Helping a child properly mature throughout their primary and secondary schooling careers is essential for their overall success. This includes not only their academic capability but their social development as well. While education takes priority, for someone to be truly happy, they need to be able to interact and make friends with classmates, not just flourish in their studies.
As a parent, the challenge here is the fact that you can’t force your child to socialize. While you can monitor their study habits, ensure that they do their homework every night, and maintain a level of academic expectations, you can’t go into the classroom and guide social development. One of the best steps you can take is enrolling your child into a Clearwater private school. Below, we highlight two social benefits that come with smaller classroom sizes like those found here at Lakeside Christian School.
This is arguably the biggest social benefit of smaller private schools. Students have more opportunities to socialize with the same individuals day after day, resulting in a close-knit community. Teachers have the ability to give more individualized attention, which allows them to better identify if a student is struggling. A Review of Educational Research analysis of 46 studies found that strong teacher-student relationships were associated in both the short- and long-term with improvements on practically every essential measure: higher student academic engagement, attendance, grades, fewer disruptive behaviors, and lower school dropout rates. Those effects remained even after setting controls for differences in demographic backgrounds. This goes to show that it’s truly important to foster every aspect of your child’s development for their overall success.
Related: How Does a Small School Setting Help My Child Succeed?
One of the more difficult challenges as a parent is figuring out how to get a child to come out of their shell. Not only can shyness inhibit their social life, but it can affect their academics as well, with research showing that shy students receive lower grade-point averages in college. A shy child may choose not to speak up when they have questions or avoid classroom engagement. Small school sizes allow shy children to be more comfortable with engaging in the classroom, where they are familiar with everyone in it.
Related: How Private Schools Improve College Readiness
A private school with smaller classroom sizes benefit student’s social development which will ultimately lead to improved academic performance. Not only do the small classroom sizes allow a more one-on-one style of education, but also a more engaging social atmosphere where no one feels left out. Here at Lakeside Christian Schools, we pride ourselves in helping young minds reach their full potential by utilizing an authentic individualized experience. The needs of our students are at the core of our teaching philosophy, and it may prove difficult to find a more suitable Clearwater private school for your child.
If you would like to learn more about private schools in Clearwater, FL, like Lakeside Christian School, please give us a call at (727) 239-7808 or schedule a tour of our campus.
Contrary to popular belief, people from all income levels can enjoy the benefits of private school. In fact, there are thousands of young students in private schools that come from middle-to-low income households. You might be wondering how these students and their families can afford the cost of private school, which, according to Private School Review, costs “approximately $8,878 per year.” The answer is simple. There is plenty of help out there for those who take the time to explore options for funding assistance.
One of the best routes to getting into the private school system is through scholarships. For example, Lakeside Christian School accepts several Step Up For Students scholarships, like the Florida Tax Credit (FTC) Scholarship and the Family Empowerment Scholarship. However, this is far from the only way to support your child’s education. There are an abundance of privately sponsored contests to help children get additional funding for tuition, supplies, and other essentials. Below, we have listed four different contests for your gifted youth to apply to. If you want to transition your child to a Christian middle school in Clearwater, FL, contact Lakeside Christian School to schedule a tour.
Held by the Nicodemus Wilderness Project, this project is officially recognized by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). They have been holding this competition for over two decades, inspiring young children to be more involved in cleaning and maintaining the purity of the world around them. Find more information about the initiative here.
Open to all ages, this competition held by Blue Mountain Arts is a great way for your child to express themselves creatively for a chance to win a prize. There is no age restriction, and contestants can enter as often as they want to try to win the $350 first prize (or the $200 second prize or $100 third prize). Contests are encouraged to submit an original poem about “real emotions and feelings.”
One Earth Film Festival holds this annual competition, which features separate categories for elementary and middle school students.. They pick one of the preselected themes and make a short video about them in order to win up to 400 dollars in prize money and grants and to be featured in the festival.
Like the earlier contest held by Blue Mountain, this contest’s name is indicative of its rules. Children from middle schools are asked to carefully ponder a quote from Judge Jackson during the infamous trial of defeated Nazi leaders at Nuremberg and ask a series of philisophical questions. There can only be one 500 word (or less) essay per entrant. Winners can receive up to 250 dollars.
As you can see, every child can enter a contest best suited to their skills and knowledge, from the aspiring poetto to the young filmmaker or historian and everywhere in between. Here at Lakeside Christian School, we pride ourselves in supporting all students, no matter what their passions are. If you’re looking for the best quality education in Clearwater, look no further!
