After a two-year absence we were excited to hold our traditional Field Day again last Friday. During this event, which was once called May Day Play Day, 18 teams, each with students from kindergarten to 8th grade, compete in nine activities on our athletics fields. The activities include such things as an egg n spoon […]
As we begin the final three weeks of the school year and find ourselves midway between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, I feel it is appropriate to take a moment to recognize the work that the parents do to support what we do at BACS. Our goal is to have the home and school be […]
The Capital Campaign Committee held a very well attended indoor picnic last Friday night. Not only did this event raise funds for the new building, it also provided members of our school community with an opportunity to gather together. I think we have all felt varying degrees of isolation over the last couple years. Friday […]
This past week was national Teacher Appreciation Week. BACS kicked off the week in style by having a beautiful catered dinner for our faculty and staff at Glencairn on Sunday evening. This event was a gift from the Leaves of Tree Foundation. On Thursday the parents of the school presented the teachers with a Cinco […]
BACS held whole school chapel in Heilman Hall last Friday. It was the first time we had been all together in Heilman Hall in over two years. As Solomon Keal mentioned in his talk, being in the same place at the same time creates a sense of togetherness. I think we all felt that unity […]
On Friday some of the grades were invited to attend a preview performance of this year’s First Grade Play. It is so nice that the first graders have this opportunity to put on a play. Having the experience of playing a role is a great building block for our students to learn the important skill […]
BACS took a four day weekend for Easter last week. We hope it was an opportunity for our students and faculty to spend time with their families and to celebrate this special time of year. BACS is still accepting applications for our school counselor position as well as full-time teaching positions in first, second and […]
We continue to spend time this spring preparing for the upcoming building project. Our architects recently spent the better part of a week camped out on campus. Aspects of the design have reached the level of detail where engineers and builders have begun joining our team and are reviewing plans item by item. Other areas […]
Next year, two of our homeroom teachers will be teaching in different grade levels. Chris DeMaria will be moving from first grade to second grade and Beth Adams will be moving from second grade to fifth grade. Both second and fifth grades will have two homeroom teachers new to that grade level next year. The […]
This Thursday two teams from BACS will be competing in the Montgomery County Reading Olympics, an event which will include 18 teams from area schools. Twenty of our students will face off against other schools in two rounds of questions based on a list of 25 books. This is the fourth year that BACS has […]
On Monday the students and teachers returned from a well-deserved spring break. We have now begun our third marking period. The spring term is home to many milestone projects including the country fair, mythology plays, state notebooks and the first grade play, and students have begun working on some of these projects already. The spring […]
When I announced the new building plans to the students back in October there was a buzz of excitement throughout the student body. Since then the work on the project has almost exclusively been happening out of the students’ sight, and so the buzz has simmered down. Two events took place over the last week […]
About two weeks ago BACS had our 90th day of school which marked the midpoint of the year, and two weeks from now we will reach the end of our second marking period. It was on last Monday though that we hit another turning point in an elementary school calendar, the 100th day of the […]
Three of our homeroom teachers, Debbie Cook, Cara Dibb and Liz Switzer, have let us know that they will be retiring at the end of this school year. They will each will be missed, both as teachers and as colleagues next year. Mrs. Switzer began teaching first grade here in 2003 before returning in 2005 […]
We are continuing to make progress preparing for our future building project. Several sub committees are beginning to take shape to work on specific aspects of the project. These include the kitchen, the auditorium, outdoor spaces, the exterior finishes, the mechanicals, and the New Church iconography. We are also excited to have added community member […]
January 29th was Emmanuel Swedenborg’s birthday. BACS has used this date to acknowledge Swedenborg in different ways over the years. This year in addition to a religious assembly put on by the 8th grade on Friday and the traditional Swedish flag topped treats, each class had a lesson dedicated to Swedenborg. Each grade’s lesson focused […]
We feel fortunate that we are continuing to offer in person school despite the high COVID case counts in our area. One of the key factors in our success has been the group of substitute teachers who have been covering a multitude of roles for us. In addition to the team of subs who had […]
BACS was closed on Monday January 17th as we participated in the national observance of Martin Luther King Jr Day. Each of our homerooms also spent time last Friday discussing topics related to Dr. King’s work. These topics included diversity, leadership, service, non-violence, equality, freedom and providence. Each year the years of Dr. King’s lifetime […]
Last week’s damage to our utility room caused us to miss school on Monday and Tuesday but thanks to the hard work of several crews we were able to be back onsite on Wednesday. It was nice to return, albeit later than planned, from Christmas break and to be back in the classrooms with our […]
BACS will be presenting its annual Christmas program online this year. You can view the program beginning at 10:20 this Friday morning, Dec. 17, at https://brynathynchurchschool.org/bacs-christmas-program/ . The students have been working hard to prepare their songs and we are looking forward to hearing them sing live as choirs this year. We like to think […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School is happy to once again be partnering with the USMC’s Toys for Tots program. We are currently collecting toys for the newly formed Hatboro chapter of the organization. Our toy drives have been a special part of Christmas for us for decades. It is an opportunity for students to focus […]
BACS was closed last Thursday and Friday for our Thanksgiving break. Thanksgiving is an opportunity for us to shift our focus to one of gratitude. Our hope is that the lessons, worships and projects leading up to the break helped prepare our students for the holiday. Now that we are back in session and only […]
BACS is excited to be once again collecting food this year for the Drueding Center. The Drueding Center provides reliable and safe housing for families in need and also works to give them a foundation for improved well-being and self-sufficiency. With a couple of days still to go we have collected over 400 items in […]
BACS recognized Veterans Day last Thursday with a special chapel service delivered by Rev. George McCurdy. Through his compelling words, Rev. McCurdy reminded us about the importance of love for one’s country. Our recitation for the week was, “A person who loves their country, and from good will benefits it, in the other life loves […]
BACS held our annual Scholastic Book Fair this past weekend. After holding it virtually last year, it was so nice to have it in person once again. When the doors opened on Friday evening, we were greeted by a crowd of excited shoppers. The fair is more than a fundraiser for the library; it is […]
Last week I let the staff and the parents know that this will be my final year as principal of the Bryn Athyn Church School. I will be forever grateful for the way that the BACS community accepted me as a teacher 25 years ago, and it has been an honor to be the principal of […]
Rev Eric Carswell and his 7th grade religion students put chapel on for the school last Friday. Students acted out scenes from the story of Jonah while their classmates narrated from The Word and Mr. Carswell explained its application to our lives. Having students act out the stories of The Word with costumes and props, […]
Last Friday, after our whole school outdoor chapel, I was able to officially announce to the students that a new school building is coming. It was fun to hear them ooh and ah over the pictures as I held them up. At the end of the day some students also beckoned their parents over to […]
We held our annual parent-teacher conferences last week. These conferences are an invaluable piece of our school year. Parents and teachers can often see different sides of a child’s life; by sharing these views the child stands to be better served both at home and at school. The conferences can be a time for plans to […]
Last Wednesday night the building committee introduced plans to the society for a new school and church building. It is exciting to think about all the ways that the proposed space could improve our students’ experience. The committee has spent nearly four years studying the current facilities and exploring potential solutions to our physical and programmatic needs. In that time we […]
We are excited that this year we are able to once again have our 7th and 8th grade elective program. The goal of this program, which runs for an hour each Friday, is to provide students with opportunities to try new experiences and to pursue interests that are not part of the standard school day. […]
Our first session of after school sports began last week. Seventy students in 5th – 8th grades are participating in six week seasons of field hockey and soccer. Our goal for these programs is to provide our students with the opportunity to experience being part of a team. They can learn what it is like […]
Six of our grade levels held their parent nights last week. The remaining three are scheduled for later this week. Parent nights are a highlight of September. They provide an opportunity for teachers and parents to meet together and to begin a yearlong partnership. After having to meet through Zoom last year, it is so […]
On our first day of school, Tues. 8/31, Bryn Athyn Church School began the day with an outdoor school opening ceremony. This was the first time in over 70 weeks that we were able to gather as a whole school for worship. It was a great way to start the year. We were particularly fortunate […]
Bryn Athyn Church School opened our 2021-22 school year on Tuesday, August 31. While our program will still be impacted in certain ways by the COVID-19 pandemic, we are excited to start a new year and are very much looking forward to a year on campus and in person. We are also excited to be […]
There have been two recent transitions to our BACS staff. Sadly, Amanda Miller will not be returning in the fall. Amanda worked in our Student Support Center for past two years. In that time Amanda’s students benefitted from her skill and her care. She will be missed. Catie Junge will be joining our faculty this […]
BACS will be piloting an after school program this coming year. This program will provide a place for students to get started on homework, participate in enrichment activities and engage with other students. We are pleased to announce that Beth Bochneak will be serving as the manager of this program. Beth’s skill, experience and personality […]
With the students gone last week was a week of meetings at BACS. One of those meetings was our annual faculty study which was led by our school pastor Rev. Solomon Keal. Solomon used Tuesday morning to guide us through next year’s school theme which will be “Seek First the Kingdom of God.” It is […]
