Jan. 26-31 National Lutheran Schools Week Jan. 27 In-n-Out Truck!! and Disney/Pixar/Star Wars/Marvel Dress Up Day Jan. 28 Skating, Bowling or Wheels and School Theme Shirt Day Jan. 28-Varsity Basketball games HOME vs. Loving Savior Jan. 28-PTL Meeting-Library-6:30 PM-Childcare provided Jan. 29-Western Wednesday Jan. 29-JV games AWAY vs. Shield of Faith Jan. 30-Sports Jersey Day Jan. 30-Varsity games AWAY vs. Shield of Faith Jan. 31-Cozy Clothes Day and TALENT SHOW! Feb. 3-14 MAP Testing Feb. 7-Middle School Dance Feb. 10-No School Feb. 12-Middle School Musical!! Feb. 14-Minimum Day Feb. 17-Presidents’ Day-No School Feb. 25-Vision Screening Feb. 26-Ash Wednesday Mar. 3-CUI Choir Festival

School Bulletin #20 Jan. 28, 2020

This week’s message comes from a Bethany alum (!), our district executive director:

Isn’t it great that more than 201,307 students attending Lutheran schools around the country are able to join together in praise and thanksgiving for the training and preparation they receive in over 1,950 Lutheran schools? National Lutheran Schools Week provides us the opportunity to come together to celebrate one of God’s greatest gifts to His church, Lutheran schools. From its beginning, the LCMS, founded in 1847 with 12 congregations and 14 schools, has built schools. Education has always been a priority for Lutheran congregations. Schools have never been an after-thought for our great Synod. Lutheran Schools Week is being celebrated this week under the theme “Joyfully Lutheran!” We celebrate together our rich heritage of Lutheran education, our connectedness in Christ, and our freedom to share the precious Gospel of Jesus’ saving love in this country and especially in our communities! Our district, the Pacific Southwest District, is one of 35 districts in the United States. The PSD is blessed to have 98 preschools, 49 elementary schools, and 8 high schools in Arizona, Southern California, and Southern Nevada, plus our institution of higher learning, Concordia University Irvine. Our schools, according to 2019-2020 statistics, have 18,841 students enrolled, preschool through high school. Children enrolled in Lutheran schools in the PSD are from nearly all ethnic backgrounds. Celebrate the blessing of our Lutheran schools in the Pacific Southwest District and across the nation and world! Have a wonderful week in the Lord, celebrating together!

God’s grace and peace in Christ Jesus, the Master Teacher!

Rachel Klitzing, PSD Executive Director

Bear Facts The Weekly Newsletter of Bethany Lutheran School

Long Beach, CA www.bethanylutheran.org

Communication+Responsibility+Organization+Service+Sharing

Chapel Leaders Jan. 29-Ms. Imes Feb. 5-Kayleigh Feb. 12-Mrs. Tucker

Parents, you are always welcome to join us!

Congratulations to the following students, who earned a spot on the Second Quarter Principal’s List with GPAs between 3.7 and 4.0: *Eli Anema, *Jake Antonio, *Norah Vu, *Jagger Simon, Ava Hidalgo, Grant Parker, Kaylee Cuizon, Tyler DeJongh, Nolan Cerulle, Robert Hernandez, Christian Haro, Devin Cordova, Cooper Ryskamp, Madison Farley, Mia Kabacinski, Kate Newton, *Brayden Huynh, *Wyatt Barker, *Jamie Long, *Payton Wallace-Caine, Gianna Hunter-Palomares, JJ Luu, Lucas Raya, Charlie Peck, Diana Huynh, Timothy O’Conner, *Autumn Knox, *Ryder DeLuca, *Allyson Richter, *Sienna Deeble, *Kelli Palacios, *Samantha Atkinson, *Cole Medina, Austin Tonsay, Chaz Medina, Jasmine Rambo, Isaac Brooks, Michael Palacios, Weston Parker, *Emma Olsen, Alexis Munoz, Gabriella Hernandez, Emma Barker, Marcus Vander Horck, Caleb O’Conner, Philip Attia, Isaiah Youngblood, and Mahak Gupta.