If you would like to learn more about Christian middle schools in Clearwater, FL, like Lakeside Christian School, please give us a call at (727) 239-7808 or schedule a tour of our campus.
As our culture continues to shift around us, so should the way we prepare our children to enter it. While there may be a hot debate within the educational community as to how to prepare our children for success, the main purpose of elementary education is to foster the growth of crucial cognitive and social abilities that will be further developed later on in their educational careers. This not only includes shifting the traditional paradigm of the classroom but also embracing teaching methodologies that put a renewed focus on inclusion and problem-solving.
In this article, we discuss three current trends in education that can help boost student success. While there will always be differing viewpoints as to the best teaching methods, our affordable private elementary school in Clearwater, FL, will continue to monitor the latest innovations in teaching to create the absolute best environment for your children to thrive in.
One of the issues at the forefront of elementary education is how to keep young minds interested and engaged in STEM education, which focuses on the integration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. According to the U.S. News and World Report,“by the time students reach fourth grade, a third of boys and girls have lost an interest in science. By eighth grade, almost 50 percent have lost interest or deemed it irrelevant to their education or future plans.”
Many believe that the way to combat this lack of interest is to promote inquiry-based learning from the beginning. As opposed to traditional methods, inquiry-based learning promotes active learning by posing questions or problems in which the student is given the tools to figure the answer out themselves, not just listening to the teacher tell them the answer and try to retain that information. This is the basis of how STEM knowledge is taught, so when the time comes for them to be introduced to it, they will be more ready.
Think back to your elementary school days — remember the discomfort of being broken into small groups for projects and being forced to work with classmates you didn’t know too well? At first, you may have been a little uncomfortable working in groups that didn’t always include your closest friends, but, over time, you discovered that these other students had lots of important lessons to teach you. The five key elements of cooperative learning are:
This method of education tries to steer away from the “in one ear, out the other” issue commonly found in education. Many young students believe that they will never need school-related lessons outside of the classroom, so why bother retaining the information? PBL addresses this issue by introducing a dynamic approach to learning in which students develop knowledge by exploring real-world problems or scenarios for an extended period of time, allowing for authentic discoveries that they arrive at by working through the issue. This method is different from simply assigning projects during the semester because the project is the semester, not simply an assignment meant to break up classwork.
If you would like to learn more about Lakeside Christian School, one of the best private elementary schools in Clearwater, FL, please give us a call at (727) 239-7808 or schedule a tour of our campus.
Is your high schooler college ready? It’s not always a simple “yes” or “no” question. High schoolers who are excelling in one area may be struggling in another, and even caring, watchful parents can miss the signs that a student isn’t ready for college. After all, students do have a knack for flying under the radar.
In this article, the faculty members at Lakeside Christian School, one of the top Christian schools in Clearwater, FL, discuss how you can ensure that your high schooler is ready for everything that college has to throw at them. These years will have a tremendous impact on their success later in life. When your child walks out of high school for the last time, will you be content knowing that you did everything in your power to prepare them for what comes next?
As this Forbes article states, most high schoolers don’t score high enough on the ACT or SAT to be considered ready for their freshman year of college. “That means students may struggle in tough courses when they get to campus or wind up in remedial classes, even if they earned good grades and met all high school graduation requirements.” At Lakeside Christian School, we believe that students are more than just a number; however, test scores are important for highlighting areas where a student needs improvement. To be considered college-ready, a student would need to score:
Our Clearwater, FL, Christian school takes college readiness very seriously. We believe that preparing students for college life and college coursework is one of the most important jobs that a school can perform, which is why our educators use an effective blend of curriculum, teaching methodologies, and technology to create a path of success for our students. Through data-driven instruction, we provide a solid foundation on which students can build a rewarding college experience. Of course, academic knowledge is only one part of what your child will need to succeed in college.
Networking is one of the most important things your child can do to ensure their post-graduate success. This article from Lifehack sums it up perfectly: “In this age of connectivity no employer wants to, or needs to, risk hiring an unknown individual. Networking helps you to form relationships so future employers will see you as a friend instead of as a risk.” By the time they reach college, your high schooler needs to be their own person — they need the empathy, candor, and confidence necessary to network and build relationships, but these are skills best learned long before college.
It’s all too easy for a high schooler to lose their identity and social skills among the hundreds of other students at their school. At Lakeside Christian School, our educators strive to ensure that every student finds their voice. No child gets left behind when they’re a part of our Clearwater, FL, Christian school. To safeguard your child’s academic and social success, schedule a tour at Lakeside Christian School. We’ll be more than happy to answer any questions you may have regarding our approach to preparing students for college and life after.
