Gratitude

At ECA, our vision is that school families Love God, Value Learning, and Serve Others.

October 22, 2023

The Power of Thankfulness

Christian music can be an important part of worship and connecting with God. One of my favorite songs is “Gratitude” by Brandon Lake. Here are the lyrics to the song:

All my words fall short
I got nothing new
How could I express
All my gratitude?

I could sing these songs
As I often do
But every song must end
And You never do

So I throw up my hands
And praise You again and again
'Cause all that I have is a hallelujah
Hallelujah
And I know it's not much
But I've nothing else fit for a King
Except for a heart singing hallelujah
Hallelujah

I've got one response
I've got just one move
With my arm stretched wide
I will worship You

So come on, my soul
Oh, don't you get shy on me
Lift up your song
'Cause you've got a lion inside of those lungs
Get up and praise the Lord

Oh come on, my soul
Oh, don't you get shy on me
Lift up your song
'Cause you've got a lion inside of those lungs
Get up and praise the Lord

Come on, my soul
Oh, don't you get shy on me
Lift up your song
'Cause you've got a lion inside of those lungs
Get up and praise the Lord, hey

Praise the Lord
Praise the Lord

Praise the Lord

So I throw up my hands
Praise You again and again
'Cause all that I have is a hallelujah
Hallelujah
And I know it's not much
But I've nothing else fit for a King
Except for a heart singing hallelujah
Hallelujah

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Our school staff is so thankful for the families that make up our school family. We are excited to share Jesus’ love and provide ways to learn about our amazing world. We look forward to meeting with you soon at conferences and are excited as we plan for community dates in our second quarter.

Youtube Music Video

The Power of Gratitude (Article on Gratitude)

Hot Lunch Program

You can now order lunches for each week by going to our school website. Hot lunch can be found under the Student Life dropdown. You can also click on the box below to go straight to the page:

HOT LUNCH LINK

Please place all orders for each week before Monday morning at 8:45. Hot lunch meals come in two varieties: a main meal with a small side salad / salad bar as a main meal. If you are making orders for more than one child, please do one order at a time. That will ensure we get an accurate count.

Simply type your child’s first & last name
Select the option that fits the order for the week
Click Submit.

Prices for meals:

students in grades K-2 - $5,

students in grades 3-8 - $6.

Just a reminder… our hot lunch menu is posted on our website:

http://www.emeraldchristian.com

Home & School Meeting This Thursday

Our Home & School leaders are meeting at the beginning of each new quarter all year long. Their hope is to provide you, our wonderful parents, with opportunities to feel connected to our school and provide opportunities for you to get involved. If you would like to be a part of our Home & School and be involved in our November - January school activities, then this Thursday’s evening meeting is for you!

When: This Thursday, October 26 - 6:30 pm

Where: ECA Library

AG Program - Monday’s Science Class

This year, every student will be able to participate in ECA’s Agriculture Program. This happens on the first day of each week. Students will be outdoors doing a variety of things with Mr. Wyatt Johnson. Throughout the year, there may be a few rainy days. Boots and gloves are great things for working outdoors on Monday Science Days. Water bottles are great things to have outside too. Students are in class with Mr. Wyatt from 1:15-3:15. Here is a schedule of the days and classes:

Monday, October 23 - Grades 3&4

Monday, October 30 - Grades K-2

Monday, November 6 - Grades 7&8

ECA Parent Survey

As a school staff, our goal is to make our school mission statement come alive every day. We work together to ensure our school provides students with an opportunity to love God, value learning, and serve others. We strive to help students build discipleship, discovery, a growth mindset, integrity, leadership, and thankfulness. You can help us know if we are on target. You can be part of an anonymous school survey conducted by John Hopkins University. Every SDA school in Oregon has contracted with this organization to provide a tool for us to grow and you to share what we are doing well and what we can be doing better.