**4.0 GPA And, congratulations to the following students, who earned a spot on the Second Quarter Honor Roll with GPAs between 3.30 and 3.69: Garret Morgensen, Reuben Alvarado, Charlie LeMonnier, Miles Jump, Grace Porte, Nicholas Roberts, Maya Peavler, Carter Wegman, Isaac Attia, Jonathan Goebel, Caitlin Nelson, Laci Carlson, London Perez, Taylor Alexander, Carson Potts, Klara Hamori, Nolan Takle and Angelina Attia.

There are several opportunities next month to use Scrip/gift cards and earn tuition rebates. Super Bowl LIV is February 2, if you are hosting or going to a Super Bowl party use Scrip/gift cards to purchase pizza (Little Caesar’s, Pizza Hut), sub sandwiches (Subway) or snacks (Smart & Final). Do you need a jersey to support your favorite team? Use Amazon.com or Fanatics Scrip to order! The Academy Awards are February 9, catch up on all the nominated films and use Scrip/gift cards for AMC, Edwards/Regal, Fandango, Hulu, Sling TV, and Starz. Our Edwards/Regal Scrip is an exceptional value. You pay Bethany Scrip $10.50 for the Edwards/ Regal Premiere Movie Ticket and it can be redeemed at the box office, or via the Regal Mobile App, for a full price ticket.

Middle School Corner

“I love the church and all the people here.” - Miles, 6th

“I love that the teachers are funny and we have fun here.” - Jonathan,

6th

“I am thankful for the amazing teachers and all the activities we

participate in together.” - Taylor, 7th “The moment you step on campus

you feel welcome!” - Cameron, 7th

“I am thankful for my education here

at Bethany.” - Jacob, 8th “It is so welcoming! And

I love that we have music, sports and art.” -

Gabby, 8th “For from Him and through Him

and for Him are all things. To him be the glory forever!

Amen.” Romans 11:36

Happy National Lutheran Schools Week!

Happy National Lutheran Schools week, friends! This week, we are celebrating the great blessing we have that our children are a part of a quality and caring environment like Bethany. BUT…. Let’s be honest – there is a LOT going on this week! I’m not sure if it’s Disney Day, if my kid is supposed to wear a theme shirt or a hula skirt, if I’m sending money for a snack bar or gloves for ice skating, I *may* have sent a lunch with them and forgot it was In-N-Out day, and if I was supposed to score a costume or act for the talent show on Friday too. What I DO know is that I WILL make it through the week, one way or another, and when it’s all over, I can guarantee that most of it will be things I didn’t have to worry so much about. Pastor Blake said something in his sermon yesterday that stood out to me – that nobody has their life completely together. The person next to you may look like it, but we all struggle with something. Big, small, lasting or fleeting, we all have something we’re not sure how we’re going to do it, but with help from our God, our friends, and a little bit of hustle, strength and faith, we make it through. Don’t sweat the small stuff, enjoy the festivities this week and we will see you at the talent show on Friday! We’ll make it! Jen Carlson, PTL President

Parent Support Group

Come join us for us for the next dyslexia parent support group meeting on Feb. 3 from 6:30-8. This will be a hands-on workshop that lets participants experience some of the challenges and frustrations that people with dyslexia face each day. After moving through learning stations that simulate language-related challenges, participants will identify and practice techniques to better understand the lives of individuals with dyslexia. Experience Dyslexia® was put together by the International Dyslexia Association of Northern California. Please RSVP at https://dyslexiala.org/parent-support-groups

Monthly Awards This year we are honoring

character traits associated with healthy “Habits of Mind.” In January, we were watching for students who “Strive for Accuracy!” K- Jeffrey Craft 1st-Vivian Wells 2nd-Nixon Szych 3rd-Reenie Long 4th-Trevor Torres 5th-Kaylee Cuizon 6th-JJ Luu 7th-Kelli Palacios 8th-Isaiah Youngblood We’ll hand out January’s certificates after chapel this week.