If you would like to learn more about Lakeside Christian School, one of the best Christian schools in Clearwater, FL, please give us a call at (727) 239-7808 or schedule a tour of our campus.
As a society, we have a tendency to overlook the transition from elementary to middle school, which can be quite jarring in its own right. After all, the entire structure of middle school is vastly different from elementary schools’ “one teacher to a class” system. Middle school students are expected to have adapted to the school system by the time they enter sixth grade. During the next three years, students will be asked to absorb a vast amount of information as they bridge the gap from simple concepts to more complex teachings. It often seems like the ultimate goal of middle school is to survive until high school, but in actuality, middle school is a time when students can build the foundation for their high school experience.
At Lakeside Christian School, a Christian middle school in Clearwater, FL, we provide students with rigorous high school preparation programs that boost skills in algebra, writing, and more. During grades six, seven, and eight, students are molded into enlightened thinkers and problem solvers who yearn to be challenged, ensuring that they experience a smooth transition to the next level. Students that excel in high school start by maintaining a strong GPA throughout middle school. Here are the reasons why:
Like math, science, language arts, and other subject areas, the ability to study properly must be learned through consistent instruction. Students who fail to adopt proper study habits can find themselves left behind once they enter high school. Studying is a foundational skill that can boost a student’s performance across multiple subject areas, and middle school is the perfect time to develop these skills. The amount of homework that children are tasked with completing spikes dramatically during this time, and the formation of reliable study habits is the only way to keep up. Needless to say, better study habits will lead to a higher GPA and a greater chance of success in high school.
According to Deborah Kasak from the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform, “Many [students] make that decision to drop out–either consciously or unconsciously–during those middle grades years.” Paying close attention to our middle school students is important if we want them to succeed, but overcoming the hump isn’t always easy. Many children find middle school to be a significantly more daunting challenge than what they grew accustomed to in elementary school. Middle school distractions are another cause for concern. Bullying, puberty, and an evolving self-awareness can lead children down the wrong path without proper instruction. This is why, at our Christian middle school in Clearwater, FL, we work hard to cultivate an environment of learning and acceptance that helps children sustain an interest in education and a desire to be their very best.
When the progress your child made in elementary school comes skidding to a halt in middle school, it’s time to make a change. As one of the top Christian middle schools in Clearwater, FL, our staff is dedicated to providing a guiding hand to children during this confusing time. With small class sizes and plenty of one-on-one instruction, children are afforded the freedom to overcome academic obstacles and become their best. We’d love to give you the opportunity to check out our school for yourself and your family, so you can see why Lakeside Christian School is the best Christian middle school in Clearwater, FL.
If you would like to learn more about Lakeside Christian School, one of the best Christian middle schools in Clearwater, FL, please give us a call at (727) 239-7808 or schedule a tour of our campus.
The struggles of the education system in recent years have fallen under a lot of scrutiny, and for good reason. Some alarming facts and statistics:
There is an ocean of reasons why this is happening within the education system in America, and both public and private schools are affected. However, the private sector has historically fared better in times of uncertainty in the education system. Here in Clearwater especially, the Clearwater private school system is exceptionally effective at educating bright young minds. Below are three advantages of private elementary schools in Clearwater, FL.
The United States population has grown by 17 million since the last major census in 2010 —a 5.3 percent increase. This increase has been supported by a steady annual rate of 0.7 to 0.8 percent; and according to history, this shows no signs of slowing down. Today’s children are glued to brightly lit LED monitors, and as a result, they require more individual attention than ever before to retain information and expand their knowledge. Private elementary schools in Clearwater, FL, benefit from smaller class sizes, allowing teachers to impart knowledge on their students more efficiently and with fewer distractions. When schools become overpopulated, everyone’s learning experience suffers.
The children of today are nothing like the children of the 1990s, or even the 2000s. Elementary students of those times came into school only with information and knowledge their parents exposed them to. Nowadays, children before preschool are granted access to smartphones and iPads to aid parents in keeping their overzealous attention spans at bay. This translates to new-age students that have a wealth of information that previous generations did not; in other words, they are not starting with a clean slate. In a traditional classroom setting, children did not have access to a computer until fourth or fifth grade. Preschoolers are walking into their first day of school with the ability to open a computer and use the internet. They need to adjust teaching methods to address this issue and help young minds remediate information that they’ve been exposed to outside of the classroom; which private schools have. Public schools often have trouble offering new-age teaching methods to their students.
A lack of funding is a detriment to any government system, so why would the school system be any different? In Florida, a lack of public funding affects every corner of the educational experience. This underfunding hits lower-income public schools especially hard. However, affordable private schools in Clearwater, FL, rarely have funding issues.