Graduation Our graduation ceremony will be held at 11:00am on Friday, June 11th. We are excited that the graduates and their families will get to experience this ceremony in our traditional setting. Anyone else interested can watch it live at https://brynathynchurchschool.org/graduation/ Staffing News Barb Rose announced this week that she will not be returning to […]
While we still don’t know exactly what the next school year will look like, we can’t help but get excited about the activities, projects and events that might be possible again at some point. Many of these are the types of things that are directly funded by the Educational Enhancement Fund. This is a fund […]
Last week was National Nurses Week and it seems appropriate to take this time to acknowledge the work put in this year by our school nurse, Kathy McQueen. The countless hours she has spent researching regulations and best practices, designing systems and protocols, working with the health department, communicating with families, contact tracing, and in […]
Last Sunday was Mother’s Day, and I would like to use the opportunity to recognize all the mothers, and also the fathers, grandparents, aunts, uncles and other care givers that have played such an integral part in our students’ education this past year. We have felt the partnership with our students’ families more than […]
Tuesday, May 4th is Teacher Appreciation Day, and I would like to use the occasion as an opportunity to publically acknowledge everything that the teachers have done over the past year. These past four terms have seen teachers reinvent their programs several times over. They have taught themselves countless new skills in order to give […]
BACS has spent time over the past couple years planning for an after school program for students in kindergarten through 8th grade. While there is still some uncertainty about whether a multi grade program will fit into our safety protocols next September, we are optimistically moving forward with a goal of piloting such a program […]
Each year, for as long as we can all remember, BACS students have been getting school photos taken. Because of COVID protocols the photography company was unable to come this year. Fortunately, the picture day tradition was able to continue thanks to the generosity of Bruce Cronlund. Bruce recently spent a morning outside of our […]
It was a welcome sight to see the student body return to the building on Tuesday after the school was moved online for the two weeks before Easter. We are, however, continuing to face challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of our students are dealing with the virus and several more are quarantining, but fortunately […]
When BACS returned from spring break two weeks ago, there were reasons to be optimistic. The weather was starting to feel like spring, vaccination appointments were becoming available to teachers in large numbers, and government agencies were discussing reducing certain guidelines. Some of us began to set our eyes towards a finish line somewhere on […]
Students and staff returned to school on Monday after a week-long spring break. This was something we were not able to do last year as it was at this point in the year that the COVID shutdowns and restrictions began. Over the past twelve months yearly projects and events have been compared to what they […]
Traditionally, about once a month chapel is put on by an intermediate or upper unit religion class. In these services the minister often leads the students in reading passages from the Word while their classmates act out the stories on stage. Unfortunately, because of this year’s restrictions these special chapel services cannot happen in the […]
Spring break is approaching for BACS; we are scheduled to be closed from March 8-12. The students and teachers have been working hard in many ways this winter and I’m sure that the days off will be a welcome chance to recharge before we begin a busy spring term. This year has reminded us of […]
More snow fell on BACS this past week making it unsafe to have students and staff on campus. Rather than miss two more days of academic momentum we converted those days to online learning. Doing this also allowed us to avoid cancelling spring holidays like Easter Monday, a traditional solution when there are too many […]
BACS continues to hold school onsite, and it is so nice to have students in the building. I have found that the times we spent online over the past year have given me a new appreciation for the little things that happen on a typical day of school. This past week for instance, I had […]
This past week brought snow to Bryn Athyn. Unfortunately, it kept us away from school at the beginning of the week. When we returned, it was to a smooth blanket of snow covering our playgrounds. Within hours that smooth blanket was replaced by dozens of snowmen, snow forts and other creative snow structures. Because we […]
Last week was cold and windy but BACS continued to utilize fresh air as part of our health and safety protocols. We have increased ventilation throughout the building this year, and despite the outside temperatures we have been working with the windows cracked open. We are also using our outside spaces more than ever. In […]
BACS returned to onsite school on Tuesday, January 19th and we have a had a good first week back. Having students in the building again for the first time since before Thanksgiving has been wonderful. While we have learned more and more about how to effectively teach online, nothing beats having the kids in the […]
BACS was closed on Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Jr Day. Each year this observance is accompanied by lessons in the classrooms covering such topics as diversity, leadership, service, equality, freedom and providence. These topics are important and are covered in other ways throughout the year as well but our hope is that […]
On Friday we reached midterm point of our middle term. In many ways this is the midpoint of the school year. The first half of this year included several different versions of school as we responded to the pandemic. I continue to be amazed by the resilient work of the students, teachers and parents. This […]
We are excited to announce that will be holding a Virtual Christmas Program online on December 17th at 7:00pm. While this program will not be a digital replica of our traditional program, there will be elements familiar to us. The program will include many holiday favorites produced by compiling recordings the students have made at […]
We have learned that our local branch of Toys for Tots, which we have contributed to for many years, is no longer in operation. This news was sad for many of our teachers, parents, and community members, so we looked around to find an alternative. This year we will be collecting toys for The Drueding […]
BACS would like to use the recent Thanksgiving holiday as an opportunity to express our gratitude for the support we have received in 2020. Community members have reached out again and again to show their support for our work through words, deeds and generous donations. Our students’ parents have also been understanding and supportive as […]
Last Wednesday was Veteran’s Day. While our recent transition back to online learning has shifted plans in many way, there were still classes who took time to honor this important day. In addition to conversations about the history and reason for the holiday, there were also student projects and activities on the topic. Some students […]
BACS has returned to delivering school online until Thanksgiving. The decision to transition back online was made, in consultation with the Montgomery County Health Department, because of the interconnectedness of our school population with multiple recent cases of COVD-19. This online session will allow 14 days in which we can track possible transmissions from those […]
One of the typical landmark events on the BACS calendar which is being affected by COVID this year is our annual Scholastic Book Fair fundraiser. We are, however, pleased to announce that instead of simply cancelling the event our librarians have worked with Scholastic to provide an online version. If so moved, you can participate […]
It is so nice to have school in our building again, and we recognize that we are able to do so thanks to the generosity of our many supporters. The Boy Scouts set up their tent structures for us to use, and there were individual families who donated and helped set up tents as well. […]
Monday was BACS’s first full day of school on campus since March 6th, and it was great. You could immediately sense the students’ energy change the feel of the building. While this year will not be exactly like a typical year, with social distancing, masks, and other necessary changes to our program, today was a […]
There was no online school last Friday as we recognized Charter Day. While there were not the same Charter Day festivities in town this year as there traditionally are, recognizing the day on our academic calendar was still an opportunity for us to honor the importance of New Church education. The past seven months have […]
We feel that we are now in a place where, by following our COVID-19 safety protocols, we can once again hold school in person. While there will be challenges to face, we believe that holding classes in our classrooms again will allow us to best support the academic growth of our students while balancing their […]
Even though school is being delivered remotely, chapel is still happening live first thing in the morning. Last spring our ministers shared recordings from their homes in place of chapel. This fall our services are streaming live from Heilman Hall. There is something reassuring in seeing the minister in front of the traditional curtains and […]
We are currently still in a period of remote learning at BACS. One advantage we have this fall over last spring is that even while remote we are able to provide our students with non-digital materials each week. We had our first weekly pick up and drop off event last Monday. Families drove up to […]
Our fall remote learning session began last Tuesday and yet when I walk down our hallways I can hear teaching coming from the various classrooms. Like last spring, our remote program is made up of a combination of asynchronous and synchronous learning. There are times when students are working at their own pace on material […]
BACS is pleased to announce that Aubrey Asplundh will be joining our staff as a Student Support Center teacher. Aubrey grew up attending BACS and ANC before going on to West Chester University where she recently graduated summa cum laude with a dual degree in early childhood and special education. Aubrey’ education has provided her […]
As spring term reports cards are being finalized, we are officially completing the unprecedented 2019-20 school year. Now it is time to turn our full attention to the next school year, which is approaching. There is a lot of work ahead for us in the next couple of months as we try to determine what […]
Typically the spring term is full of milestone projects and events at BACS. While this spring is very different, creative teachers have been finding ways to have virtual versions of some of these activities. Examples include the second and third grades who put together versions of their mythology plays and puppet shows by editing together […]
Earlier this month Janna King let us know that she will be retiring from BACS at the end of the school year. Janna joined the staff at BACS in 2006 as part of her lifelong career as an educator. In her fourteen years here she has lovingly served scores of our students as a teacher […]
