Kindergarten STEM Day
4th Grade Hands-On Learning
God’s Creation Comes Alive for 1st Grade
3rd Grade Research Projects
1 1 1 ST ST ST
2 2 2ND ND ND
3 3 3RD RD RD
4 4 4TH TH TH
5 5 5TH TH TH God’s
SENSES! E GOD’S CREATION AND THE
Summer is around the corner NRCA students and their
families will enjoy sunny days poolside or riding waves at the
beach, catching fireflies past bedtime, and eating far too
much watermelon and ice cream It will be a time for
gathering with friends and family to celebrate a national
holiday, a birthday, or simply gathering to enjoy each other’s
company. As we embark on the journey called summertime,
use your five senses to take time and care for God’s creation throughout the sweet days of summer break.
By Joy Mathes Lower Elementary Principal
H E A R I N G H E A R I N G
Engage in gospel conversations with family and friends
Greet others with a hello and kind word
Express gratitude or thanksgiving to parents and those around you
S M E L L S M E L L
Plant new f lowers with a sweet aroma for your
parents or a neighbor
Pick up after your pet so the yard smells nice
Give your pet a bath or clean out their cage to avoid
them being stinky
E
T A S T E T A S T
Take time to plant herbs, vegetables, or fruit
that you can enjoy with your family or friends
Make breakfast for your parents or a neighbor
to show them that you care
Invite your neighbors over for dinner and take
time to share the gospel
T O U C H T O U C H
Use your hands to prune and weed the f lower beds at your house or a neighbor ’s house
Ask your parents if you can water the f lower beds or grass
Take your dog on a walk to help your parents
S I G H T S I G H T
Gift your neighbor a new wreath to hang on their front door
Look around you to see how you can help your parents or your neighbor
Stop long enough to see how you can be present in the moment
This fall, the kindergarten teachers planned a collaborative STEM Day for all the kindergarten classes to enjoy together. This hands-on, interactive day revolved around the topic of pumpkins. The five kindergarten classes rotated through all the classrooms, and each teacher did a STEM activity with each class. The children experienced five science activities in one afternoon.
Enhancing physical and social skills while engaging in playful learning was the objective of Mrs. Huffman’s activity. The students played pumpkin golf and pumpkin bowling. The children practiced a variety of important skills, such as spatial awareness, hand-eye coordination, and fine motor skills, as they aimed and rolled pumpkins toward targets. By taking turns and following simple rules, they learned about patience and teamwork.
Learning the basics of STEM was the goal in Ms. Learned’s classroom. The kindergarten students had fun as they built structures using candy pumpkins and toothpicks. They practiced the scientific method as they designed, built, and then tested the strength of their structures.
Movement was everywhere in Mrs. Cahoon’s STEM lesson. The kindergarten students worked together, passing pumpkins and orange balloons around in a circle. They changed directions and even kept fast and slow tempos.
Science came to life in Mrs. Gruver’s classroom, where the students focused on a sink-and-float experiment. Each class described the properties of three different sized and shaped pumpkins. The students made predictions about whether each pumpkin would sink or float. The students were amazed as they placed each pumpkin in the bin of water, and each pumpkin floated. Students recorded the results on a graphic organizer. The classes then discussed which properties of pumpkins made them float.
Finally, in Mrs. Gardner’s classroom, the students enjoyed taking off the lid of a cut pumpkin and taking turns peeking inside to reveal seeds and squishy, orange pulp. The children each had an opportunity to touch the inside of the pumpkin, as well as inspect the seeds and other fall items with magnifying glasses. A discussion of the life cycle of pumpkins from a seed to a plant completed the learning for the day.
For NRCA’s youngest learners, hands-on movement and interactive learning were a wonderful way of introducing them to God’s amazing creation and helping them understand how creation makes God known to us.
Can you tell how old this tree was?
D’S CREATIO RST GRADERS
UCATIONAL S
aders and their parents nity to explore God's c field trip to Clemmon the first of Nor th Caro
orests This experience
rectly from park range classrooms. They discovered process of how paper is made tree age, and the various par t student eagerly par ticipated i activity, which made learning engaging.
During a presentation about t were intrigued to count the rin deepening their underst
over time.
