plan our last weeks of remote learning. I wanted to let you all know that based on Mr. Fry's request, as well as survey responses, I am planning two Zoom meetings each week. Please know that there is no obligation for your child to attend as I know that you are all busy and possibly overwhelmed. I wanted to make the time available, though, for those that find it helpful for their child's social well-being...and I love seeing the students! Zoom meetings will be posted as an Event in Class Dojo and will almost always be Mondays and Fridays at 3:00 pm. This Friday, May 8, I will need to do the Zoom at 2:00 due to another appointment that I have scheduled that day.

Please be sure that your child is watching the videos on Class Dojo each day, as well as the Phonics video from BJU Press Teacher Tools. I have started asking a 'Participation Question' in the morning video so that I can get a picture of who is viewing the videos and staying engaged in learning while at home. 

In Bible, you should be checking out the story of David on the Bible App for Kids. I will be reading some stories about David on video in the coming days as well. Our memory verse is due on Friday, May 8. The memory verse is Psalm 18:1-3: I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies. You will submit this as a video; I will create an assignment folder on Friday and you may add your submission when you feel that you are prepared to recite your verse. Please remember to submit the Bible verse video and also remember to have your child watch the Bible story reading videos on Class Dojo. 

We're going to be starting Unit 6 in Language Arts this month. Unit 6 is titled "Treasures" and we will be learning about different types of things that people may consider a treasure, and students will be challenged to be thankful for the things that God has provided for them.  

I am sending reading assignments in private messages on Dojo every day. I will ask for a video submission of your child orally reading at least one page from the reading assignment each Thursday or Friday.  This way I can keep my running records of your child's reading progress. When listening to your child read, please remember that we do not want to immediately supply them with a word when they don't know how to read it right away. I know it is tempting, but we want them to struggle a bit to sound out difficult words. This helps them to use the phonics tools to help in decoding and gives them confidence that they CAN do it and that they don't need an adult to save them from tough words.

We will not be doing a proper spelling class during this time outside of the classroom. It's much too difficult to 'test' spelling. My suggestion is to keep practicing your spelling words and introduce new words using new sounds that you learn in your language lessons. ABC Mouse and Spelling City are good websites to check out for spelling practice as well, but I will not be requiring any extra time on these sites.

For math, please remember to log on to Khan Academy daily to see your assignments for the day. We are working on measurement this week. Also, try to use Happy Numbers a little bit each day to keep practicing your math facts and skills. The weekly goal for each child is to spend 45 minutes on Happy Numbers, so be sure that your child is logging on for math practice. 

For Science and Social Studies, you will have a weekly Scholastic News article to read. You can also check out and listen to each article on scholasticnews.com using our class password bcsfabfirst. I'll send a file with Skill Sheets for each article on Monday. Your child only needs to choose 1 of the Skill Sheets each week and submit it by Friday. You are welcome to do more than one, but only one is required.

If the weather is nice, I hope you're spending time outside getting fresh air and exercise. You could even practice math and sight word spelling using sidewalk chalk on your driveway! 

Everyone has been doing a great job submitting work on Class Dojo. A few of you have also sent videos telling me what's been going on with you since we last saw each other and I love those! I will try to post an optional assignment at least once a week where you can submit a video response.

I miss you all and pray that God will bring us back together soon!

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
Blessings!

Jackie McClure :)

April 2020

Hello, First Grade Families and Happy Spring!

We have been getting to know a new way of learning and communicating with each other. There have been some 'growing pains' as we all adjusted to the new routine, but overall I think it's going well. I'm proud of our first graders for the wonderful work that they've been doing.

Next week, we will be on Easter break from Thursday, April 9-Monday, April 13. There will be no lessons posted and no work due on those days.

In Bible, you should be checking out the Easter story on the Bible App for Kids. I will be reading some Easter Bible story lessons on video in the coming days as well. Our memory verse is due on Wednesday, April 8. The memory verse is Matthew 28:6 - "He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay." You will submit this as a video; I will create an assignment folder on Monday and you may add your submission when you feel that you are prepared to recite your verse.

We're going to be starting Unit 5 in Language Arts this month. Unit 5 is titled "Making Melody" and we will be learning about music and musicians in this unit, as well as learning new sounds and language rules. I hope you're all enjoying the video lessons, but I really miss our Language lessons together!

I am sending reading assignments in private messages on Dojo every day. I will ask at least once per week for a video submission of your child orally reading at least one page from the reading assignment. This way I can keep my running records of your child's reading progress. When listening to your child read, please remember that we do not want to immediately supply them with a word when they don't know how to read it right away. I know it is tempting, but we want them to struggle a bit to sound out difficult words. This helps them to use the phonics tools to help in decoding and gives them confidence that they CAN do it and that they don't need an adult to save them from tough words.

We will not be doing a proper spelling class during this time outside of the classroom. It's much too difficult to 'test' spelling. My suggestion is to keep practicing your spelling words and introduce new words using new sounds that you learn in your language lessons. ABC Mouse and Spelling City are good websites to check out for spelling practice as well, but I will not be requiring any extra time on these sites.