There are three groups that will be part of this yearly, anonymous survey: parents, students, and staff. This survey measures critical elements of school culture that reflect stakeholders’ beliefs about their schools. School Culture 360™ highlights elements of a school community that include:

· School Climate – Characteristics of the school environment that foster academic achievement and positive interpersonal relationships

· Academic Climate – Characteristics of the learning environment that promote high expectations, teacher support of student learning, and peer support of student learning

· Civic Open Classroom Climate – The routine experience of deliberation and viewpoint diversity

· School Mission and Vision – The stakeholders’ beliefs about the school’s commitments and values

These areas have been linked to various student outcomes, including academic achievement and civic preparation. A summary of research about these domains is available upon request. While parents, teachers, staff, administrators, and students in Grades 4 to 12 take the survey, not all these groups will answer all components.This survey is completely anonymous and will be used for secondary research. Participation in the survey is completely voluntary; there are no penalties for not participating.

Parents/guardians: Please complete one survey per household. Separated parents may complete one per parent.

The link will be sent out to your email addresses that we have on file for you at school. There is only a two-week window to take this survey. It should take about 15 minutes to complete the survey. If you would like to be part of your school’s growth, please look for the link. Students in grades 4-8 will have school time to complete the survey. Thank you for helping our school grow and meet our community’s needs.

The survey window will run from Friday, October 20, 2023, and will close on Friday, November 3, 2023.

Picture Day - Tuesday, October 31

Three weeks ago, your child brought home a packet for ordering pictures. We will be having a studio come and visit our school on Tuesday, October 31. If you would like to order pictures, that can be done online by following the information in the picture packet. Even if you do not order pictures, we will still be taking pictures of all students for our yearbook. If you did not receive a packet or if it was lost, you can stop by the office for a replacement, or call the office and we will send another packet home with your child.

Parent / Teacher Conferences are Coming Up!

ECA has P/T conferences in the Fall & Spring of every year. This year, our Fall P/T conferences will be held on Thursday, Nov. 2 & Friday, Nov. 3. Students in grades K-2 will have a conference with both Ms. Ashley and Mrs. Hager. Students in 3-4 will have conferences with Mrs. Harness. Students in grades 5-8 will have combined conferences with Mr. Gaylor & Ms. Lidia. Here are the times:

Thursday 2-5 (9 blocks), 6-7:40 (6 blocks)

2:00 2:20 2:40 3:00 3:20 3:40 4:00 4:20 4:40 6:00 6:20 6:40 7:00 7:20 7:40

Friday 9-12 (9 blocks), 1-3 (6 blocks)

9:00 9:20 9:40 10:00 10:20 10:40 11:00 11:20 11:40 1:20 1:40 2:00 2:20 2:40 3:00

Please call the school office to sign up for a time beginning on Tuesday, October 24. Office staff will help you coordinate time openings (especially if you need to meet with more than one conference group.)

Yearly Record of Notification of Asbestos in the School Building

“The Federal law requires a public announcement to be given to school patrons regarding any asbestos material in your school.

Your school facility has been checked by a certified asbestos person. The report is in the school file. This document is available for those wishing to see it.

The asbestos in the school is in a non-friable condition and presents no hazard to anyone at the present time. It will be checked at stated periodic intervals to ascertain any change in the material.”

Christian Counseling Available - Free Resources:

The NAD (North American Division of SDA) has recently shared new resources for children and teens that offer a safe and anonymous place to talk or text. Here is a news release from the NAD.

We’re excited to announce the launch of www.aruggedjourney.org our newest NAD site providing free online mentoring for guys. A Rugged Journey joins www.gorgeous2god.org (for young women) which has grown in its scope and ministry since its beginning in 2017.

These sites, along with their counterparts on social media, provide free help to our teens/young adults in a space they can ask questions without judgment or fear. The questions are answered by a team of dedicated Seventh-day Adventists at AIM on the campus of Andrews University.

In addition to the confidential Q & A, positive content is provided through videos, posts, etc.