SUMMER 2011 - Liberty Christian School

cover storyThe school day at Liberty is full of exciting and engaging activities. Take awalk with President Rodney Haire and see all the places he goes and thewonderful learning he sees!8:30 a.m.Magma schoolMiddle School students learned aboutthe three different types of volcanoes bycreating their own! They learned aboutthe shapes and locations of volcanoes,including the ones most publicized. In thisproject, students also learned teamworkand public speaking skills, as groupspresented their findings in front of theirclass. To top off the project, all of thestudent-created volcanoes exploded in acollision of molten lava (from either mentosand cola or baking soda and vinegar)!9:05a.m.A little Brit of funIn the kindergarten wing, theirresistible smell of baked sconescould be found in the air. Earlier inthe year, kindergartners studiedthe country of England earlier thisyear, learning about the historyof the country and its famouslandmarks such as the Clock Towerand Buckingham Palace. On thisparticular day, kindergartners weredrinking English tea. Tables wereset with teacups and saucers, andeach child had a cup of tea, completewith sugar lumps and cream. Theypracticed the art of “sipping” andhaving polite conversation.Wings of love10:15a.m.On March 11, a massive earthquake struckSendai, Japan, causing a tsunami that affectedcoasts up to 180 miles away from Tokyo. Websitegroups “StudentsRebuild” and “DoSomething”partnered together to give children around theworld a creative way to contribute toward effortsto help Japan. The “Paper Cranes for Japan”project set a goal of 100,000 origami papercranes from students all across the world. Foreach of these paper cranes that were sent to“StudentsRebuild” in Seattle, Wash., the BezosFamily Foundation donated $2 to Architecturefor Humanities reconstruction efforts in Japan.Mandy Welton’s fifth grade art class joined forceswith these organizations and started foldingcranes on March 22 and has since folded 255cranes. Once they had all completed at least onecrane, student excitement really began to showas they signed their names and wrote messageson the wings of thecranes like “Godbless you.” Afterjust three days offolding, studentsbegan to feel likethey were makinga difference. Theywent above andbeyond whatWelton everanticipated. WithLiberty’s finalamount raised,adding up to morethan $500, thisproject is sure to beone that studentswill not soon forget.Made in ChinaAlphabet soupDr. Haire walked intoEarly Childhood Educationgreeted by smiles and sillysongs. Preschoolers werewriting their letters inshaving cream while prekindergartnerswere sittingtogether and practicingreading for the first time.He walked through the halllooking at their creativeartwork with joy in hisheart knowing ECE is sucha happy place.Foreign language Mandarin class teacher Doris Trinh setup various stations that focused on international diversity,and Upper School students had the opportunity to teachLiberty’s first graders. In a short video, students learnedthe story behind the lion dances. Mandarin I studentsrecited John 10:14-16 in Chinese. All of the Mandarinstudents sang in Chinese a song titled, “ Qīng QīngTīng,” which speaks of God as the good Shepherd, and twoChinese natives performed for the students. First gradersparticipated in various activities using both the writtenlanguage and spoken language. First graders also learnedto converse in the language with the help of the Mandarinstudents teaching simple Chinese phrases and sentences.The time together ended with giving away a traditionalChinese snack food. It was truly an amazing experienceas Trinh was once again reminded that students learnbest by doing, and in this case, teaching. “To God be theglory – 荣 耀 归 于 神 (róngyào guī yú Shén)!”11:01 a.m.11:29a.m.16 LIBERTY LIFE LIBERTY LIFE 17