For math, please remember to log on to Khan Academy daily to see your assignments for the day. We are working on measurement this week. Also, try to use Happy Numbers a little bit each day to keep practicing your math facts and skills. 

For Science and Social Studies, you will have a weekly Scholastic News article to read. You can also check out and listen to each article on scholasticnews.com using our class password bcsfabfirst. I'll send a file with Skill Sheets for each article on Monday. Your child only needs to choose 1 of the Skill Sheets each week and submit it by Friday. You are welcome to do more than one, but only one is required.

If the weather is nice, I hope you're spending time outside getting fresh air and exercise. You could even practice math and sight word spelling using sidewalk chalk on your driveway! 

Everyone has been doing a great job submitting work on Class Dojo. A few of you have also sent videos telling me what's been going on with you since we last saw each other and I love those! I will try to post an optional assignment at least once a week where you can submit a video response.

First graders - I may have brought an Easter book about Gilbert home to read for you sometime next week! 

I miss you all and pray that God will bring us back together soon!

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
Blessings!

Jackie McClure :)

March 2020

Dear Parents,                                                                                                   

In just a few short weeks spring will officially arrive, and with it, the glory of God’s creation as it begins to blossom.  If you’ve never taken the time to fully appreciate the signs of spring, I hope you do this year.  Each new leaf, robin, and bud is a gift that God has sent for us to enjoy, and to remind us that He makes all things new.

I received so many lovely Valentines, and would like to thank each and every child for being an important part of our class.  You are loved and appreciated so much more than you know!

Our Bible memory verse is Psalm 24:1-2.

"The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers."

This is due on Friday, March 20.

Please remember to send in your child's Bible memory verse on the due dates so that we can place the new verse into the book.

Box Top collection day is March 13. Send in those Box Tops! A flier was sent home on Friday, February 28 about the new Box Tops app and how to use it to collect Box Tops for our school.

Thursday, March 19 is our 8th Grade Spaghetti Dinner. Please RSVP if you plan to attend. This event helps our 8th graders raise money for their class trip in the spring.

Friday, March 20 is Rock Your Socks Day. This is an all-school Spirit Day for World Down Syndrome Day, which is March 21. Students are invited to wear their crazy fun socks on this day.

Wednesday, March 25, preschool through second grade will be presenting a special Easter chapel at 8:40 AM in the church. Please plan to come and see our program - the students have been working hard and they are excited to share the Easter story!

The third quarter will end on Friday, March 27.  Report cards will be available Friday, April 3.

Spring conferences will be held on Tuesday, March 31. There will be no school on this day. Please be looking for an email from Mrs. Hughes with a sign-up genius for conference times.

We will celebrate one birthday in March.

Fiona will turn 7 on March 13.

Happy birthday, Fiona!

As our year continues to progress, I must emphasize the importance of working with your child at home to reinforce what he or she is learning.  Good study habits begin at an early age.  Take some time each evening to practice spelling words, math flashcards, and the Bible memory verse.  Even just a few minutes for each area can make a huge difference.  Thank you for your continued faithfulness in supporting your child’s education.

           

Important Dates to Remember:

           

            ~Friday, March 8 - Psalm 24:1-2 Due

            ~Friday, March 13 - Box Top Collection Day

            ~Thursday, March 19 - 8th Grade Spaghetti Dinner fundraiser

            ~Friday, March 20 - Rock Your Crazy Socks Day

            ~Wednesday, March 25 - Preschool-2nd grade Easter Chapel Program

            ~Friday, March 27 – Third Quarter Ends

            ~Tuesday, March 31 - No School

                                                Spring Conferences

            ~Friday, April 3– Report Cards available

           

Looking Ahead:

            ~April 6-13 - No School; Easter Break

            ~April 20-24 - Testing Week

            ~April 28 - No School; Election Day (this is a change from the calendar)

            ~April 30 - Field Trip to the Chester County Historical Society

            ~May 1 - Fine Arts Gala, 6:00 PM

            ~May 15 - Bulldog Run! Please plan to attend this fun family day.

Feel free to contact me at any time with any questions or concerns regarding your child.

            Email:  jmcclure@bethanychristian.org

            You may also send a note to school with your child.

In Him,

Jackie McClure

February 2020

February is one of my favorite months of the year!  It is a good time to reflect on God’s amazing love.  I pray that you all have experienced His great love in your own lives.

We are participating in the Spread the Love Campaign once again this year. We are collecting jars of peanut butter and jelly (no glass jars, please!) until February 14. The class that brings in the most jars will win an ice cream treat!

Our Valentine card exchange will be held on Friday, February 14, in the afternoon.  Valentines for the class may be sent on or before February 14^th.  I am sending a copy of our class list in White Envelopes on Tuesday, February 4.  If your child would like to hand out Valentines to his/her classmates, please be sure to include everyone listed, so that no one gets hurt feelings!  If you are interested in providing a sweet or salty snack for our class, please contact me. Thanks!