If you would like to learn more about private elementary schools in Clearwater, FL, like Lakeside Christian School, please give us a call at (727) 239-7808 or schedule a tour of our campus.
Whether your child’s in high school or preschool, chances are you’ve thought about what your son or daughter’s experience will be like when the time comes for them to apply to college. Will they have the grades and test scores to be enrolled in the school of their dreams? Will the admissions office be able to clearly see the qualities that sets your child apart from other applicants?
In this brief article, we will discuss three of the main qualities colleges look for in applicants. At Lakeside Christian School, a Clearwater private school, it’s our goal to challenge students to achieve their academic, social, and career-minded goals. We are also proud to offer core academic preparation that increases their college readiness. To learn more about one of the best private schools in Clearwater, FL, please visit our website.
It should come as no surprise that your child’s grades and overall grade point average (GPA) will impact whether or not they are selected for enrollment at the college of their dreams. Along with their grades, colleges assess:
Clearly, any of the above items can be impacted by the core academic preparation your child receives in high school. At Lakeside Christian School, we are committed to helping high school students reach their full potential by offering small class sizes, daily tutoring programs and homework assistance, and the academic preparation they need to enjoy success in college and beyond.
Although success in the classroom is a crucial element of the college admissions process, high school students should also focus on events and activities outside of the classroom. Extracurricular activities are one way that a prospective applicant can stand out from the competition. Moreover, your child’s participation in extracurricular activities provides college enrollment offices with a chance to see their personality and appreciate their commitment to this activity.
For example, if your child participates in an athletic program, it shows that they honor commitment, unity, and respect. Whether your child is committed to athletics, an after school academic group, or volunteer work, they are showcasing their leadership and dedication to projects.
Similar to extracurricular activities, there are many other ways outside of the classroom that your child can impress college admissions offices. Does your child have a unique artistic talent? Are they passionate about a topic that could resonate with the university of their choice? At Lakeside Christian School, one of our main areas of focus is on providing students with accelerated writing skills in order to prepare them for their college studies. An impressive essay can highlight your child’s achievements, personalize their experience, and showcase why they are a great fit for university life.
If you would like to learn more about Lakeside Christian School, one of the best private schools in Clearwater, FL, please give us a call at (727) 239-7808 or schedule a tour of our campus.
The decision to send your child to a private school will have an incredible and long-lasting impact on their education and future. All that’s left is to pick a school. Should be easy, right? Not exactly.
There are 101 private schools in Pinellas County, each offering their own unique take on education and many of which are in the City of Clearwater. Narrowing this down to a single choice will be no easy task for parents. In this brief article, we’re going to help you narrow down your options until you’re left with only the private middle schools in Clearwater, FL, that are right for your child.
Narrowing down your school choices will be easy once you decide what type of school you want your child to attend. As stated in an article published by the Tampa Bay Times, “The choices include religious schools, independent and secular schools, and schools for students with disabilities or special needs in every grade level. Some are a combination of all of the above.” You will need to carefully consider your child’s needs and decide which program is right for them. We encourage you to research all available options and to visit schools when possible. At Lakeside Christian School, we love hearing from new families and are always happy to give a tour of our private middle school in Clearwater, FL.
You’ll also need to take into account your child’s age and grade level when looking at private schools in the greater Clearwater region. A number of outstanding schools, such as the many private high schools in the area, only serve certain grades. At Lakeside Christian School, we teach kindergarten classes all the way up to 12th-grade courses. If you are struggling to find a school that will welcome your middle schooler and guide them through the remainder of their school years, consider a private middle school in Clearwater, FL, that teaches grades K-12.
We might be a little bit biased here, but we think that Lakeside Christian School is the best private middle school in Clearwater, FL. But don’t take our word for it. We encourage you to peruse through the list of top Clearwater private schools put together by Private School Review. You’ll find that we have a sterling five-star rating and place among the top 20 percent of private schools in all of Florida. We are accredited by the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI), and we welcome families to compare our school to others until they find the choice that’s right for them. If you are looking to narrow down your choices of private middle schools in Clearwater, FL, look no further than Lakeside Christian School.
If you would like to learn more about Lakeside Christian School, a private middle school in Clearwater, FL, please give us a call at (727) 239-7808 or schedule a tour of our campus.
