Academics

1. What levels of learning does AnchorPoint offer?

1. What levels of learning does AnchorPoint offer?
Preschool 3s
Preschool 4s/5s
Kindergarten
Learning Communities —
Team 1 (grades 1-2)
Team 2 (grades 3-4)
Team 3 (grades 5-6)

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2. What is the curriculum?

2. What is the curriculum?
AnchorPoint Christian School is deeply rooted in the Word of God and our curriculum is Christ-centered. Our core curriculum is aligned with the State of Michigan’s benchmarks and standards. Teachers integrate Christian perspective and worldview in many ways, using the best educational practices. Basically, we offer Bible, language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies.

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3. How does a multi-age program work?

3. How does a multi-age program work?
Students are freed from traditional grade level expectations. They are accepted and challenged no matter what their academic ability or chronological age. A span of ages takes account of resulting diversity, reduces competition, and encourages collaboration and development of leadership skills.
Multi-age classes allow students to stay with the same teacher for two years. AnchorPoint curriculum for Teams 1, 2, and 3 features a two-year cycle in Bible, science, and social studies. Math and language arts offer differentiated instruction for each learner during each of the two years he/she is on a team.

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4. What are “specials” courses?

4. What are “specials” courses?
Specials—art, band, library, music, physical education, Spanish, and technology—occur on various days of the week.

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5. Are teachers certified?

5. Are teachers certified?
Yes. Teachers are required to have elementary education degrees and state professional education certificates.

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6. Is there academic assistance for students who need it?

6. Is there academic assistance for students who need it?
Yes. Working with the local Christian Learning Center, AnchorPoint provides educational support services for students with learning differences. We have a speech therapist and school social worker. Our Talent Development Program is designed to enhance the learning of students who have specific academic gifts. Students may participate in Odyssey of the Mind during after-school hours.

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7. What is the average class size?

7. What is the average class size?
The average number of students per classroom is 16.

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8. What guidance for future education is given to students who graduate?

8. What guidance for future education is given to students who graduate?
AnchorPoint encourages parents/guardians to continue Christian education for their sixth graders. With their permission, we release their contact information to a coalition of area Christian middle/high schools so they may be contacted about available programs. We encourage them to visit area Christian schools.

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9. Is AnchorPoint a member of Christian Schools International (CSI)?

9. Is AnchorPoint a member of Christian Schools International (CSI)?
Yes. AnchorPoint was approved for membership in 2010. It joins a network of 500 schools—around the world and in the local community—receiving CSI’s benefits of personal consultation, policy formulation, leadership training, and promotional and curriculum materials. CSI’s mission is to advance Christian education and support schools in their task of teaching students to know God and his world and to glorify him through obedient service.

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Application/Enrollment

10. Does AnchorPoint have a waiting list to enroll?

10. Does AnchorPoint have a waiting list to enroll?
Not yet.

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11. What is the application/enrollment process?

11. What is the application/enrollment process?
Parents/guardians are encouraged to visit AnchorPoint personally to meet the staff and tour the school site. They can access application forms from the school office, online at www.anchorpointchristian.org, or request that the forms be sent by postal mail.
For three-year-old preschool eligibility, a child must be three years old by September 1 of the school year and toilet trained. For four/five-year-old preschool eligibility, a child must be four years old by September 1 of the school year, or planning to enter kindergarten the following year. For kindergarten eligibility, a child must be five years old by September 1 of the school year and/or parents must submit a positive written recommendation from a preschool director/teacher. A child who is five years old before June 1 of the coming school year will automatically be eligible.

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12. Is there an application fee?

12. Is there an application fee?
Yes. A minimal non-refundable application fee is required.

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History

13. When did AnchorPoint begin?

13. When did AnchorPoint begin?
AnchorPoint’s opening school day was September 7, 2010.

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14. How did AnchorPoint begin?

14. How did AnchorPoint begin?
God’s strong call to keep faith-based education “in the neighborhood” launched a new Christian elementary school—AnchorPoint Christian School. This innovative effort filled a deep void left when the Calvin Christian School Association announced the June 2010 closing of its elementary school in urban Wyoming as financially unsustainable.
Dedicated families and teachers had a passion to provide an affordable Christian education opportunity in the Wyoming urban area for every community child. For location, AnchorPoint Christian School focused on the closed and sold Calvin Christian Elementary School (CCES) campus, 601 36th Street SW in Wyoming, just west of the 131 expressway. From the site purchaser, West Michigan Lutheran High School, AnchorPoint leased sufficient space. This stewardly arrangement immediately provided many necessities for the elementary school—classrooms, teaching materials, desks, chairs, a playground, and more.
AnchorPoint hired its principal and teachers from former CCES faculty who expressed their availability for staffing AnchorPoint at reduced salaries. The school received start-up donations from loving supporters, committed to bringing together various church denominations and diverse community cultures in urban Wyoming.

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15. Why did AnchorPoint begin?

15. Why did AnchorPoint begin?
AnchorPoint’s visionary mission is to inspire and educate our diverse community through affordable and innovative teaching, creating a passion for Christ and a love of learning.

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Policies

16. Does AnchorPoint have a dress code?

16. Does AnchorPoint have a dress code?
AnchorPoint Christian School expects students to be well groomed and to wear clothes that are considered appropriate for Christian children. If a teacher considers a student to be inappropriately dressed, the student may be asked to call home and make arrangements for appropriate clothing to be brought to school before being allowed back in the classroom. On Tuesdays, students are requested to wear their AnchorPoint t-shirts or sweatshirts.

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17. What is expected of parents/guardians?