Congrats to our 2nd-year-in-a-row Geography Bee champion, Weston Parker, and his worthy competitors: Alexis Munoz (2nd), JJ Luu (3rd), Joey Kabacinski, Emma Olsen, Robby Hernandez, Cole Medina, Jagger Simon and Josee Pittman. We will recoginize these scholars after chapel this week. Weston will now move on to the next level of competition.

Good luck, Weston!!

The FISHin’ Hole Opportunities to Serve

Watch for the Quarter 2 FISH Report

coming home with your youngest child’s report card!

National Lutheran Schools Week 2020

Sunday, January 26

• Student greeters and readers at church services • Trinity choir sings at 8:00 service, Troubadour sings at 9:30 service, and K-2 sings at 10:55

service • Staff anniversaries recognized at services

Alicia Lagana will celebrate years of service. A reception will be hosted for her after the 8am service.

Monday, January 27: JOY FULLY

• Disney Day- Dress up in your favorite Disney/Pixar, Star Wars, or Marvel attire. • In-n-Out Truck (Grades K-2 12:00-12:20, Grades 3-5 12:30-12:50, Grades 6-8 12:50-1:10)

Tuesday, January 28: THANK FULLY

• School Theme Shirt and Jeans Day • 6th-8th Grade Ice Skating (Lakewood Ice, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.) • 3rd-5th Grade Bowling (Cal Bowl, 12:45-2:45 p.m.) • K-2nd Wheels Day on campus (all recesses) • Pre-School Wheels Day on campus (10:20-11:20)

Wednesday, January 29: PEACE FULLY

• Western Wednesday- Wear your best cowboy/girl attire.

Thursday, January 30: FAITH FULLY

• Sports Jersey Day (with uniform bottom) - Wear your team’s jersey to show your support.

Friday, January 31: HOPE FULLY

• Cozy Clothes Day- Wear your favorite PJs or sweatpants • Prayer Rock Service Project • Talent Show at 6:30 pm

Get your pennies ready!

All jars will be located in Freedom Square before and

after school.

The challenge will be during Lutheran Schools Week,

January 27-31.

The Amazing Penny Race Give your SMALL change to make a BIG change!

This week-long challenge will kick off our Lutheran Schools Week. The money raised will go to the charity chosen by the class who brings in the most pennies.

Should we choose charities in advance and list them here??

How it works: • Each class will have a jar for their collection.

• Students should place their pennies in the jar

before or after school.

• Any silver coins will not count for the competition, but will be donated to the school offering instead.

Winner:

The class with the most pennies at the end of the week will get to donate all the money to their charity of choice.

January 13, 2020

Dear Parents, Believe it or not, it is time to start thinking about the next school year and enrollment at Bethany Lutheran School.

Please take a moment to read this letter. We have VERY exciting news for you: if you think last year’s re-enrollment process was easy, you’re going to love

this year’s process even more! We are moving to a “continuous enrollment” process, which means we will assume your children are returning to Bethany for 2020-2021 and will hold their spot unless we hear differently from you (and we sincerely hope we do not!) You will not need to fill out all of the Gradelink forms again…all you need to do is log into Gradelink and verify that all information is correct! (You can do this at any time, but we’d love it if you’d complete it by March 1. Here’s how:

Go to secure.gradelink.com • Log into Gradelink using your parent login information. (We will also email your login information in case

you’ve forgotten!) • Click on “Re-enrollMe” and complete the prompts.

Please note that families who are returning to Bethany have first priority in enrollment. Again, as part of “continuous

enrollment,” we will assume your children are returning and will charge your FACTS account for: • Registration fees ($300 per child. We will charge half the fee on March 1 and half on May 1. If you need a

different arrangement, please let us know.) • Technology fees $250 per child, either half on March 15 and half on May 15 OR monthly, whichever option

you are currently using. You can contact us if you wish to pay differently.) • Please note that registration and technology fees are non-refundable. • As a reminder, 2019-2020 Scrip rebates may be applied to your last 2019-2020 tuition payment.