Since 2002, the Florida Tax Credit (FTC) Scholarship Program has funded more than 784,000 scholarships thanks to approximately $3.9 billion in donations from the corporate community. This landmark achievement is responsible for strengthening school choice in the State of Florida while simultaneously making private education significantly more affordable for low-income families. Remarkably, the FTC Scholarship is only one of several scholarships offered by Step Up For Students, a state-approved nonprofit scholarship funding organization that helps administer scholarships for students in Florida; however, we will be focusing solely on the FTC Scholarship in this article — more specifically, the amazing donors that make this program such a resounding success year in and year out.
Related: Step Up For Students in Clearwater, FL
When the Florida Legislature established the FTC Scholarship Program in 2001, it signaled a new era of school choice for parents looking to provide their children with the best education possible. According to Step Up For Students, “the Florida Department of Revenue gives dollar-for-dollar tax credits to companies that contribute their eligible tax dollars to fund the K-12, income-based education scholarships.” This provides a significant incentive for donors to continue contributing to Florida’s economically disadvantaged children on an annual basis, as indicated by year-over-year growth in the number of scholarships provided. The FTC Scholarship Program is the largest of those offered by Step Up For Students in Clearwater, FL. Recipients of the FTC Scholarship have two financing options:
Applications are processed on a first-come, first-served basis; however, priority is given to renewal families, followed by families with the greatest financial need. Acknowledging that the homestead may be required to relocate for any number of reasons, the FTC Scholarship is transferable to any eligible school in the Sunshine State.
Related: Qualifications and Eligibility for the Family Empowerment Scholarship
Without the gracious corporate sponsors that support the FTC Scholarship Program, none of this would be possible. Dollar-for-dollar credits are offered for numerous financial liabilities, including:
Those who have chosen to involve their businesses have made life-changing contributions to countless children while furthering the ultimate goal of Step Up For Students: choice of learning environment for the betterment of every child’s education. As one of the Step Up For Students participating schools in Clearwater, FL, Lakeside Christian School would like to give a heartfelt thanks to all of those who have contributed to this program. Your generosity has aided our mission to provide top-flight education services for children who wouldn’t otherwise have access to a private education.
If you would like to learn more about Lakeside Christian School, one of the Step Up For Students participating schools in Clearwater, FL, please give us a call at (727) 239-7808 or schedule a tour of our campus.
Private school enrollment is on the rise in Florida and has been for some time. In an annual report published by the Florida Department of Education, it’s shown that 380,295 students were enrolled in private schools across the state during the 2018-19 school year. This is an incredible increase from a decade ago when enrollment was hovering just above 300,000 students. Parents are clearly choosing to send their children to private schools at an increasing rate. But what’s behind this increase, and why are parents willing to trust their child’s education to a private institution? In this brief article, we answer these questions and more as we discuss the many benefits of having kids attend an affordable private elementary school in Clearwater, FL.
Educators should be celebrated no matter what institution they’re a part of. But that’s not going to stop us from touting the benefits of our academic process. At Lakeside Christian School, we believe in challenging students to achieve their academic, social, and career-minded goals. We employ data-driven instruction to assess student needs and make necessary adjustments throughout the school year. Too often, talented students who just need a little help and attention are left behind. Parents know that a private school will do everything possible to ensure that doesn’t happen to their child.
A major concern for parents who are considering private elementary schools in Clearwater, FL, is the possibility that their child will somehow miss out on important life experiences, experiences that they believe can only happen in a public school setting. But that’s just not the case. For example, we just sent our students home with their school portraits, and K-12 yearbooks are available so that students can look back on the memories made here at Lakeside Christian School. Our athletics program offers a variety of sports, including football, soccer, volleyball, baseball, and cheerleading, to students of all ages. And our drama department produces a number of musicals and plays throughout the school year for our talented students to perform in. Just because we’re a private school doesn’t mean we can’t offer students the experience of a lifetime!
Why are parents sending their kids to private schools? Because it’s more affordable than ever! Florida has six K-12 scholarship programs that “allow parents unprecedented choice among public and private schools.” These scholarships are designed to help children and their families who may be in need, such as low-income families. All told, Lakeside Christian School provides over $250,000 in scholarships to qualified families each year. We’re proud to be a part of why parents time and again choose to send their kids to private schools. If you’d like to join the thousands of parents who trust their child’s education to a private school, schedule a new parent tour and see why Lakeside Christian School is one of the best private elementary schools in Clearwater, FL.
If you would like to learn more about Lakeside Christian School, an affordable private elementary school in Clearwater, FL, please give us a call at (727) 239-7808 or schedule a tour of our campus.
Are you ready to join the Lakeside Christian School community? Contact us, and schedule a tour today.
Parents of Students with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or 504 Plan, Click Here.