“The business of teachers is to open as many doors as possible.” –Charlotte Mason
Each year as we work on the school calendar, it fills up quickly. Sometimes our staff questions the number of activities that we have planned. As teachers prepare lessons, they look to times in which they will invite parents into the classroom to help with hands-on learning activities and seasonal parties. As our administration looks to planning concerts, recitations and fellowships, the calendar begins to pile up. As house teachers and captains look to add community fundraising events, we all begin to get a bit overwhelmed. We ask questions. Do we really have time? What’s the purpose of all of these events? We’re opening doors.
Through school events and classroom activities, 1) we enrich our students’ learning, 2) we make school an extension of the family and 3) we prepare students to be leaders in their community.
The activities we have for our students each month are not mere embellishments nor distractions from the hard work of learning. Each activity is intentionally a part of our students’ learning.
Each class takes multiple field trips during the year. These specifically give learning opportunities beyond books or classroom lectures. Additionally, outings allow students to practice social graces with each other, on the bus ride, and with strangers in the halls of a museum.
Another way students practice and learn to love one another is through house competitions which we have quarterly. Some of these competitions are athletic and help students reap benefits of physical activity. But many are knowledge based and give students a chance to exercise their minds and apply the knowledge that has been gained from lessons. Often the greatest benefits of competition to students’ education is not the joy of victories, but the humbling defeats. Learning to lose graciously is a lesson that cannot be taught, but must be learned through experience.
While the activities we plan and carry out are not mere embellishments of education, they are a way we obey God’s word. I Thessalonians 5:11 says to “encourage one another;” each activity is an opportunity to encourage our students. Our students (and staff) work hard; I Thessalonians 5:12 says to “acknowledge those who work hard among you.” Finally, in verses 16-18 of the same chapter, we are commanded to rejoice, pray and give thanks.
Through quarterly house competitions, monthly classroom feasts and seasonal events like Shakespeare Festival and Friendsgiving, we seek to encourage our students to continue to work hard in their lessons and rejoice in what God is doing through that hard work. Many of our students look to what the classes above them get to do, such as ice skating in the Sculpture Garden after a visit to NGA, and eagerly look forward to those rewards to come.
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. -Deuteronomy 6:4-7
It is the mission of our teachers and staff to help parents, not replace them, as they seek to give their children a godly, bible-based education. By having numerous events that the entire family is invited to be a part of, Oak Hill Christian School becomes an extension and not a substitute for family.
During the summer, we look forward to kicking off these family events with a BBQ. It’s a joyful way to build new friendships and strengthen established ties within our community. And as the school year begins, we continue fellowship with our school friends through family game nights, marshmallow roasts, Psalm sings and more.
Another favorite tradition we began a few years ago is Grandparents Day. Our students invite their grandparents to come see where and how they learn during the school year. The teachers and students prepare special songs for them and open up the classrooms for visitation and special story times. After a full morning, the children and grandparents enjoy a special lunch together. For those who do not have grandparents able to attend, the teachers encourage pictures and stories to be shared. It’s truly a way to encourage students to honor grandparents.
“You shall stand up before the gray head and honor the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the Lord.” -Leviticus 19:32-Leviticus 19:32
Through these and other family events we are reminded of the importance of parents, and grandparents, in the education of each student.
Regular classroom events encourage students to persevere in their hard work. Family events remind students, staff and parents that our mission is to help parents, not replace them. But activities that students are directly a part of planning and carrying out for the extended community encourage students to use their talents and efforts to serve others, building strong leadership skills. Usually our house captains are responsible for these activities.
One of the first community projects the house captains work on during the year is Angel Tree Project. We work with Prison Fellowship to bless families in our area who have an incarcerated parent. Gifts are organized, purchased, wrapped and delivered. Often we can visit with these families and get to know them better, especially learning how we can pray for them.
Another broader community event that our houses have organized is a soup fundraiser which is hosted during a Psalm sing. Parents make a pot of soup. Everyone attending donates an amount for a single bowl or a refillable bowl of soup. The funds then are given to a local, church sponsored, food pantry. Having soup nights in cold weather is a reminder to everyone how fortunate we are to be able to afford food, warmth and other comforts that may not be easily attainable by all.
When May and Mother’s Day roll around, our house captains organize a diaper drive and baby bottle fundraiser for a local crisis pregnancy center. Baby bottles are left in the classrooms to be filled with change and bills. A diaper station is located at the front of school for boxes to be dropped off. Then, before Mother’s Day, volunteers from the school take the funds and diapers to help mothers at a pregnancy center.
These are not the only community events we have, but they are ones that especially help students to see how much of an impact they can have on the community for the glory of Christ.
We are a school with a vibrant community!
All of the field trips and classroom activities enrich our students’ learning. The numerous family events strengthen the relationships within our school. But the projects and activities our house captains organize to benefit the larger community truly prepare our students for a lifetime of service for Christ and his kingdom.
Oak Hill Christian School: Learn to Read. Learn to Think. Live for Christ.
