Adventure Specialists' Advice
February 10, 2017
Impacting the World
By Sharon Bernhardt
Recently, I saw some parents of one of my middle school students after school. I greeted them and asked how they were doing. Their expressions were extremely joyful and they told me that they had taken a good trip to the country where they do ministry and were so excited about what God was doing there. We had a little more small talk and that was the end of our conversation that day. Afterwards I felt a strong prompting to learn more. Why had they been so enthusiastic? What had made their joy so visible—almost palpable? I emailed them and asked if they would be willing to share more details about what had made their trip so awesome. They responded, really excited about being able to share about what God is doing---and honestly, very excited that someone had asked them about what is happening. (Sadly, they said that not many people ask, and they don’t feel comfortable just forcing the information on people.) I was able to meet with them and learn about the work that God is doing—and how the Holy Spirit is reaching so many people---literally thousands… Lives are being changed.
I know here at Dalat that it is very easy to get stuck in our bubble. We have a ton of work to do. Some of our work is “just work” but we also have students and parents who don’t know who God is and we are on the “front-lines” in the business of sharing with them about who He is and His love for them. We also have a large group of students we provide education for whose parents are on the “front-lines” in ministry. We aren’t a part of their ministry, but yet again, we are. We educate their children and allow them to focus on their essentially life-giving work. This was a significant moment for me because 1) I put away my student-focused work (like grading!) for a moment and focused on what is going on outside of me (but in part because of what I do). I haven’t always been good at making that time and it was important for that parent and also for me. Also 2) I am a part of these ministries, whether I keep that in my mind or not. I support these parents—but can support them even more by learning about what is going on and praying for them and their kids.
This is yet another reason why Dalat is a unique place with an incredible impact on the world—and I am thankful to be a part of it!
Important Dates
Feb. 14-18: ACSC Basketball Tournament and Spirit Week
Feb. 15: Progress Reports
Feb. 21-23: MEW
Feb. 28: Divisional Meeting; DJHS Decisions
March 2: 8th Grade HS Registration, 4 PM
March 6: No School
March 7: DJHS (Chapel Schedule with A block in the morning and assembly at 2:30)
March 7: PD Meeting, 4:00
Next Week
- Cookies from PTO will be delivered to lockers
- Singing Valentine's from Junior Class will happen during the school day
- Teams arrive for ACSC
- ACSC Begins
- MS Cheering Schedule: Please take your class at the assigned times and encourage them to cheer loudly! This is a great way to encourage our visitors.
- 1:30 - Dalat vs. Grace
- Spirit Week: Nerd Day
Thursday:
- ACSC Continues
- 9:30 - Dalat vs. Morrison
- Spirit Week: Twin/Clone Day
Friday:
- ACSC Continues
- Game times TBD
- Spirit Week: Blue and Gold Day
- Panther Invitational at ISKL; some MS students will attend
MEW Week
- Regular Schedule
- Worship Night at 6:30
Tuesday:
- Chapel Schedule
- MEW Chapel at 8:30
- Bible at 2:30
- MEW Service at 7 PM
Wednesday:
- Chapel Schedule
- MEW Chapel at 8:30
- Bible at 2:30
- MEW Service at 7 PM
Thursday:
- Chapel Schedule
- MEW Chapel at 8:30
- Bible at 2:30
Friday:
- Regular (not Friday) schedule
- No Chapel
- No MS Activities
We're All in This Together
Perhaps the biggest selling point of active learning was when I realized all the opportunities for total participation and engagement that I’d missed in my classroom for so many years. I’d grown up with the standard teaching formula modeled for me: 1) teacher lectures for 30 minutes, 2) teacher asks a few questions to 1-2 students, and 3) teacher gives the last 5 minutes of class time for homework. At what level were most students processing and absorbing the information? It’s hard to know for sure, but truthfully, my recollection tells me that in many classrooms students were not going deep with the information presented in class because it was never required of them. The 1-2 students who answered questions would need to engage, but for everyone else, it was optional.
With active learning structures that require all students to participate in thinking tasks, the level of engagement and ownership goes up significantly. Instead of asking 1-2 students to think about a question, each student is responsible to process, solve, or analyze the information. Total participation truly does bring a whole new level of learning to the classroom! In order to ensure that total participation remains total, it’s important to build in ways to provide accountability to students as they discuss or solve the problems at hand. Next week we’ll look at a few effective accountability measures that will ensure success!
Susan Allen