Are we “edutaining” or inviting? Are we covering content or uncovering opportunities? Are we interested in correct responses or thoughtful reflection? At Byron Center Christian School, these guiding questions help us pursue our mission of providing an excellent education that is rooted in God’s Word as we prepare our students for lifelong service in the Kingdom. Using the Teaching for Transformation framework has empowered our staff and students to engage in deeper learning experiences. We are shifting away from breadth of content to depth of content.
With that shift in mind, we are focused on building Formational Learning Experiences (FLEx) that deepen the understanding of content. FLEx invites our students not only to See the Story, but to Live the Story. They learn the information and actually put it to use. Our students love transformational opportunities and have communicated an appreciation for hands-on, meaningful, and creative experiences that lead to Kingdom flourishing. Designing FLEx helps us build disciples and lifelong learners, just the kind of students who restore a world that is longing for renewal. We are Christ’s agents of change.
We are propelled by excellence, so we believe in the beauty of refinement and the power of celebration. Thus, we are exploring the creation of FLEx cards. FLEx cards invite our teachers to tie FLEx elements together, reflect on the learning experience, and communicate the restoration story to a broader community. We’re passionate about our mission and eager to share our stories of transformation, stories of how God is transforming hearts and how He is using us to grow His Kingdom until the day He returns to make all things new.
The FLEx card below shares the story of Hayley Smit’s kindergarten class learning how God works through His people to bless others, so it was fitting to invite the students into a service FLEx that would require the children to work on their math counting skills and apply their science knowledge of the human body. Miss Smit’s class partnered with World Renew and decided to help fill the need for providing medicine and vitamins. The students learned that our bodies are given to us to do God’s work and that a healthy body provides us with the energy we need to use our talents. We want our Kindergarten students to know that there is important Kingdom work that they can be part of through their learning.
