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How does God see the family?
- The family is the first and most basic social institution created by God.
- Genesis 1:27-28 — “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.’” …
- Genesis 2:24 — “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.”
- Exodus 20:12, 14 — “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you. … You shall not commit adultery.”
Ridgewood Christian School wants to honor and support the importance of the family and the authority of parents in each child’s life.
- That is why our mission statement says RCS is “assisting parents”, rather than “teaching children.”
- That is why we call you in when your child will not submit to the school’s rules.
- That is why we want you physically present at RCS with your child (parenting points).
Every school has a problem it can’t avoid. The school is involved in the life of a group of families. But no group of families is homogeneous; each family has a slightly different value system or emphasis. The more uniform the families, the easier the task of assisting each family well. One school cannot be everything to every family.
What is a school to do? Ridgewood Christian School must clearly define itself (its value system and goals). This way each family can examine RCS’ value system and goals and decide if the school is enough closely aligned to the family’s value system and goals for the parents to “hire” Ridgewood Christian to “assist” them in raising their children.
The RCS mission statement is its attempt to succinctly define the school clearly:
To glorify God by offering parents a choice of an academic institution that will assist them in giving their children a chance to become Christian leaders in professions that meet their God-given abilities and interests.
By focusing on the five highlighted nouns (and their adjectives) within the mission statement, a more elaborate definition for RCS may be understood:
- Glorify God — RCS seeks ultimately the approval of God, not men
- Parents — RCS requires parental involvement (time) in your child’s life and at school (see “Parent participation requirements” on the following page)
- Christian leaders — RCS will encourage Christian maturity by providing a Christian environment that includes Bible study, prayer, encouraging the fruit of the spirit, and discouraging the “deeds of the flesh”.
- God-given (individual) abilities — God has created each child uniquely (fearfully and wonderfully/ Psalm 139:14), with their individual strengths and weaknesses. RCS’ aim is to approach each child as an individual despite the school’s group environment. That is why RCS teachers strive to modify the classroom experience to meet the needs of each student.
- Professions (or vocations) — RCS believes that the ultimate goal of childhood and adolescent education is for a young adult to understand his vocation (Christian calling) and has the training to enter that vocation. That is why our motto is “...offering children a chance”. Some of the important steps in this preparation are:
- reading, writing, and math — verbal and number language skills that are the tools for further learning.
- stewardship of the body — P.E. and health.
- submission to authority — obeying school rules.
- discovering each student’s special interests and talents — studying the world of knowledge and finding what parts “come easy” and are interesting.
- learning which vocations employ the special interests and talents of each student — encouraging students in regards to different professions, career choices, and ministry opportunities.
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