17. What is expected of parents/guardians?
All parents/guardians are members of AnchorPoint Ambassadors, a support group that enhances community and raises funds for the school. They are encouraged to volunteer in various ways as their skills and schedules allow.

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18. Where are policies published?

18. Where are policies published?
AnchorPoint publishes and distributes a Handbook for each level of learning. Other detailed policy statements are available on request from the school office.

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Tuition

19. How can AnchorPoint’s tuition be affordable?

19. How can AnchorPoint’s tuition be affordable?
To keep faith-based education “in the neighborhood”, AnchorPoint leases its space and so has no building debt. We receive shared-time assistance from local school districts. Many volunteers, including students’ families, provide essential services. Financial donors contribute gifts for tuition support. And also…there’s the Anchor Factor.
The Anchor Factor is the percentage of CSI pay scale salary that AnchorPoint-paid salaried staff members do NOT receive. Christian Schools International (CSI) provides a teacher pay scale that most private schools strive to meet. But for AnchorPoint to be affordable, our salaried staff members sacrifice. While each staff member passionately serves just as much as a teacher making a CSI pay scale wage, each gets paid less based on the Anchor Factor. Those experienced and dedicated staff members accept lowered salaries in order to live out AnchorPoint’s mission.

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20. Is there tuition assistance?

20. Is there tuition assistance?
Yes. Applications for K-6 tuition assistance are available on request.

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21. Is there a multi-child discount for students from the same family?

21. Is there a multi-child discount for students from the same family?
No. The tuition rates apply equally to all AnchorPoint students.

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22. Does AnchorPoint accept credit card payments?

22. Does AnchorPoint accept credit card payments?
No. Tuition is collected through the FACTS Tuition Management Program on a monthly basis.

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Whatevers

23. Busing — does AnchorPoint provide it?

23. Busing — does AnchorPoint provide it?
No. Parents/guardians are responsible for the transportation of their child(ren).

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24. Chapel service — is there one?

24. Chapel service — is there one?
Yes. Each Tuesday morning, AnchorPoint students and staff gather in the school gym for a praise-and-worship chapel. Parents/guardians are welcome to attend.

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25. Diversity — what is AnchorPoint’s statement?

25. Diversity — what is AnchorPoint’s statement?
AnchorPoint Christian School admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, and scholarship or loan programs. We are not associated with any specific religious denomination.

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26. Extended Day Programs — what are they?

26. Extended Day Programs — what are they?
AnchorPoint’s Extended Day Programs are designed to meet the needs of busy families with children enrolled in our preschool through sixth grade. An application form and fees for enrollment and time spent in the program are required. Before School Care—usually starting at 7 AM—provides a safe, supervised environment and a consistent routine for preschool-grade 6 students needing care before school. Extended Day School—from 11:30 AM to 3:30 PM—provides a safe, supervised educational environment for preschool-kindergarten students, including structured play activities and the reinforcement of concepts taught in the general education preschool and kindergarten classrooms. After School Care—from 3:30 to 5:30 PM—provides a safe, supervised environment and a consistent routine for preschool-grade 6 students needing care after school.

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27. Health care — how about it?

27. Health care — how about it?
Our program is inspected by the Kent County Department of Human Services to ensure a safe, clean, and healthful setting for students. Our complete Health Care Plan, giving detailed procedures and policies, is available for review from office staff on request.

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28. Hot lunch — does AnchorPoint offer it?

28. Hot lunch — does AnchorPoint offer it?
Yes. A daily hot lunch is available for selection from a monthly menu and for minimal monthly cost. AnchorPoint participates with the federal school nutrition program to aid families with free and reduced lunch. Applications are available in the school office.

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29. Logo — is there a special one for AnchorPoint?

29. Logo — is there a special one for AnchorPoint?
Yes. AnchorPoint’s logo—its inspiring visual identity—is layered with symbolic meaning. Silhouettes of two children are prominently featured, resting securely on their educational anchor. One child reads a Bible, representing a passion for Christ. The other child does homework, representing a love of learning. The innovative anchor is also a firmly rooted tree, with a cross as its trunk and branches. The tree sprouts a variety of multicolored leaves, illustrating the diversity of people, experiences, and possibilities associated with an affordable AnchorPoint education. Branches and leaves reach outward with excitement, as if to say, “Welcome!”

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30. Song— is there a special one for AnchorPoint?

30. Song— is there a special one for AnchorPoint?
Yes. The first stanza and the refrain of AnchorPoint’s song were composed by teacher Jen Rysdam in 2010. Stanzas two and three were written in 2012 and 2013 by AnchorPoint’s Team 3 students.

      He’s Our Anchor

When we think about our Savior
And the faithfulness he’s shown
To every generation
His promises made known
He’s the anchor for our soul
Holding us firm and secure

REFRAIN:
The Lord our God is our anchor
The point on which we stand
He’s always there right beside us
He’s the beginning and the end
The beginning and the end
The beginning and the end

Our God is always faithful to his word
He’s our anchor
When we think about our Father
The compassion he has shown
How he cares for all creation
And calls us all his own
He’s the captain of our lives
Guiding us closer to him

REFRAIN (repeat)

When we think about the Spirit
The direction he has shown
How he guides our walk with Jesus
So we are not alone
He’s the compass of our lives
On our voyage to him

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31. Verse — is there a special one for AnchorPoint?

31. Verse — is there a special one for AnchorPoint?
Yes. It’s Hebrews 6:19—“We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.”

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32. Whatever — what if you have other questions?

32. Whatever — what if you have other questions?
Call the school office at 616-608-4006.
Come to the school at 601 36th Street SW in Wyoming, MI 49509.
Click on the school website tabs at www.anchorpointchristian.org.
Email info@anchorpointchristian.org.

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