This week is designated as Teacher Appreciation Week. It’s an item that appears on US calendars every year, but this year it feels different. I have been impressed over and over again with the work of our teachers through this period of remote learning. They have been asked to completely rework their curriculums, to provide […]
Google Classrooms is the online platform that our students in grades 5-8 are using during this period of distance learning. Like SeeSaw, Google Classrooms allow teachers and students to communicate directly online. Our teachers are sharing material like links to videos, reference websites, and online activities as well as documents and PDFs of books and […]
Seesaw is the online platform that our students in grades K-4 are using during this period of distance learning. If you were able to peek your head into one of our virtual Seesaw rooms, you would see lots of creative ways that our teachers are bringing their curriculums to their students. There are links to […]
BACS took Friday and Monday as scheduled holidays for an Easter break. Teachers, students and their parents are working hard to make distance learning work. While much about this Easter must have felt different, our hope was that a respite from schoolwork would help our families find ways to make the holiday feel special. As […]
This past week was one of transition for many of our grade levels as the teachers, students, and parents got up and running on one of two online platforms–SeeSaw for grades K-4 and Google Classroom for grades 5-8. While there is a steep learning curve for everyone involved, these platforms seem to be greatly enhancing […]
As BACS moves into our third week of our closure due to the COVID-19 virus, we are beginning a new version of our distance-learning program. Workload and expectations have increased as we work to convey the essential elements of our spring term curriculum. We have also moved all of our classes to one of two […]
BACS is now beginning our second week of the current closure due to the COVID-19 virus. We are all working to get used to a strange new version of school which includes primary teachers reading books on YouTube, assignments being passed back and forth through Google Classroom, teachers recording lessons on Screencastify, students putting video […]
As per directions from Gov. Wolf we will be closing BACS and cancelling all school events for the next two weeks. Our current plan is to reopen on Monday, March 30th. Please look for communication from the school during this period as there may be some assignments for students depending on their grade level. We […]
Last Thursday was Hero Day in the third grade. This was a culminating activity for the class’s unit on historic heroes and leaders. Each student spent weeks researching their hero, becoming third grade experts on him or her. When the guests arrived on Thursday they were able to travel around the classrooms visiting each student’s […]
BACS is studying the possibility of piloting an aftercare program at our school. In recent years we have received an increased amount of feedback from parents who are struggling to arrange childcare after school, including some who have faced the hard decision of enrolling their children elsewhere in order to meet this need. One step […]
On Thursday the fifth grade put on their annual Explorer Puppet Play. The preparation for this show started months ago when the students researched the lives of Ferdinand Magellan and James Cook. After learning about the explorers and their famous voyage, the students wrote the scripts, made their puppets and painted the scenery. Of course […]
The seasons of our three winter sports teams are wrapping up this week. Each team had a successful year. The boys basketball team played smart ball throughout the season and put together some great games. In addition to regular matches, the wrestling team participated in several tournaments, two of which were held at of our […]
January 29th was Emmanuel Swedenborg’s birthday. BACS has used this date to acknowledge Swedenborg in different ways over the years. This year in addition to a religious assembly put on by the 8th grade on Friday and the traditional Swedish flag topped treats, each class had a lesson dedicated to Swedenborg. Each grade’s lesson focused […]
There is a new playground on our campus! Monday, January 25th marked the official opening of the new wooden playground outside the Society Building. The play structure that had been in that location for nearly forty years had begun to show wear, and after all those years and there was growing concern for its structural […]
BACS was closed on Monday January 20th as we participated in the national observance of Martin Luther Kind Jr Day. Each of our homerooms also spent time last Friday discussing topics related to Dr. King’s work. These topics included diversity, leadership, service, non-violence, equality, freedom and providence. Each year the years of Dr. King’s lifetime move […]
We are continuing to work on plans for updates to the Bryn Athyn Church School and Bryn Athyn Church buildings. A little over two years ago Amie Leighton from Space Strategies came on board as our owner’s representative. She gathered information from recent structural studies as well as from faculty, staff, parents, students, and community […]
The students returned from their Christmas break on Monday and we have begun our first week of classes in the year 2020. Two weeks can seem like a long time to be away from school and the first few days back can require some adjusting back to routines for everyone, not just the students. But […]
How many ways can the nativity been depicted? There are seven different styles on display in our hall this week. Different grades have made collages, paintings, stained glass designs, pastel drawings, clay sculptures, frescoes and sewn figures. All of these projects are lovingly displayed, thanks to a team of volunteers, as one exhibit in the […]
Our music teachers and students are working hard preparing for our 40th annual Christmas Program. This collection of performances is our Christmas gift to all those who support us throughout the year. There will be traditional pieces like The Twelve Days of Christmas, the handbells, and the third grade’s lantern lit processional, as well as […]
December snow greeted us as we returned from our Thanksgiving break and began a three week stretch leading to Christmas vacation. This is a busy time at the school. Besides the important academic units which begin to appear as we approach the midpoint of the year, nearly every class is working on a project, both […]
Thank you to all the families that participated in our food drive. We collected more than 500 food items over the last two weeks. This food was passed onto New Church Challenge who is working with Shine and Inspire to package and deliver complete Thanksgiving meals for needy families in the Trenton area. The students […]
Our first marking period came to an end last Wednesday. I’m sure that to some students it seems like the year just began and to others it feels like we have been here for much longer than just twelve weeks. The progress of time can be deceptive that way, especially when tracking seemingly long periods […]
Book Fair Our librarians put on our annual Scholastic Book Fair last week. Hundreds of new books were purchased by our families and I have already seen students reading them in the halls. The book fair earned close to $5,000 dollars for the school in Scholastic points. That money will go towards new books for […]
Our students were able to sleep in on the morning after Halloween this year because the faculty had our annual InService Day on Friday, November 1st. The topic this year was anxiety in young people, and we were fortunate to have Kiri Rogers as our presenter. Her presentation covered the current research on the topic […]
On Friday we were lucky enough to have a school assembly put on by Mr. Joe from the Franklin Institute. Mr. Joe taught us about space travel. He highlighted the anniversary of Apollo 11’s historic flight and invited the students to dream about what they might experience in their future. The students learned about gravity, […]
One of the ways in which the library encourages reading is through its summer reading program. More than a hundred students participated in this program this year and they all were invited to celebrate their accomplishment this past week. Each of these students received a bookmark, a small prize and raffle tickets. There were 58 […]
The primary grades celebrated the arrival of autumn last Monday when they held their annual Harvest Festival. The festival was a collection of nine outside craft stations laid out for the students. There were pumpkins to decorate, candles to dip, bracelets to make and so much more. As the classes arrived, the students were able […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School was closed on Friday in recognition of Charter Day, a celebration of New Church education. One of the core principals of New Church education is the relationship between the school and the student’s home. This past week was also the week of afternoons set aside for parent-teacher conferences. These conferences […]
Many of our families spent a perfect September evening at our school picnic on Friday night. Packs of kids played games in the fields while their parents visited with each other. The picnic was a great chance for our school community to get together in a relaxed atmosphere. The school was also able to raise […]
The annual Seventh Grade Carnival was held last Friday. This is a popular event for our students to attend each year. They can play games and win prizes all in a relaxed and fun atmosphere. It is also a very successful fund raiser for the seventh grade as it pays for a huge portion of […]
After School Sport Begin Our first session of after school sports began last week. Over fifty students in 5th – 8th grades are participating in six week seasons of field hockey and soccer. Our field hockey coaches are Laura D’Angelo and Aline Brown and our soccer coaches are Shane McCurdy and Tony Griffin. Our goal […]
Parent Nights at BACS Thursday, Sept 5 was the first of three Parent Nights we will have at the school this month, one for each unit. These meetings are a chance for the parents to visit their children’s classrooms, sit in their desks, and hear about the upcoming year from the teacher. The students are […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School opened our 122nd school year on Tuesday. After months of quiet preparation it was so nice to have students in our building again. In our opening worship service our school pastor, Solomon Keal, introduced this year’s theme, “Arise, and begin your journey.” Our chapel series this year will cover the […]
Last week the primary grades hosted open houses in their classrooms for their new students and their families. It was fun to have students back in the building even if it was just for a short visit. Teachers have been working hard preparing for the new school year. Desks have been arranged, bulletin boards set […]
We are pleased to announce the Amanda Miller will be a Student Support Center teacher this year. Amanda grew up attending BACS and ANC before going on to graduate with distinction at Cornell University. After college she spent more than twenty years working with young people from ages 3-18 as a gymnastics instructor. Recently Amanda […]
Nine teachers from BACS participated in science curriculum meetings last week. These meetings, put on by General Church Education, were a continuation of work from the past two years. On the first day a representative from the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit demonstrated phenomena based science lessons to our teachers, as well as fourteen other teachers […]