The highlight of the day along the Talking Tree T numerous oppor tunities obser ve, and learn abou trees Along the way, th various species, each w
This memorable field tri valuable lessons about as a testament to the m
creation The towering t ever yone of the greatne and how small we are in the wonders of nature s
MARKET
Our second graders had the opportunity to participate in our second annual Market Day this fall. The second-grade history curriculum explores the idea of what it means to be a producer and consumer and how, as believers, we are called to be good stewards of the abilities and finances that God has given us. The students chose a product to create and “sell” in our second-grade market. The students made 10 or more of their items, created a shop sign that displayed a catchy slogan to draw their consumers in, and ran their shop as customers came to purchase their items.
During our market day, students were also given the opportunity to be consumers. They each had a “wallet” with 20 one-dollar bills inside. We discussed opportunity cost and how we must make many choices about money. Students explored what the Bible says about money, and we learned that making a budget can help us use our money wisely. Students were allowed to “preview” the shops the day before our market so that they could budget how they would like to spend their money. We even had several second graders ask if they could save some of their money to give to those in need!
Market Day 2024 was a wonderful learning experience for our secondgrade students. The Bible praises those who work hard, and the students recognized that God planned for people to provide for themselves and care for others through work.
Exploring th Exploring th Exploring th e Wor e Wor e Wor
Third-Grade Research Projects Bring Global Cultures to Life
In third grade, we studied the eight regions of the world. We learned about their geography, culture, climate, resources, and religion. In the second semester, the students were assigned a country to research. The countries researched include Ethiopia, China, Botswana, the Dominican Republic, France, Egypt, the Bahamas, Greenland, and many more. Third graders were given the choice of creating a picture collage with 15 facts and 15 pictures or creating a PowerPoint about their country. The PowerPoint included slides on geography and climate, culture and religion, animals, and pictures.
“Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples!”
PSALM 96:3
The students read books, watch videos, and utilize the internet as part of their research.
In March, the students presented their project to their class. For many of them, it was their first time doing a research project and their first time presenting to an audience. It was so fun to see the pride they took in their work and their excitement about sharing what they learned. Some students wore traditional dress from their country or provided candy or a sweet treat unique to their country. The picture collages were displayed outside our classrooms so other grades could admire them, too. We also proudly displayed some of them at Grandparents Academy.
Beyond the information gleaned from their classmates’ presentations, these projects often reminded us how truly blessed we are to live in the United States. The students quickly realized that the freedoms we enjoy are not available in many parts of the world. The third graders also began developing research and presentation skills that will be useful throughout their education.
Hands Hands Lear Lear 4th Grade -On -On
Making Learning
Come Alive
ning ning
This year, four th grade has made learning about hands-on fun. Students have had oppor tunities to apply their learning to their ever yday lives In Language Ar ts, working with Reading Detective activities or par ticipating in a Book Tasting, students began to explore how to master the English spoken word In Bible, they learned to journal using Scripture and developed an understanding of how God’s Word applies to all aspects of life. Science, especially, afforded students the oppor tunity to see scientific concepts in action From an egg-
drop challenge to a marble run, students
were asked to learn and apply concepts such as Newton’s Laws and what we know about gravity. A histor y project allowed students to put a holiday spin on influential figures and historical events through their “His” -tree ornament And recently, students applied concepts of area and perimeter in their zoo projects in math. It is no wonder that the four th graders are motivated to get hands-on in other subject areas as well As students continued to explore God’s creation through studying science and learning more about the language He created, they deepened their learning and understanding.
As we wrap up the school year, we prayer fully hope that these students can tinue honing the skills they ’ve developed year and can be the hands and feet of us in their communities showing a
comes to
After studying World War II, our fifth-grade students took their learning beyond the
classroom with a visit to the USS Nor th
Carolina battleship in Wilmington. Though
the forecast predicted rain, the Lord provided a day full of sunshine and warmth
ideal for exploring the ship’s towering guns, narrow passageways, and historic features.
As they toured the decks, many students kept an eye on the water below, hoping for a glimpse of the alligator A favorite moment of the day was enjoying lunch in the ship’s original mess hall—a rare and memorable experience. It was a meaningful day of discover y, adventure, and God's gracious provision
John 3:30