August/September 2019

Dear Parents,

            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 sixth grade at BCS this year.

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

            There will be no school on Friday, August 30, and Monday, September 2. There is also no school on Friday, September 20. This is a change from the calendar.

            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 – Art

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

Wednesday – Spanish

Thursday – PC Lab

Friday - Music

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 in the church sanctuary.  It is our goal to not only teach your child more about God and His love and plan for them, but also to train him/her to behave in a reverent and respectful manner while in a church building.  Children are expected to bring their Bibles to Chapel, and to be attentive throughout the service.  Each year, there is a theme verse for all of the students at Bethany.  This year, our theme verse is Joshua 1:9 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”  All Bethany students will be expected to commit this verse to memory.  I will test the students on the theme verse on Friday, September 7.

            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, August 28, and will be due to return back to school for recitation on Friday, September 7.  Please be sure to send Bible memory books back to school on the due date throughout the year. 

            We are celebrating two birthdays in our class in August:
                        Cody turned 7 on August 20.  

                        Dakota will turn 6 on August 28.

                                    Happy birthday, Friends!

                    

Save the Date!

  

Grandparents Day will be held on Friday, October 4.  This is also a half-day of school.  Children will need to bring a snack to school, but no lunch.  Please watch for more information to be sent home this month.

Our annual banquet will be held on Friday, October 18 at 6:30 pm at Bethany Christian School.  This is also a half-day of school. Children will need to bring a snack to school, but no lunch. Please be sure to send in your RSVP for the Banquet as soon as possible.  hope to see you there as we celebrate how God is using Bethany in our community. 

            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. 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 you need your code again, send me an email and I will get that to you.

            Scholastic book order forms will be sent home Thursday, August 22, in the white envelope. Orders will be due by Septembet 5. Our class code for online ordering is GYCG9. Scholastic is a great way to get books your budding reader while supporting our classroom. I was thrilled to be able to order some flexible seating options for this year using my accumulated bonus points through Scholastic.

            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