Character & Leadership

Character & Leadership

As a school, we see Christ as not only shaping our minds, but also as molding our faith, our heart, and our character. Spiritual and character development is not just something that happens in Bible class, but permeates all subjects and how we operate and care for each other as a school community.

Social & Emotional Learning

Excellence in education goes beyond academic subjects. Educating the whole child means that we strive to help students learn vital life skills such as managing emotions, working through conflict, setting goals, and growing in leadership skills. A social emotional learning curriculum used in all grades helps students to develop and practice these skills as we seek to build up our school community. These skills help us live out Jesus’ command to love one another and reflect the unity we have in Christ. In addition, AACS teachers are trained in facilitating restorative practices when students experience conflict or hurt. We strive to help our students work through conflicts and seek reconciliation.

Connections Across Grades

At AACS, we intentionally create cross-grade connections both to foster community and to help our students grow in leadership skills.

• Fifth grade students are reading buddies with Kindergarten students and spend time both reading aloud and helping their buddies in chapel families.
• Seventh graders are buddied with our Preschool students and enjoy time playing with them, doing field trips together, and helping them during chapel.
• Third graders may share their completed writing project with the second graders, and second graders may invite the first grade class to come and view the community they built in their classroom.
• The seventh graders manage the Jolly Trolly, a student run business that offers various snacks to the middle schoolers for purchase during lunch time. Eighty percent of their proceeds go toward their class trip the following year. The remaining twenty percent is donated to the current 8th graders for their class trip.

Eighth Grade Leadership Opportunities

8th graders are given a variety of opportunities to grow in developing their leadership skills including choosing the advisory theme for the middle school, being chapel family leaders, and serving as Zip and Zero (number-counting superheroes!) for the Kindergarten class. A day-long leadership retreat at the beginning of the year gives the students time to reflect on their natural abilities in the area of leadership and to identify areas in which they need to grow. Our 8th graders are encouraged to see how Jesus demonstrated leadership through sacrificial love and service.

Service & Outreach

We believe that our faith shapes our minds, influences our hearts, and motivates our hands towards service. Every class participates in a service project. Service projects may include collecting food for the homeless, singing at the assisted living facility, or making cards for children with cancer or shut ins who are homebound. In addition, AACS does several school-wide service projects each year. Our desire is that our students would continue to look for ways that they can serve God and those around them with their time and talent.

Every other year, our Multiplication Project is another way that we seek to foster initiative, leadership, and service. Students are given the opportunity to receive “seed money” ($5 or $10) and to multiply the money they have received by using the money to offer a service or to produce an item to sell (e.g., baked goods, art pieces). Students who choose to participate then have the opportunity to sell their product at our Craft Fair. Proceeds are given to a charity. In the past, over $4,500 has been raised by this service opportunity.