The 2020-2021 tuition and fee schedule is included on the back of this letter. Please know that our goal is to keep any tuition increases as reasonable as possible. We want to carefully balance the financial demands on our families with the goal of providing an exceptional quality Christian education while accounting for the effects of inflation and the state minimum wage increase. The 2020-2021 tuition and fees increase was voted in by our Board of Schools specifically to support our valuable teaching staff, as well as to provide new curriculum materials in science and increased science, robotics and coding instruction with the addition of a STEM instructor! We know that some of our families are experiencing some difficult economic circumstances. We do not want to lose any of our precious Bethany families solely due to matters of finances. If your family will struggle to make tuition or fee payments next year, please ask about need-based financial aid. We also know that full classrooms help to keep our tuition costs down, and that your positive “word-of-mouth” is our best advertising. We want to reward you for that, so we have an INCENTIVE for you to get the good word out about Bethany Lutheran School: A TUITION REBATE IN DECEMBER!! Here’s how it works:

• Refer a new family to Bethany by giving them a postcard or brochure, inviting them to a school event such as our middle school musical on February 12 or the Science Fair on March 6, sending them to our website, or giving their contact information to Kathy Tucker, our Admissions Director.

• If the new family enrolls their children and the children attend Bethany Lutheran School in the fall, o Let the school office know that you referred the family o The Board of Schools will credit your December 2020 tuition payment $300!

Blessed to be at Bethany, Dr. Fink

2020-2021 Tuition and Fees Bethany Lutheran School offers two tuition schedules; one for families who are members of Bethany Lutheran Church and another for all other families. Claiming membership in Bethany Lutheran Church means:

a. One or both parents of the child are members and are listed on the church roll. b. The members are regular in their church and communion attendance and support Bethany Lutheran Church through their financial contributions.

All families are encouraged to use our SCRIP/Giftcard program and accumulate a SCRIP/Giftcard rebate, which may be used to offset some of the tuition costs.

2020-2021 Tuition Paid over 10 months

Members of Bethany Lutheran Church

One child …………………………………..$668 per month Two children. ………………………………$1189 per month Three children ………………………………$1503 per month

Members of the Community One child ……………………………………$743 per month Two children ………………………………..$1323 per month Three children ………………..……………..$1672 per month

Tuition payments are made via your FACTS account. Tuitions paid in full for the year by August 1 will receive a 5% reduction. Monthly tuition payments may be set up for the 5th or the 20th of the month. Late payments are subject to a $30 late fee. Bethany Lutheran School does not refuse enrollment solely due to matters of money if there is room available. If your family is struggling to meet tuition payments, please ask about need-based financial aid.

Fees

There is a Registration Fee of $300 per child. For new students, this fee is due upon enrollment. For returning students, half of this amount, or $150, is due in March. The remaining half will be paid in May. This fee includes a playground insurance premium, a school yearbook, a package of individual school photos, a book rental fee, and other miscellaneous fees. There is also a Technology Fee of $250 per child. This fee may be paid one of three ways:

• In full at registration (for new students) • Half in March and half in May (for returning students) • Billed monthly beginning in August (for returning students)

Finally, new students pay a one-time disaster fee of $10. This pays for a survival kit which is kept in our earthquake shed to be used in the event of disaster. Registration and technology fees are non-refundable. Questions concerning the tax deductibility of payments to Bethany Lutheran School or Bethany Lutheran Church should be referred to qualified tax counsel.

FAMILY MATTERS // VOL. 24, NO. 5 // JANUARY 2020 1

FamilyMattersA CHRIST-CENTERED RESOURCE FOR FAMILIES AND TEACHERS

PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES

JOY:FULLY LUTHERAN

Joy in the New Year

“Time for a fresh start.” “Let’s hit the re-set button!” “Time to turn the page.” “Arrrgh — another year?!?” “Wheee! Here we go!”

How do you approach a new year as a parent? Are you stressed? Optimistic? Confused? Exhaust-ed? Frustrated? Or, maybe, excited?