The final term report cards are complete; a sign that the 2018-19 school year has come to a close. The faculty has been busy meeting this past week, both to wrap up this year but also to prepare for the 2019-20 school year, which is only ten weeks away. Part of these meetings included a […]
BACS officially closed our 121st academic year last Friday morning with our graduation ceremony. The students in all of our grade levels have grown this year, benefitting from the challenges and the support given to them from their teachers. It is now time for the kids to go on a well-deserved summer vacation. I hope […]
After some severe storms, last week ended with a beautiful Friday morning, just in time for us to hold our annual Field Day event. For Field Day the school is broken into 18 teams, each with representatives from all the classes. The teams then travel to 18 different stations where they compete in events like […]
As the end of the year approaches, we find ourselves thick in the season of capstone projects. Earlier this month the sixth grade hosted their annual Country Fair. Twenty-eight nations were represented by sixth graders who were eager to share the research they had been doing over the past several months. Last Thursday the third […]
We are pleased to announce that Kate Gunther will be teaching fourth grade next year. Mrs. Gunther has been teaching in our student support center for the past seven years. Along with her professional and institutional experience, she brings with her an education degree from Bryn Athyn College, a masters degree in education, a love […]
May seems to be the unofficial month of field trips. Our classes went on three this past week. The fifth grade went the Peter Wentz Farmstead, touring the colonial farm and house; the fourth grade visited the Morris Arboretum as part of their science unit on trees; and the seventh graders traveled to Gettysburg to […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School began our Easter vacation on Thursday after walking to the Cathedral for a worship service. This service has become a new tradition for our school in recent years. While we highly value our chapels together in Heilman Hall, it is special to worship as a school in this other home […]
Last Tuesday evening BACS hosted a presentation to parents given by Kiri Rogers on the topic of anxiety in young people. She offered parents a better understanding of anxiety as well as strategies for helping young people who are experiencing it. Anxiety is a topic the school has addressed as a faculty and with groups […]
Carla Reuter will begin teaching seventh grade next year, moving from her current position in fourth grade. Mrs. Reuter has successfully taught fourth grade at BACS for over a decade and taught first grade and preschool before that. It will be exciting to see her in this new role. Mrs. Reuter has felt a sense […]
This past week the BACS faculty joined teachers from ANC, The Kempton New Church School and The Washington New Church School in a series of In-service meetings. We hosted our colleagues for a dinner on Thursday evening which was following by an inspiration talk by Peter Buss on the joy which can come through use. […]
Last Wednesday evening two teams from BACS competed in the Montgomery County Reading Olympics, an event which included representatives from 32 area schools. Our sixteen students faced off against other schools in three rounds of questions based on a list of 45 books. The participants in their team shirts and all the spectators cheering them […]
Each Friday the 7th and 8th graders have an elective period which allows them to learn more about a topic that interests them or to try something for the first time. They ended their third session of classes before we went to break. In this session some students learned the guitar with Mr. Odhner and […]
The curtains open on this year’s eighth grade play on Tuesday night. The class’s three performances of Jungle Book this week are the culmination of months of preparation. In the time since the play was announced in November the students have been working hard to build props and set pieces and to learn lines and […]
Family and friends of the primary unit attended our Patriotic Celebration on Friday morning. This biannual event, which can be traced back to the Patriotic Banquets some of us remember as kids, is a special opportunity for our younger students to show their love and respect for our country. The celebration included songs, poems and […]
Carol Nash has let administration know that this will be her last year teaching at BACS. Carol came to BACS in the fall of 1994 to serve as an aide in the upper unit. After two years in that role she became the 7th grade girls teacher, a position she has held for 23 years. […]
January 29th was Emmanuel Swedenborg’s birthday. BACS has used this date to acknowledge Swedenborg in different ways over the years. This year in addition to a religious assembly put on by the 8th grade on the previous Friday and the traditional Swedish flag topped treats, each class had a lesson dedicated to Swedenborg. Each grade’s […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School was not in session on Monday, January 21st in celebration of Martin Luther King Day. Last Friday every class gave meaning to this holiday by observing Dr. King in some way. Each grade’s focus was different as the teachers covered the life of Dr. King, the civil rights movement and […]
Two of our grades have begun working on their upcoming plays. The eighth grade play and the fifth grade puppet play are both in February. BACS has a long tradition of incorporating drama into our educational program. These two projects along with others have roots which go back generations. Putting on plays can enrich students’ […]
January 7th was BACS’s first day of classes in 2019. For many people the beginning of a new calendar year is a time for self-reflection and goal setting. In the school, however, we are not standing at the beginning of a year but rather at the midpoint. Our time for resolutions was in August and September. […]
Three days a week groups of boys and girls meet after school as part of our dance program. Our sixty-five dancers meet in eight different age-level groups, which range from preschool to eighth grade. The teachers, led by Holly Feerrar, instruct the students in five different styles of dance: jazz, tap, hip-hop, ballet and creative […]
About sixty community members attended a meeting on Wednesday night to discuss our facilities. The meeting was run by Amie Leighton, a building design facilitator working with the school and church to organize any future plans for our campus. Amie began the meeting by reviewing a series of studies which were done on our mechanical […]
Last Wednesday was the final day of our first marking period. This means that teachers are now hard at work writing report cards. Written reports from the teacher have looked very different in American history in the years since they were first introduced in the late 19th century. There is also a variety in the […]
Teachers get sick, have family emergencies and attend professional development events. When these and similar occurrences arise, we call on substitute teachers. Substitute teachers are remarkably flexible, teaching various grade levels and subjects throughout the school. They are able to support another teacher’s teaching. They are also able to manage behavior of different aged students […]
Each year the Bryn Athyn Church School is pleased to host students learning to become teachers. We have had a long standing working relationship with Bryn Athyn College which places education students in our classrooms every year. In fact, many members of our faculty were student teachers in BACS classrooms before we became faculty members. […]
Research has shown that one of the most important factors in a student’s success in school is parent involvement. We are fortunate to have so many parents invested and actively involved in their children’s experience here at BACS. Last week was the week we set aside for parent-teacher conferences. Our classroom teachers met with each […]
Each year our art teacher, Linda Kees, leads the students in creating a collaborative art installation. These projects which involve students in grades one through eight focus on our theme of the year. This year’s theme is the covenant. With Mrs. Kees’s guidance the students made small flags based on the Tibetan prayer flag model. […]
Every month the whole school gathers for an assembly and for three of those assemblies we are treated to performances from outside performers. These include magicians teaching us about science, musicians demonstrating different genres of music, historical reenactors, storytellers and other groups who teach our students something about their world through an entertaining show. This […]
Last Friday was the 30th annual 7th grade carnival. The carnival is an important opportunity that the teachers and parent volunteers provide for the students. The 7th graders learn so many lessons through the process of planning, executing and cleaning up this event. These lessons include such things as working in groups, problem solving, time […]
I was able to spend time over the past week phoning each family in the school to check in on how their children are settling into the new school year. It was time well spent as it gave me another opportunity to connect with our families and more importantly for me to hear their perspective […]
Parent Nights at BACS Thursday was the first of three Parent Nights we will have at the school this month, one for each unit. These meetings are a chance for the parents to visit their children’s classrooms, sit in their desks, and hear about the upcoming year from the teacher. Looking around a classroom during […]
BACS has been in session for a week now and our students are settling into the pace of the new school year. Teachers and students are building new relationships and classes are figuring out their new dynamics. The energy of a new school year makes this an exciting time to be in an elementary school. […]
Bryn Athyn Church School opened our 121st school year on Tuesday, August 28. After months of quiet preparation, it was so nice to have 275 students in our building again. They are, after all, why we are here. In our school opening worship service, our school pastor, Rev. Solomon Keal, introduced this year’s school theme, […]
BACS was treated to a visit from the Marquis de Lafayette interpreter from Colonial Williamsburg. He gave two educational and very engaging presentations to our students on Wednesday morning. His talent as an actor made the information about our country’s history seem to come to life before our eyes. It was no wonder that more […]
As we move deeper into spring and the weather theoretically improves, more and more grades are leaving campus to go on field trips. The second grade recently took their annual trip to the Philadelphia Zoo, the 4th grade went on a medieval pilgrimage to the cathedral, and the 3rd and 8th grades visited Glencairn. In […]
Last Tuesday fifteen education students from Bryn Athyn College visited our classrooms. These students, who are currently in the introduction to education course taught by Angela Rose, spent the morning observing our school, each in a different classroom. BACS has a long standing relationship with the education department at Bryn Athyn College. Each year there […]
BACS welcomed more than two dozen visitors this week. This year’s batch of prospective kindergarteners came for their kindergarten screenings and had a chance to visit the classrooms and meet the teachers. It is always fun to see the children come in, some who have had older siblings at BACS already and some who are […]
We are back from two spring snow days and preparing for Easter. On Thursday the Bryn Athyn Church School will be attending a special Easter worship service at the Cathedral. We began this tradition last year and plan to continue it for years to come. The service, which will be lead by our school pastor, […]
