Character ~ Learning ~ and giving an Early Christmas Present

At Hamilton District Christian High, our vision is that every student who graduates from here goes on to be a faithful presence in the community where they reside. We hope that their very being and character, marked by the habitual formation of learning at HDCH, would be evident to everyone with whom they come in contact.

But how do we accomplish this vision? To answer this, we go back to our core: our mission statement. We cultivate the character of the students in our care through exceptional Christian learning.

For us, Project Based Learning is a tool that we have been utilizing as the core of being an exceptional Christian school. The nuances of Project Based Learning are far greater than just the product of the project itself. While the end product is often what we see and share and celebrate, the process of making that beautiful work is where the deep learning happens. And it is in answering bigger, bolder questions — “Why does this project matter?” — where we see the deeper perspective and purpose of Christian education manifest and grow in our students.

Just this morning, I came into my office and found a beautiful cutting board on my desk. It was, from my perspective, beautiful craftsmanship. On the cutting board was a note from the student who made it: “Mr. Siebenga, I just want to show you what I have been working on.”  

The process of creating something like that beautiful cutting board takes time and energy. It takes resilience, and it takes creativity to imagine and to fabricate it.

This grade ten boy was proud to show his finished product to me; but when we talked, it was the process, the mistakes, the risks, the opportunity to make it better, and the time it took to make it beautiful that he talked about. The cutting board isn’t where the learning happened. This amazing board is the byproduct of what this student was learning. It is through this kind of learning that the character of our students is shaped.

After we talked process, I asked the student, “What are you going to do with the cutting board?” Proudly he said, “It’s an early Christmas present for my mom and dad.” A grade ten student makes beautiful work and instead of keeping it, he sees it as a gift for someone who he loves.

It is this kind of character that we want our graduates to have. Seeing character shaped by the process of making beautiful work made my day. I am so thankful for a school like HDCH.

Nathan Siebenga
Principal