I hope all of you have been receiving and reading the school newsletter, "The CCA Gazette". This newsletter has all of the most recent information!

Believe it or not we are already almost half way through the school year. This is the time of year when all of the hard work that the students have been doing is on display for all of us to enjoy. "Annie" is next week -- Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, January 16, 17, and 18. You won't want to miss that! Then "Little Princess" is February 21st and 22nd. Auditions for our first high school production are coming up. We are doing, "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown". And auditions for The Wizard of Oz" are soon after.

It amazes me every year to see what our children in action. And my favorite part of being principal is watching them perform.

Please believe me when we say that we only want the very best for your child(ren). We are constantly seeking to make our school the very best that it can be.

God loves you and so do we!

Mrs. Sheila Coleman,
Principal

posted by Shela Coleman at 3:33 PM

I am thrilled with all of the magnificent work that I see the children doing here at CCA. They are working hard and are reaping the bounty of hard work. Once again, our Bible verse for the entire school year is, "I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." (Philippains 3:14) Please talk to your children about goals and encourage them to reach for the stars.

This Wednesday, October 31st is our first minimum day of the school year. Please refer to the fliers that we have sent home and to the poster out by the back door for details on scheduling. It is a different schedule from our usual, so it can be confusing.

Your support is critical to our success with your children. We are blessed to have you in partnership with us as we strive to provide the nutrients that will help your child thrive -- academically, emotionally, and socially. We encourage you to call us or drop us a note if you have any questions or concerns.

God loves you and so do we!

Mrs. Sheila Coleman,
Principal
posted by Shela Coleman at 12:34 PM

It has been a beautiful fall, and the children are all learning and growing. I am so proud of all of them. They are working hard and reaping the results. We appreciate all the support that you have given to us, for without you, we are unable to help your children reach their goals. We can't do it without you!

Progress reports are going home in the mail this week. Only those students who have received a "C" and below will be receiving progress reports. Please sign them and return them ASAP. Remember that these are not final grades. It is not uncommon for a grade to be low on a progress report, just to bump up when the final grades are posted. That may be because there is a missing assignment, due to illness, etc.

We encourage you to contact the teacher if you have a concern about a grade, and we encourage you to talk to you child(ren) about the grade that needs work. Nine times out of ten the students know what they need to do to bring up a grade. Above all, remember that we are here to help you. We want you to encourage your children to set goals and work hard to meet them. That may mean making some tough choices, giving up something to make our goal. No great achievement was ever made without hard work.

Our Bible verse for this year is, "I press toward the goal for the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:14). Set a goal, work toward it, and feel true success! Without a goal, we flounder and we achieve less than we are capable of. My father, Dr. Schuller, says it this way, ""If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." Take some time this week to set some academic goals with you child(ren), keep reminding them of their goal and encourage them to reach for the stars. My father also taught me, "If you aim for an 'A', you'll for sure get a 'B'. If you aim for a 'B', you'll for sure get a 'C'." Well, you can see that the higher we set our goals, the more we will achieve.

Have a great week!

God loves you and so do we!

Mrs. Sheila Coleman,
Principal
posted by Shela Coleman at 1:48 PM

It has been another BUSY week here at CCA. Please remember that next week is BIG DAY. This is a fun day where our girls' basketball team raises funds for their program. They collect cans and bottles and half of the proceeds go to Cystic Fibrosis. Of course, if they raise enough then I have to don a uniform and shoot free throws. So, pray for me.

Next Wednesday is Picture Day, and next Friday Progress Reports will be mailed. Progress Reports are mailed only for those students who have a subject which is currently a "C" or below.

For those of you with students in upper grades, we really urge you to check out the teacher's homepage. In science, for instance, Mrs. Hughes has created links to help you succeed! Not only does she give you the week's assignments, she also has hot links with internet activities and self-tests to help them bring their grades up.

Please check it out. Your teachers care about you and are providing the best communication they can.

God loves you and so do we!

Mrs. Sheila Coleman,
Principal

posted by Shela Coleman at 4:44 PM

We feel so blessed to be able to work every day with your children. We really feel that we have the best children of any school. And it is a joy to be with them. They teach us as much as we teach them. They teach us the value of a child-like faith. Their ability to trust and bounce back is a quality that we adults can learn from.

From time to time I will use this letter as a chance to inform you about our school's curriculum -- what we teach and why we have chosen the curriculum. This week, I thought I'd share with you some of our thoughts about our math curriculum. As you may know we use the Saxon math program from K - 6th grade. We have used this program for seven years and we have been very pleased with the results.

There are many different programs and there are strengths and weaknesses in all curricula. When evaluating a curriulum we look for several important aspects. At CCA we look for a broad scope in curriulum, meaning that we want the children to learn not only math facts, such as addition and subtraction, we also want them to have experience with measurement, with time, with money, with decimals, and especially in problem solving and understanding concepts -- how and why -- the application of math.

Some schools focus primarily on a narrow scope -- just teaching the steps of doing arithmetic. It can appear at a glance that children who are in such a math program are more advanced. However, in our opinion, such programs short-change the children in the long run. We want the children to have a broad sure foundation in math that we can build upon in the upper grades. As math requirements for college change and as the push-down for higher level math in lower grades continues in the school system, we are more confident than ever that our math program is the best possible. Especially in light of what we are seeing our middle school and high school students doing in math. Also, the students who have had Saxon the longest when they get to middle school/high school are faring better than students who have not had the advantage of Saxon.

Please feel free to ask your teacher more about this curriculum. It is our desire to help you understand why we teach what we teach.

Thank you for all of your support.

God loves you and so do we!

Mrs. Sheila Coleman,
Principal

posted by Shela Coleman at 4:30 PM

We will never forget the past weeks. They will forever be ingrained in our hearts and minds. We know as educators that the same is true for the children. The lessons they learn from this will be linked to these events, consequently, they are lessons they will never forget. Therefore, it is imperative that we be careful and prayerful in the lessons we teach them.

What lessons do we want them to learn from this? We want them to learn that God is good, that God loves them, that God is always with them -- therefore they DO NOT NEED TO FEAR! This is good news.

I have noticed that the staff, the families, the children -- all are showing signs of weariness. It is only natural after the adrenaline rush of unbelief, anger, and fear, that the let-down sets in. I urge all of you to take time together as a family and to REST in God.

Thank you for all your prayers for the President, our nation, and for the school.

It is our privilege and honor to be here for all of you.

God loves you and so do we!

Mrs. Sheila Coleman,
Principal

posted by Shela Coleman at 2:34 PM

It was wonderful seeing all of you at Back-to-School night. We had an excellent turn-out. You are all so very supportive and the success we have with our students wouldn't be possible without you.

In light of the tragic week, we have been giving the children a chance to process their feelings. We are not focusing on the tragedy as much as we are focusing on how God helps us in times of trouble. In addition, we are praying as a school for our President, our country, and for the families who have lost loved ones.

We feel it is important to give the children and the youth a place of comfort, a place of peace, a refuge from the craziness. We know as educators that routine is very helpful in times like these. It is our goal to provide this for your children.

"God is our refuge and strength. A very present help in time of trouble. Therefore we will not fear." That verse from Psalm has been one that our pastor, Dr. Schuller has shared with all of us. Take it to heart these days.

God loves you and so do we!

Mrs. Sheila Coleman,
Principal
posted by Shela Coleman at 10:59 AM