The last week of school before Spring Break was a busy one here at BACS. Presentations, tests, papers and major assignments were coming in, marking the completion of our winter term. These projects, which included the eighth grade’s production of Hansel and Gretel and the 7th grades girls’ Civil War notebooks are milestones for the […]
The curtains open on this year’s eighth grade play on Tuesday night. The class’s three performances of Hansel and Gretel this week are the culmination of months of preparation. In the time since the play was announced in November the students have been working hard to build props and set pieces and to learn lines […]
Erik Buss’s chapel talk on Friday included a description of teaching in heaven. He described a scene in which a perfect, moving example appeared to enhance the teacher’s lesson. While the instructional tools in our classrooms are, I’m sure, a long way away from those available in the other world, it is striking to think […]
Erik Buss’s chapel talk on Friday included a description of teaching in heaven. He described a scene in which a perfect, moving example appeared to enhance the teacher’s lesson. While the instructional tools in our classrooms are, I’m sure, a long way away from those available in the other world, it is striking to think […]
Beth Johns, who taught art at BACS from the 1960’s through the 1980’s recently passed into the Spiritual World. Mrs. Johns put love and attention into not just teaching art but also into developing an art curriculum closely connected with New Church education. That curriculum continues as a strong art program lead by our current […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School was closed on Monday as we observed Martin Luther King Day. On Friday all of our classrooms had special lessons, each focusing on a different aspect of Dr. King’s life and works. These included his childhood, his ministry, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, his speeches and his death, as well as […]
January 2nd was BACS’s first day of classes in 2018. For many people the beginning of a new calendar year is a time for self-reflection and goal setting. In the school, however, we are not standing at the beginning of a year but rather at the midpoint. Our time for resolutions was in August and September. […]
Bryn Athyn Church School is happy to announce that our new librarians are Kelly Austin and Shannon Good. Kelly and Shannon took over the running the library when we returned from Christmas break, earlier this month. These two librarians both bring postgraduate training and a combined 22 years of experience working in libraries at all […]
Things at BACS continue to move towards our celebration of Christmas. The first grade recently visited Glencairn for a Christmas tour, the seventh grade girls’ gingerbread house raffle is selling tickets, our Toys for Tots collection is growing, and a constant stream of carol rehearsals is coming from the music room. In the midst of […]
The primary unit put on their biennial religious pageant on Friday, each classroom acting out a scene from The Word which tied into our school theme, “The Lord is My Shepherd.” The simple style of the scenes allowed the students to feel confident in their roles and set an innocent tone. The audience, which included […]
This is the week of our annual Scholastic Book Fair. The fair is an opportunity for the school to raise money for the library but more importantly it is a way to celebrate books. Each class visited the fair on Monday morning and it was fun to watch the students, old and young, pouring over the […]
Each year the Bryn Athyn Church School has school theme. This year our theme is The Lord is My Shepherd. In conjunction with this theme, our art classes created collaborative illustrations of The Lord as a shepherd. The art teacher, Linda Kees, presented the students with several professional illustrations, each broken into twelve sections. Students […]
We still need volunteers for next week’s BACS Scholastic Book Fair! Think about giving 2 hours of your time to BACS. This book fair is a valuable fundraiser for the BACS library. We get so many books from Scholastic, and we can’t do it without your help! It is so easy to sign up. Just […]
Research has shown that one of the most important factors in a student’s success in school is parent involvement. We are fortunate to have so many parents invested and actively involved in their children’s experience here at BACS. Last week was the week we set aside for parent-teacher conferences. Our classroom teachers met with each […]
We are sad to share the news that Mrs. Neiger will be leaving BACS at the end of December as she and her husband complete their move to Oregon. In her 14 years in the library Mrs. Neiger has worked to engage her students and to present the library as a place the students want […]
The school seemed a little emptier last Wednesday as our two largest classes were away on field trips. The fourth grade was at the Adventure Aquarium in Camden as part of their unit on the oceans, and the seventh grade was at the new Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia. The seventh graders have […]
Last Friday was the 29th annual 7th grade carnival. What an important opportunity the teachers and parent volunteers provide for the students. The 7th graders learn so many lessons through the process of planning, executing and cleaning up the event. These lessons include such things as working in groups, problem solving, time management, advertising, public […]
Tuesday, August 29, marks the beginning of the 120th school year of Bryn Athyn Church School. There is an excitement associated with the first day of school as it is the source of so many new beginnings. All of our students are in their new classrooms for the first time and meeting their new teachers. […]
The 2017-18 school year is quickly approaching. Name tags are on the lockers and the classrooms are set, awaiting the return of the students. It will be exciting to see life fill the hallways again in a few short days. The following list reviews some important information regarding school opening. If you still have any […]
BACS held its school closing and graduation ceremony last Friday. We are sad to see the graduating eighth graders go, as they were a group who served as positive leaders in many ways, but are excited for them as they begin their next journey. Our students have worked hard this year at every grade level and […]
Friday was Field Day at BACS. Field Day is a chance for us to step out of our classrooms for a couple of hours and play together as a school. The students are placed into eighteen teams, each made up of members who range from kindergarteners to eighth graders. The teams travel through nine stations […]
The month of May is filled with activity at BACS. It is a natural time for many class trips. Taking students out of the classroom and into a different learning environment is a wonderful asset to our program. Just a few of the trips we take throughout the year include the third grade studying insects […]
Last Friday a group of French students from the high school came and worked with our third graders. Thursday afternoon two staff members from ANC came to share their experience with the Google education suite with some of our teachers. This is just the two most recent benefits we have received from our working relationship […]
The First Grade Play is this week. What a wonderful project to have every year. These plays, which date back to performances in Mrs. Cranch’s backyard, are an opportunity for some of our youngest students to shine in ways they haven’t before. Thinking back to where the first graders were just months ago when they […]
More than fifty workers, ranging from students to grandparents, descended on our campus on Saturday morning for our annual work day. It was remarkable how much they were able to get done. Crews spread wood chips, mulched, cleaned, painted, cleared gutters, and tackled several construction jobs. BACS is indebted to all of these volunteers for […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School began our Easter vacation on Thursday after walking to the Cathedral for a worship service. This service is not something we had done before and was a great addition to our year. While we highly value our chapels together in Heilman Hall, it was special to worship as a school […]
On Friday BACS held our annual faculty in-service meetings. Solomon Keal began the day leading the faculty in a presentation about the Lord as a shepherd in preparation for next year’s school theme. This led to a collaborative discussion about ways in which we could take ideas about following the Lord and about mirroring His […]
I am excited to announce that Tony Griffin will be joining our faculty next year as the 8th grade boys’ teacher. Tony is a graduate from BACS, the Academy of the New Church Secondary Schools, and the Bryn Athyn College. After completing college, Tony was a fulltime high school teacher at ANC where he also […]
BACS is back from a well-deserved spring break. In the week before we left we were treated to three performances of the play Aladdin by the 8th grade. These shows, all of which were highly entertaining, were the culmination of months of preparation by the 8th graders, their teachers and their parents. While watching their […]
Last Thursday was Hero Day in the third grade. This was a culminating activity for the class’s unit on historic heroes and leaders. Each student spent weeks researching their hero, becoming third grade experts on him or her. When the guests arrived on Thursday they were able to travel around the classrooms visiting each student’s […]
We are sad to announce that this will be Robin Morey’s final year at the Bryn Athyn Church School. Robin began teaching first grade here in 1990. In her 27 years at BACS she has guided over 350 young students through their foundations of math, their entrances to reading and their discovery of the world […]
This week Kirsten Cronlund, Eric Carswell and I were away from the school for much of Thursday and Friday so that we could attend a series of meetings at the General Church Education offices. These meetings led by Peter Buss Jr. and the GCEd staff were attended by leaders of our sister General Church schools […]
On Thursday the fifth grade put on their annual Explorer Puppet Play. The preparation for this show started months ago when the students researched the lives of Ferdinand Magellan and James Cook. After learning about the explorers and their famous voyage, the students wrote the scripts, made their puppets and painted the scenery. Of course […]
Two presenters visited BACS this week. On Tuesday afternoon Katie Kucz joined us from the Montgomery County Drug and Alcohol Office. She shared with us, and some guests from ANC, the results from the Pennsylvania Youth Survey. This survey collects data from students in grades 6, 8, 10 and 12 on their drug and alcohol […]
Walking through our hallways gives you a wonderful view of what our students are studying at any given time. Currently you can see projects about birds, magnets, Berber rugs, nomads and the Inuit people. There are also maps of imaginary lands, polar regions and taste receptors, as well as New Church biographies, models of ancient […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School was not in session on Monday, January 16th in celebration of Martin Luther King Day. Last Friday every class gave meaning to this holiday by observing Dr. King in some way. Each grade’s focus was different as the teachers covered the life of Dr. King, the civil rights movement and […]
BACS is accepting applications for teaching the 8th grade boys next school year. Interested parties should visit www.ncpeoplevision.org for more information.