What are you looking forward to in 2020?

A new year can be motivational for many people as they see a chance for change. What changes do you want to make as you enter the new year ahead — as you enter a new decade? Can you organize these changes into nice categories such as health, finances, social activities, family life and personal growth? Or are your thoughts more scattered or random about what lies ahead?

However you approach the new year, one thing for cer-tain is that it can bring change. There will be simple and big adjustments as we journey into the new year. Change can be frightening, as we might not know what to expect — but it can also be exciting, as we may embrace a mo-tivational moment which could improve our personal, family or professional life, impacting us in positive ways for years to come.

How do we start the new year right? How do we get off on the right foot?

Presently, many Lutherans welcome the New Year by holding New Year’s Eve services. In the not-too-distant past, churches even had New Year’s Day services. This began for the purpose of giving praise and honor to God for the gifts of the past year, and to seek His blessings and guidance in the year ahead. We don’t have to face the new year alone as we can welcome it joyfully in the presence of God and other believers in worship.

If your child has the privilege of attending a Lutheran school, it is likely that there will be prayers request-ing God to guide them in the new year and projects asking students to think about the opportunities that God gives us every day as we joyfully celebrate that His mercies are new every morning — not just on the first day of January.

With the Lord we begin our tasks in the year 2020, knowing that Jesus will direct it and direct us. We can seek His counsel with a simple ask, knowing that Jesus will bless it in the morning, evening and at night. Every day, all along the way, Jesus will be near us, giving us joy as we commend to Him our time, talents and treasures in the year ahead.

VOL. 24, NO. 5 // JANUARY 2020Family Matters

Published by The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod // 1333 S. Kirkwood Road, St. Louis, MO 63122-7295 // 314-965-9000 // lcms.org

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. TO REPRINT: Permission is granted to reprint articles from this newsletter with the credit line “Reprinted with permission of LCMS School Ministry.”

Writer: Dr. Steven Christopher Designer: Lisa Moeller

© 2020 LCMS

A RESOURCE OF LCMS SCHOOL MINISTRY

JOYFULLY UPLIFTING FAMILY ACTIVITY // Gather the family together in a comfortable space, with no electronic distractions, and enjoy the family activity outlined below.

IMAGES: GETTY IMAGES

PROJECT TITLE: PAPER PLATE AWARDS

PURPOSE To engage family members in an activity that allows them to have some fun thinking about the strengths they see in their fellow family members and how these strengths might be expressed in the coming year.

PROCESS Normally, awards are given out at the end of a year or conclusion of a season. This activity allows family mem-bers to think in terms of each other and what they are “most likely to do” in the year ahead.

1 Have someone obtain a number of plain white paper plates — the more durable the better!

2 Have colored pens, pencils, markers and crayons available for use by family members.

3 Sit as a family (around a table is best) and begin to think in terms of what each person is “most likely” to do in the coming year. It can be real things, such as most likely to get an A in math, most likely to sing a song in a show or most likely to make a great play for the team. It can also be fun or funny things, such as most likely to be last at the table for dinner, most likely to slip in the mud, etc. Be kind! Have fun! Enjoy!

4 Write these “Most likely to …” awards on paper plates — one for each person in the family; use fun colors, draw pictures if you like.

5 Once someone is done with a plate, have everyone stop their work at the moment and let the presentation happen. Do a drum roll by pound-ing on the table or your lap. Laugh and enjoy this fun family time!

6 When all the awards have been presented, the family participants can take them to their rooms, or perhaps display them in a more public place in the home such as an entry way, kitchen or family room

PRAYER Have family member hold their paper-plate awards in their hands or place them on the table in front of them. Have an adult or older sibling read the following prayer, phrase by phrase, with the rest of the family repeating the words.

Loving Heavenly Father, we thank You for the gift of a new year. Let it be a blessing to us, as we walk these days ahead, with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Help us to trust You every day, knowing You will care for us, protect us and love us. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Most Likelyto …