When first arriving at Black Forest Academy (BFA), I was told that BFA also stood for Be Flexible Always. Every year is new and different and has its challenges and excitements as new teachers come in, former teachers leave and other teachers shift their roles. Things change...every year and sometimes in the middle of the year. That has not been more true than this year. In the words of my Middle School Principal, "This could be an interesting year, get ready!" Those may not be his exact words yet they are pretty close! There was a lot of flexibility going on this year as things were constantly changing from in-person masked learning to remote learning to back at school to remote learning again then back on campus yet everyone was completing quick tests for COVID twice a week.
The year began with our Back-to-School Bash where we all play games in the gym. Our Chaplain, Daniel did a great job designing fun games for the students and even a few silly songs for the teachers to sing! Our Fall Party was able to occur and it was almost normal with games in the gym, snacks (as long as they were previously packaged. Spirit Days were still able to happen throughout the year and our Student Leadership Team chose the themes for each day. Students and teachers had fun dressing up to support our middle school!
When it came time for Spiritual Emphasis Week (SEW), changes had to be made. More and more restrictions were coming into place to keep everyone safe. SEW happens in January and we were in remote learning at the time. So, our Chaplains team got creative and SEW became virtual with singing, teaching, and opportunities for students to engage in conversations through different media platforms. Normally there are class parties every quarter, intramurals (part of our PE program) twice a week and a Spring Party which all had to be cancelled. In spite of all the changing restrictions, our students (particularly the 8th graders) did such an amazing job following the restrictions and stepping into their role as leaders and role models for their younger peers.
At the end of the year, usually in May, we have Experiential Learning Week (ELW). At the beginning of May, restrictions were still going strong, so our middle school principal moved ELW to June as numbers had come down and restrictions were decreasing. In the past, ELW is a huge highlight of our school year with the 8th graders going on a trip (They used to go to Lugano, Italy but were planning to go to Amsterdam last year), 7th graders going on field trips (Basel Zoo, Science museum, Ropes course, ect.), 6th graders going on field trips (Paper museum, Roman ruins near Basel, etc.) and 5th graders going on field trips and doing an Underground Railroad game in town with parents and teachers volunteering as "slave catchers", "safe houses", and "slave leaders". The 5th graders are the slaves running to Canada and assigned in groups with an adult to help them. Of course, there was no trip for 8th grade and we were not able to do our normal field trips, yet were able to do a few field trips that were close (ropes course, Europa Park) along with hiking, cooking, escape rooms and some STEM projects at school. The 5th and 6th graders had their Underground Railroad game and had a great night of running and being spotted and chased!
I have created a video giving you a glimpse of our year and hope you enjoy it! It was a great year in spite of the restrictions and constant changing of how we would be doing things. God remains faithful in everything and I am so thankful to Him for what He continues to teach me! May you also be reminded how He has been faithful to you during the good times and the struggling ones. May God be glorified! Click the link below to see the video!
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