Last Friday was our 37th annual Christmas program. Our students once again entertained and impressed us all with their wonderful performances. Thanks to all who were able to attend. It was truly a full house and your presence is an important reminder to the school of just how large a supporting community we have. The […]
If someone asked you to show them what Christmas was all about, how would you respond? I would suggest that, given the opportunity, you might want to lead them into the front hallway of the Bryn Athyn Church School. Before them they would see a lovely wooden diorama. Each morning the primary teachers lift off […]
Sadly, BACS has accepted the news from Phil Feerrar that he plans for this to be his final year teaching 8th grade. Dr. Feerrar has been an incredible asset to BACS in the three years he has been here. His charisma and enthusiasm make him a widely popular teacher with both the students and the […]
First term report cards were sent home last week. Written reports from the teacher have looked very different in American history in the years since they were first introduced in the late 19th century. There is also a variety in the reports that BACS sends out each marking period. The primary unit report is more […]
When Abraham Lincoln established Thanksgiving as a recurring national holiday, he spoke eloquently about the reason for it. To his reckoning the nation had benefitted from growth and prosperity but had forgotten the role that God had played in their good fortune. He worried that the country was falling into the temptation of attributing their […]
The 7th and 8th graders end each week with an hour long elective class. We have recently switched to the second block of offerings and students are now taking classes which include: art and drawing, technical theater, ultimate frisbee, yoga, architectural design, and community service. This week the community service class raked leaves for society […]
Last week was our annual Scholastic Book Fair. This event is a hugely successful fundraiser for the school. This year we earned over $8,500. A portion of this money is used to supply books to the classrooms and to give a free book each student who meets the summer reading challenge. The remaining money is […]
One of my hopes for our students is that they will experience the feeling of approaching a situation that looks daunting and then the satisfaction of having completed it. These two weeks our fourth graders got to face one of those opportunities when they successfully ran the mile for the first time. The running of […]
What single activity helps our students expand their vocabulary, develop their memory, increase their knowledge base, reduce their stress, strengthen their analytic skills, improve their focus and grow their cultural awareness? Reading. From the earliest grades BACS tries to instill a love of books and a habit of regular reading in our students. Starting in […]
Our school is selling valuable, family-friendly KidStuff Coupon Books filled with hundreds of national, regional and local coupons for all ages! The KidStuff Book is conveniently organized, offers incredible savings and is sold exclusively through schools! Our school earns 50% or more profit for every book we sell! Use just a few coupons and save […]
The primary grades celebrated the arrival of autumn last Monday when they held their annual Harvest Festival. The festival is an amazing collection of eleven outside craft stations laid out for the students. There are pumpkins to decorate, candles to dip, popcorn to thread, headband to decorate and so much more. As the classes arrive, […]
I had the pleasure of accompanying the 8th grade boys when they visited Cairnwood Village on Wednesday morning. Dr. Feerrar brought the boys there to make a presentation to the residents and others as part of the class’s World War One unit. The boys read letters from two members of the Bryn Athyn community written […]
BACS benefits from a strong working relationship with the parents and guardians of our student body. This relationship can be seen through the regular communication which happens back and forth each day as well as through events such as our parent night meetings and the upcoming conferences. Another key piece to supporting this relationship is […]
The seventh grade held their carnival last Friday afternoon. The school community turned out to see what the class had in store and were not disappointed. The students had been working hard preparing games and activities. In many ways putting on the carnival is a rite of passage for the seventh graders. It is the […]
The hallway outside the music room has become quite popular. Along its wall is a 20- foot interactive mural which was collaboratively created by our art classes. It serves as a symbol of this year’s school theme, “The kingdom of heaven is like a person who sowed good seed in their field,” both in its […]
The Bryn Athyn Church Preschool opened its doors on September 6, beginning its 10th year of service. Our three teachers–Brooke Childs, Kelleen Butler and Lori Odhner– along with their assistants, Dianne Gallagher and Joy Cole, and the Director, Joanne Kiel, are providing 36 children with three warm and nurturing programs. It is remarkable to see […]
The classrooms are full of students and full of activity. Students have quickly settled in with their new teachers and are already busy at work on this year’s program. Novels have been started, math problems worked through and spelling words learned. I have even spotted the first crop of projects being hung on the bulletin […]
It is beginning to get busy at the Bryn Athyn Church School again. Faculty meetings began this week and on Thursday students in grades K-2 will be coming in for open houses in their new classrooms. This is a chance for the students to meet their new teacher, see friends again, and maybe meet some […]
We are excited to be welcoming four new teachers to our faculty next year. Megan Asplundh Pendergrass is joining our Student Support Center. Megan is not only a reading specialist but also brings with her years of experience as a classroom teacher, including years at BACS. Jessica Johns will be teaching our enrichment […]
Would you like to participate in the BACS Summer Reading Program? Get the details.
Our hallways are full of blank walls. The bulletin boards have all been emptied. So have the lockers and the desks. The students have filled up grocery bags full of projects and supplies and left us for the summer. Think of all they carried with them as they left. Not just the items that were […]
Each year every graduating eighth grader is recognized for his or her accomplishments. Additionally, three special awards are given to a few eighth graders whose actions and behavior meet our highest standards. This year the recipients of those awards were: Academic Excellence Award – Madison Zagorski, Blake Halterman Charity Award – Nicole McCurdy, Teagan DeWees […]
Choose one or choose them all! A percentage of your check will be donated back to BACS when you choose to dine at one of the following eateries! Don’t forget to SHARE, SHARE, SHARE! Ask your friends, family, and coworkers to come out and support us! Print this flyer (BACS Restaurant Week Flyer)and don’t forget […]
BACS celebrated Bryn Athyn’s 100th anniversary last Thursday in a day we called Centennial Day. We began the morning with a chapel talk by Eric Carswell on the sacrifices of our town’s founders and then watched a documentary by Reed Asplundh on Bryn Athyn’s history. Students spent the remainder of the morning travelling through multiple […]
BACS will be celebrating Bryn Athyn Borough’s centennial this Thursday. The day will include whole school events and multi-grade level activities. Look for us as we visit Knights Hill and the site of the 1916 elementary school. -Greg Henderson
The 8th grade’s children stories are currently on display outside the library. These stories, which are written and illustrated by the 8th graders, are a capstone composition assignment and are something that students traditionally save for years afterwards. There are a wide variety of styles and plots in these stories, each one showing the personality […]
Last week was the week of the first grade play. Each year the first graders treat the faculty, student body, and families to a performance of either AA Milne or Beatrix Potter stories, a tradition which dates back to the performances of Peter Rabbit in Mrs. Cranch’s woods. This year we got to see the […]
More than fifty workers, ranging from students to grandparents, descended on our campus on Saturday morning for our annual work day. It was remarkable how much they were able to get done. Crews tackled vines, mulched, spread wood chips, cleaned, painted, cleared gutters, as well as working on several construction jobs. BACS is indebted to […]
Bryn Athyn Church School is seeking applicants for a part-time (approximately 26 hours per week) teachers’ assistant position in the primary unit for the 2016-17 academic school year. A bachelor’s degree in an educational field is preferred. For more information, see the posting on www.ncpeoplevision.org, or email Greg Henderson greg.henderson@bacs-gc.org . Applications will be accepted […]
The BACS students had Friday morning off as we held our annual faculty study. This is a chance for the teachers and staff to step away from the day-to-day routine and study a larger, doctrinally relevant topic. This year Solomon Keal led us through a study of the teachings on remains. The doctrine of remains […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School benefits in many ways from its relationship with the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit (MCIU). Perhaps the most evident services we receive from the MCIU are the speech therapist, Amy McDonald, and the counselor, Peg McHugh, who work with our students each week. We also benefit from training sessions offered throughout […]
Fourth grade sized knights, jesters, peasants, nobles and other medieval folk could been seen leaving our school grounds Wednesday afternoon as they began their religious pilgrimage to the Bryn Athyn Cathedral. This afternoon trip was the culminating activity for the fourth grade’s medieval unit. In the unit the class studied the people, culture and architecture […]
On Friday six of our teachers were invited to attend a program put on by Colonial Williamsburg at Bryn Athyn College. The staff members from Williamsburg, including the man who portrays Thomas Jefferson, led the participants through a discussion on civil discourse. Activities included using primary sources and current articles to debate tensions our nation […]
It is with bitter-sweetness that we announce that Erika Hyatt will be leaving us at the end of this year. Erika brings dedication, patience, and care for the students to her role as the teachers’ assistant with the second grade. We are sad to see her go but happy for her as she begins a […]
Over one hundred members of the BACS school community spent Thursday night at the Palace Rink for our first roller skating fundraiser. This event raised needed money for our annual fund. But watching skaters, young and old, circling the floor while others tried their luck at the arcade and hit up the bake sale, it […]
Spring Sports: Boys Lacrosse, Girls Lacrosse and Girls Softball for 5-8 grades. See Sports page for more information. ANC Dance class for 7-8 grade girls. See ACE page for more information. Nature Class “Experiencing Spring” for 3-4 graders. See ACE page for more information.