There will be no school on Monday, February 17, in honor of Presidents' Day.

On Tuesday, February 18, we will be celebrating the ACSI Day of Prayer. You will receive more information in the white envelope on Tuesday, February 3. Our class will be visiting several prayer stations throughout the school and participating in activities and prayer for our school and other Christian schools around the world.

On Tuesday, February 25 we will have a visit from an employee of McCormick Orthodontics to discuss the importance of dental hygiene.

February Dates to Remember:

***Friday, February 7 - Sock Day
***Friday, February 14 - Valentine Card Exchange

***Monday, February 17 - No School (President’s Day)                                    

***Tuesday, February 18 - ACSI Day of Prayer

***Tuesday, February 25 - Dental Health Visitor

           

Blessings!

Jackie McClure

January 2020

Welcome back!  I pray that everyone had an enjoyable and restful Christmas.  Thank you to all who helped with our classroom Christmas celebration.  The children had a wonderful time, and I appreciate the effort that went into making it such an exciting day!

Please remember to fill out and return the Book-It calendars for reading homework each month. I will be accepting December calendars until the end of next week, January 10. January calendars were sent home on Friday, December 20.

In Bible, we will continue our lessons on the life of Moses.

          Our next Bible memory work will be Deuteronomy 32:3-4.

I will proclaim the name of the Lord.
Oh, praise the greatness of our God!
He is the Rock, his works are perfect,

and all his ways are just.
A faithful God who does no wrong,

upright and just is he.

This will be due on Friday, January 17.

On Monday, January 20, there will be no school, in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. 

We are celebrating three birthdays in our class this month!

                   Abby has a birthday on January 5.

                   Everleigh has a birthday on January 21.

                   Amelia has a birthday on January 28.

          We also have one half-birthday in January.

                   Brenna has a half-birthday on January 10.

                             Happy birthday, Friends!

Please send your child to school dressed appropriately for the winter weather.  This includes a coat that can zipper/button up the front, a hat or hood, and gloves or mittens.  We do sometimes go outside when it is cold.

Important Dates to Remember:

Friday, January 17 – Deuteronomy 32:3-4 due

Friday, January 17 - Second Quarter Ends
Monday, January 20 - No School

Friday, January 24 - Report Cards issued

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact me by note or email (jmcclure@bethanychristian.org).  Enjoy the winter weather, and stay warm!

In Him,

Jackie McClure

December 2019

             I trust everyone had a wonderful and restful Thanksgiving holiday.  It is nice to be back in school again, and hear the different activities that your children enjoyed during the school break.  Thank you for taking the time to come out for conferences.  I very much enjoyed having the opportunity to speak with each of you.

            Please continue to listen to your child read aloud at home each week.  We are making great progress in our readers, and the at-home practice makes such a difference.  It is very important that the children are reading aloud to an adult; this helps catch inaccuracy in the reading.

            Our class will visit the Christmas Shop on Tuesday, December 3. If you plan to send money for your student to shop, please send it on or before December 3. I am happy to store your child's money in a safe place in the classroom until our shopping day. Information and money envelopes were sent home in the white envelope on Tuesday, November 26.

             During the month of December, we will be discussing the true meaning of Christmas, the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Our memory verse for this month will be John 3:16-17.

            “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.”

This memory work will be sent home on Tuesday, December 3 and tested on Thursday, December 19.

            This year, all of our classes are participating in the Christmas production. Please join us on Tuesday, December 17, for a wonderful evening of celebrating our Savior's birth. Students are asked to arrive in the music and art rooms at 6:30 and the program will begin at 7:00 PM in the Kitty June Shepherd Gymnasium. Mrs. Patrick sent information about the program in white envelopes on Tuesday, November 26.

            Our class will be presenting a special chapel service on Wednesday, December 18 at 8:45 in the church. We will be giving a readers' theater about the Christmas story. We will be using many of our reading group times to practice this together so I will not be asking for reading parents during the month of December.

            We will have our Christmas party on Friday, December 20.  We will be having a book exchange in the morning.  Each child is asked to bring one book, costing no more than $5.  All students should bring a book that could be enjoyed by both boys and girls, if possible.  Each book should be wrapped and labeled as follows: 

                                                            To:  A Friend

                                                            From:  Your Child’s Name

Please send the book to school by December 18; we will have our book exchange early in the day.  The party will be after recess, beginning around 10:30.  Parents are welcome to attend our Christmas Party.  Please let me know if you are willing and able to help with planning a craft, games, or food for our Christmas celebration. Thanks!

            We have two birthday celebrations this month.

                        Emily has a birthday on December 4.

                        Travis has a birthday on December 28.

                                                Happy Birthday, Friends!

                                               

            There will be no school from December 23-January 1.  Classes will resume on Thursday, January 2, 2020.

            If you have any questions regarding any of our classroom information, please contact me at your convenience.  I pray that you have a beautiful Christmas season!

In Him,

Jackie McClure