Bryn Athyn Church School is seeking applicants for several positions for the upcoming school year. These positions are listed below and interested applicants are encouraged to see the posting on www.ncpeoplevision.org, or to contact Greg Henderson (greg.henderson@bacs-gc.org 215-94704086×267) for more information about the positions and application timeline. Applicants are sought for a part-time teaching position […]
In 1801 a geography teacher in Edinburgh revolutionized teaching when he hung a large piece of slate on his classroom wall. In the two hundred and some years which have followed a stream of subsequent changes have taken place, as filmstrips, overheads, whiteboards, computers, tablets, digital projectors, Smartboards, document cameras, student response systems and many […]
Unfortunately three of our staff members, Mary Abele, Jodi Carr and Sue Hyatt have announced that they will be leaving BACS at the end of this school year. While all members of the Student Support Center, these women have performed three different roles for our school, all with dedication and a love for their students. […]
BACS concluded our winter sport season last week. Each of our three teams, wrestling, girls basketball and boys basketball included students experiencing the sport for the first time. It is these opportunities for students to try on a sport, or team sports in general, that make our program such a valuable offering. Through the care […]
Last week Mr. Geoffrey Cooper visited the eighth grade boys to share stories of his experiences in World War II. This visit is one of the many ways in which Dr. Feerrar uses primary sources in his history curriculum. Besides hearing guest speakers on both the world wars, the 8th graders have read letters, journals […]
Last Friday was Swedenborg’s Birthday and, as is our tradition, after a special assembly, the students celebrated with a treat topped with a Swedish flag. While it seemed that these holiday goodies appeared in the classrooms as if by magic, they were, in fact, the work of our generous class parents. Each classroom has one […]
Last week our first grades visited Glencairn Museum as part of their unit on the Inuit people. This was one of the six visits our classes have made to Glencairn already this year. Last year eight of our grades were able to participate in a total of nineteen tours. These class trips included visits to […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School was closed on Monday as we observed Martin Luther King Day. On Friday all of our classrooms had special lessons, each focusing on a different aspect of Dr. King’s life and works. These included his childhood, his ministry, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, his speeches and his death, as well as […]
The teachers at BACS are spending some time this year getting into each other’s classrooms. This is a great opportunity for them to see some other ways of teaching, to experience other areas of our K-8 curriculum and possibly to observe their students in arenas other than their own. It also provides teachers with the […]
BACS has just come off of Christmas vacation where the students and faculty enjoyed a much earned two-week break. Hopefully the teachers were able to spend this time being parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles to their loved ones and the students were hard at work building Christmas memories. Christmas truly is a wonderful time of […]
If someone asked you to show them what Christmas was all about, how would you respond? I would suggest that, given the opportunity, you might want to lead them into the front hallway of the Bryn Athyn Church School. Before them they would see a lovely wooden diorama. Each morning the primary teachers lift off […]
The hallway outside my office is now filled daily with the sounds of music classes practicing for the upcoming Christmas program. The program, which happens next Friday morning, features our students performing in a variety of musical numbers. Each year there are songs which bring smiles and songs which tug our heartstrings. There are performances […]
I got to eat three Thanksgiving dinners this year–the first two were last Tuesday. As administrators, Kirsten Cronlund and I were lucky enough to be invited to join the first grade classes at their traditional Thanksgiving meals. The food, which was cooked by the parents, teachers or students, was delicious but the best part was […]
The primary unit put on their biennial religious pageant on Friday, each classroom acting out a parable from the New Testament. These included The Sower, The Wise and Foolish Virgins, The Lost Sheep, The Wedding Feast, The Wheat and Tares, The Dragnet and The House on the Rock. The simple style of the scenes allowed […]
Each day after chapel, before we begin our academic classes, the school faces the flag, recites the Pledge of Allegiance and sings a patriotic song. It is one of the many things we do at BACS to demonstrate our love for our country. Students learn about the United States throughout our K-8 curriculum. The upper […]
This Friday was the beginning of our second session of elective classes in the upper unit. The elective program which began last year, runs for an hour each Friday for our 7th and 8th graders. The goal of the program is to provide students with opportunities to try new experiences and to pursue interests that […]
This week Mrs. Neiger and Mrs. Austin hosted their annual reading celebration in the library. This is an opportunity to celebrate the reading that the students do over the summer. Rather than assigning specific books to be read over the summer vacation, BACS, through this library program, encourages students to get into the habit of […]
Last Friday was the first of five special chapel servies this year put on by our religion classes. They each involve the students depicting parts of their religioun curriculum but they have taken many forms over the years. Some have students acting out scenes, some include students reading passages, and some students sing. Last year […]
Hundreds of students, parents and friends spent a clear, crisp autumn evening on our athletic fields at last Friday’s picnic. There were games of soccer, football, Wiffleball, volleyball and Frisbee. There were kids getting their faces painted and kids doing crafts with Aunt Deev and her volunteers. And all around there were blankets filled with […]
Last Friday was the 27th annual 7th grade carnival. What an important opportunity the teachers and parent volunteers provide for the students. The 7th graders learn so many lessons through the process of planning, executing and cleaning up the event. These lessons include such things as working in groups, problem solving, time management, advertising, public […]
There are several evening meetings in the month of September at BACS. Thursday was the first of three Parent Nights we will have, one for each unit. These meetings are a chance for the parents to visit their children’s classrooms, sit in the desks, leave notes for the students and hear about the upcoming year […]
On Tuesday, September 1st we reopened our doors and celebrated the beginning of another school year. 260 students, new and returning, arrived on a beautiful, warm day, curious to see what the new year would be like. I had the opportunity to talk to them at our opening ceremony about the factors that determine what […]
Our Pennsylvania representative, Tom Murt, sponsored an anti-bullying poster contest last spring. In his announcement he is quoted as saying, “Bullying remains one of the most challenging problems we face as parents and teachers. By encouraging children to create posters that speak out against bullying, we’re helping them to think and act creatively in taking […]
Five individuals are stepping into new roles this school year. Aidan Asplundh is taking over our 7th and 8th grade Spanish program. A recent Bryn Athyn College graduate, Miss Asplundh brings with her both a background in the Spanish language and experience working with school groups as an educational intern at Glencairn museum. Lynne […]
Congratulations to the Winners of This Year’s Eighth Grade Awards Academic Excellence Award This award goes to the girl and boy who have earned the highest grades during the 8th grade year. The girls’ academic award goes to a student who regularly goes the extra mile in her schoolwork. She is extremely well organized, […]
This coming Friday, BACS will be having a small gathering to show our appreciation for our volunteers. At nearly every minute of every day, there are volunteers in our building. We have had over 65 volunteers donate time to our school over the course of the year. So far we have received over 3,000 hours […]
Saturday April 25th was the spring work day at BACS. Scott Nash led 90 workers through a very productive day. Thanks to crew leaders Rueben Mergen, Chrissy Fink, Lucas Mergen, Glen Henderson and Bob Hern, countless projects were completed. Parents, grandparents, teachers, students, former students, future students and community members worked side by side to get […]
This year’s 8th Grade Play, Beauty and the Beast, was the story of a prince cursed by a beggar and a production cursed by the weather.
We are pleased to announce that Aline Brown will begin teaching third grade next year. Aline, who has masterfully taught second grade for 14 years, is feeling ready for a new challenge and is looking forward to teaching the third grade curriculum. Aline’s departure from second grade will leave large shoes to fill at that […]
This past week the Bryn Athyn Church School had an in-service day so that we could hold our annual Faculty Study. This is a time for our school pastor, Phil Schnarr, to lead us in a religious study. This year’s topic was Purposeful Thinking. We began the morning with a presentation by Rev. Stephen Cole […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School was not in session on Monday, January 19th in celebration on Martin Luther King Day. Last Friday every class gave meaning to this holiday by observing Dr. King in some way. Each grade’s focus was different as the teachers covered the life of Dr. King, the civil rights movement and […]
This Friday is the day of our Christmas program. The students are excited to perform their songs in a room full of family, friends and community members. We hope that as many of you as possible can attend this special event. One aspect that makes the program so special is that it involves each and […]
If someone asked you to show them what Christmas was all about, how would you respond? I would suggest that, given the opportunity, you might want to lead them into the front hallway of the Bryn Athyn Church School. In that hallway is a lovely diorama. It is where each morning the primary teachers reveal […]
A recent article reported that the average American is exposed to 5,000 advertisements each day. This means that 5,000 times every day we are told that our lives could be a little better than they are now. It’s no wonder we have such a hard time feeling satisfied with what we have. When Sarah Jospeha […]
November 3rd – November 5th Monday & Tuesday, November 3rd & 4th, 8:00am to 4:00pm and 6:30pm to 8:30pm Wednesday, November 5th, 8:00am to 3:30pm. The whole school is excited about our upcoming Book Fair. An amazing selection of books is headed our way! At the Book Fair you will find a variety of […]
Walking through our hallways gives you a wonderful view of what our students are studying at any given time. Currently you can see student-made dioramas, masks and writing all about Native Americans. There are also clay Sumerian seals and replica houses from Mrs. Frisby. There are murals of both the Most Ancient Church and the […]
Students, parents, teachers and other community members enjoyed a beautiful Friday evening at this year’s BACS picnic. What a sight to see all the face-painted children playing games and doing crafts while the adults visited at picnic blankets around our fields. We would like to thank the volunteers, especially Rachel Adams, for all the hard […]
We would like to let you know that there is a change this year in the way in which you can give financially to the school. In an attempt to add more clarity to your giving, this year we are introducing a fund which we are calling the Educational Enhancement Fund. Money given to this […]
Friday, August 29th was Day 1 of our exciting new elective program at BACS. This program allows each 7th and 8th grade student the opportunity to sign up for six electives throughout the school year. The offerings cover a wide variety of interests and disciplines. Friday began the first block of the year and students […]
The 2014-15 school year officially opened on Tuesday, August 26th. The faculty and staff were excited to see all 279 of our students bring life and energy back to our building. The day began with an opening worship led by school pastor, Rev Phil Schnarr, introducing this year’s school theme, “Let the words of my […]
School Opening is on Tuesday, August 26th at 9:00am. Students arrive between 8:30 and 8:45. Students should wear formal event wear. Our 14-15 calendar is up. Mr. Greg Henderson, our new principal, has written a warm welcome for our website. Information on School Supplies and 2014-2015 updates to our Handbook and Dress Code are available on […]
Please join us for graduation and end-of-year school closing exercises on Friday, June 6, 2014 – 11:00 a.m. in the Society Building. Students arrive 10:30 – 10:45. Borough crossing guards begin at 10:15; BACS crossing guards start at 10:30. Kindergarten parents: please be sure to have your children arrive promptly. Kindergarten begins the procession. All […]
The Bryn Athyn Church School is beginning a new program for its upper unit students during the 2014-15 school year, called X-Classes. These classes will offer a variety of electives for students in the 7th and 8th grades, meeting once weekly on Fridays from 11:15am-12:15pm. Some of the classes will be taught by BACS faculty, […]
Each Parent Fund gift this past year made a difference! Bryn Athyn Church School received a $35,000 grant from the Glencairn Foundation to help fund the expansion of our academic program over the next two years. As part of our strategic efforts to provide Bryn Athyn Church school students with a 21st Century New Church […]
The Spring 2014 BACS Workday was another smashing success, thanks to the many parents, students, community members, and teachers who showed up to lend a hand! The halls were filled with the happy sounds of people laughing together and offering help to one another. The snacks and lunch were delicious, as usual, thanks to the […]
This year’s work day is scheduled for May 3rd from 9am to 2pm. We have all types and skill levels for the projects planned so everyone who wants to help out can easily participate. Along with community building this event has a direct impact on making the school safer, cleaner, and more beautiful. It makes […]
I am very happy to announce that Greg Henderson was affirmed as the next principal of the Bryn Athyn Church School and Preschool at a special meeting of the Bryn Athyn Church Board last night. I look forward to working with him as he prepares for and enters into this important leadership role. Greg was […]
Girls and Boys Lacrosse and Girls Softball – See After School page for more information.
One of BACS’s very own students, Rona McMackin, is featured in a “Why I Like This Book” vignette on WHYY. She retells the story of Pauline in “My Life as a Chicken” by Ellen A. Kelly. Watch for it on WHYY or online.
Information about Kindergarten Applications for 2014-2015 and Re-Enrollment for current families for 2014-2015.
Dear BACS Parent, Our students have lost all too many hours of learning due to bad weather conditions this year. I am still looking for a song that might capture the mix of emotions we have all experienced this winter. Even after adding two days back to our schedule, we still have 3 day’s worth […]
Electrical Power has been restored to BACS. The school wishes to thank all utility workers for the valiant and tireless efforts to restore power to the school and the area.
Due to the multiple lost days of school so far this year, days must be made up. The first make-up day will be next Friday, February 14. If your child is out of school on February 14, please call the school office. We wanted to communicate these plans to you promptly and will notify you […]
Oh, it doesn’t show signs of stopping… BACS will be closed on Monday, February 3rd due to a Winter Storm Warning.
It is with great excitement that I announce Kelleen Butler as our new After School Program Coordinator. She received very strong recommendations. I am confident she will do excellent work leading our ACE and Extra-PE Programs. Kelleen was a BACS student, attended ANC, Bryn Athyn College, and student taught at BACS. She has a very […]
Bryn Athyn Church School will be closed on Wednesday, January 22nd due to snow. Have fun sledding!
Due to a Winter Storm Warning, Bryn Athyn Church School and Preschool will be closed for Tuesday, January 21st, 2014. Enjoy the snow and the long weekend.
Due to a Winter Storm Warning, BACS Elementary and Preschools will be closed Tuesday, December 10th. Enjoy the snow and if you need to travel, travel safely.
Due to the weather and road conditions, BACS will have a 2-hour delay and open at 1oam. Travel safe.
Girls and Boys Basketball and Boys Wrestling – See After School page for more information.
Come learn to play handbells and play for two Christmas services.
Our second annual Family Picnic happened on Friday, September 27! We met at the BACS athletic fields from 5:00-7:30. It was a great time to relax with family and friends. We re-connected with old friends and got to meet some new friends. We brought our picnic basket and chairs, balls, outdoor games and our own […]
3rd graders spend a morning seeing, touching, and even eating insects at the Insectarium.
The students in grades 1-8 created lovely projects that represented our school theme: Be still and know that I am God They made things that were decorative, like colorful candle holders as well as things that are useful like the mixed media prayer journals that the 7th and 8th grade girls created. It is a […]
Ballet, Hip-Hop and Zumba dance ACE programs are availible for registration! See the after school programs for more information and registration forms.
August 29, 2013 Dear Parents, For many years our community has welcomed the students of Bryn Athyn Church School with the “song to the students.” On Tuesday, that tradition continued with the opening of the 119th School year. The song’s first verse captures our collective efforts as a tight knit community to create a safe […]
Bryn Athyn Church School has it’s own sweatshirt! They are available for order immediately, and our expectation is that they will arrive by the end of October. The sweatshirts cost $25 each, and students are allowed to wear them in school. These are the only hoodies that may be worn at school. The hood must […]
BACS welcomes 5 new teachers to BACS: Rev. Eric Carswell is the Pastor of the Bryn Athyn Church and is teaching 7th grade Religion. Mrs. Cheryl Cooper is working in the Student Support Center. Mrs. Mary Beth DeGeorge is our new Resource and Volunteer Coordinator. Mrs. Melinda Friesen is working in the Student Support Center. […]
Thanks to the hard work of Jahnna Henderson and Heather Klein, BACS has 17 new class moms! Class moms play an integral part in supporting the classroom teacher and helping connect the class parents. Thanks Class Moms!
BACS has a new website as of August 2013. See news items, upcoming events, and more with a new design and updated content. Enjoy your visit and return soon.
The 2013 Commencement address was given by Kris Pitcairn. Read her address.
