United Christian Academy

🌅 A Blessed Start to the Day! 🙏 Every morning, Mr. Geselle’s 3rd graders begin their day with a meaningful routine that centers on worship, connection, and community. The day starts with personal check-ins with their teacher and reciting the pledges, followed by sharing prayer requests, praying for one another, and worshiping together. Today, they specifically talked about what worship is, what it might look like, and why it’s important. It was powerful to hear the depth of their answers, showing they truly understand who God is. This special time connects our students with God, their classmates, and their teacher, creating a positive and uplifting environment to set the tone for the day. ❤️✨ #ucathunder #christcenterededucation #ucaelementary

GRATITUDE 🙏 We are so thankful for this school and this space where our kids are free to worship. Praise God! #ucathunder

🌟 🎯 Our High School Language Arts students took a creative step toward their futures by making vision boards! This project was two-fold, allowing them to reflect on their dreams and goals and giving them a visual representation of where they want to go in life, but it also taught them valuable lessons about project planning and execution, turning a concept into a finished product. 💭🎨 #ucathunder #ucahighschool

✝️ Our 6th-grade Bible curriculum takes students on an impactful journey through all 66 books of the Bible. Today’s lesson tackled the concept of faith, asking how a person becomes good and righteous. 🌱 Through thoughtful discussion and scripture study in Romans 3, they’re learning that righteousness does not come from our own efforts but through faith in God’s grace and love. Mrs. Chant also emphasized that you can’t have faith in a God you don’t know, encouraging these students to dive into the Bible and decide who God is to them. 🙏 #ucathunder #christcenterededucation

🎉 The vending machines are back!! A new building brings new and improved vending options for UCA. These machines are a favorite of our secondary students looking for a quick snack between classes or a refreshing drink after school. 🍫 🥤 Happy snacking! #ucathunder

🕵️‍♂️ Unsolved Mysteries in Language Arts! 📚 Mrs. Stockman’s students are conducting research on an intriguing unsolved mystery of their choice, digging deep to uncover facts, theories, and clues. But the challenge doesn't stop there—they’re also using what they find to write a well-structured paper in MLA format. This project not only sharpened their research and writing skills but also encouraged critical thinking and creativity as they explored these mysterious topics. 🔍✍️ #ucathunder

🏅 Athlete of the Week! ⚽️ Congratulations to Mariah, our UCA Athlete of the Week! Mariah plays on the girls' soccer team and has had an outstanding start to the season. Mariah's hard work as goalkeeper kept her team close in a recent game against Faribault, which ended in a 1-1 tie. We can’t wait to see all the amazing things she’ll accomplish this season! Keep up the fantastic work, Mariah! 👏💪 #ucathunder #ucaathletics

📚 📝 Our American Literature class kicked off their journey into The Scarlet Letter with a thought-provoking exercise. Each student was secretly assigned a career, but one student was designated as an imposter—though no one knew who had which role. Through conversation and interaction, the students had to figure out who was who. This activity helped them experience the themes of judgment, identity, and exclusion that are central to the novel. It was an eye-opening way to step into the world of The Scarlet Letter and start thinking about the complex social dynamics they’ll explore in the book. We’re excited to see their insights as they dive deeper into the story! 📖🔍 #ucathunder #ucahighschool

🎨Mrs. Otterblad’s creative 2nd graders dove into a fun project this week—fingerprint art! Using their fingertips and a bit of imagination, each student chose from different examples of animals and recreated them on their own paper. 🐾 As they worked on their creations, they also talked about how each will be unique. The results were adorable and special, from interesting insects to fancy flowers, showcasing each child's creativity and individuality. 🐜🌼 It was a beautiful way to celebrate their artistic talents and the unique way God created each of them, down to their unique fingerprints. #ucathunder #ucaelementary

🚀Our Aviation 1 students had an exciting hands-on project last week, building and testing balloon rockets! They were challenged with engineering a balloon contraption capable of lifting as much weight as possible all the way to the ceiling.🎈 🧠Students experimented with different designs, learning about the principles of lift, thrust, and more. It was a great opportunity to apply their knowledge in a fun and interactive way! #ucathunder #ucastem

⚽️ 👟🏐 Our fall sports seasons are off and running, and these super fans are inviting you to all the events! Miss Coleman, Miss Ciri, and Miss Andi made themselves "Super Fan" shirts to support our athletes. On the back, you will find the names of every varsity athlete! Go Thunder! #ucathunder #ucaathletics

🧸Our kindergarteners had a beary fun adventure last Friday! After reading the classic book "We're Going on a Bear Hunt," the class set out on their very own bear hunt in the field by the school. The excitement was visible as they searched high and low for that hidden bear! Afterward, the fun continued with a Teddy Bear Picnic! Each student brought their favorite stuffed animal to join in the festivities. They enjoyed snacks, played games, and shared stories with their cuddly companions. It was a day full of imagination, laughter, and sweet memories! 🐻🍯 #ucathunder #ucaelementary

🌊Ships Across the Ocean! 🚢 Last Friday, our secondary students kicked off the first House Games of the year with several rounds of "Ships Across the Ocean"! All four houses were filled with energy, teamwork, and lots of fun. Even the teachers joined in for a few rounds! The game had everyone strategizing and cheering their teams on as they tried to navigate through the sea of house leaders in the middle trying to tag them out. The enthusiasm was contagious, and it was incredible to see the camaraderie and sportsmanship displayed by all students. Kudos to all participants for making the event a huge success and setting a positive tone for the rest of the year. We're excited for more house events and friendly competitions to come. Here's to a year of teamwork, unity, school pride, and unforgettable memories! 💙💚💛❤️ #ucathunder #ucahousesystem

🪥 The Power of Words 🗣️ Miss Anderson’s first grade class learned about the importance of our words through a fun but challenging activity. Two students were chosen to squeeze all the toothpaste out of a tube—easy enough! But then, everyone had to try putting the toothpaste back in using only a toothpick. It was quite the challenge! This activity helped them understand how easy it is to say words but how much harder it is to take them back—just like squeezing out the toothpaste was easy, but putting it back was nearly impossible. A powerful reminder to choose our words wisely! 💬✨ #ucathunder #ucaelementary

🛋️Ten tenth graders on a tiny couch talking about Theology!! Less than one week into the school year, students are already incorporating the new students into the mix! The head of school and teachers have spoken to them about "looking for the lost" since day one. But even more meaningful was hearing it from students' mouths during yesterday's open mic at the secondary chapel service. Several students who have only been at UCA a year or two testified about how welcoming and caring the teachers and students are here. It was so impactful to hear the first-hand experience of our student culture. 💜 #ucathunder

Part of the first week of school at UCA is our exciting House assignments! Each new student gets to randomly draw a colored gem from a jar to discover which House they’ll belong to for their entire time here. 💙💚💛❤️ From the smallest to the tallest, every student and staff member is a proud member of one of our four Houses. This system fosters a positive and engaging school culture while promoting a sense of camaraderie. There may be four houses, but we are ONE FAMILY! 💜 #ucathunder #ucahousesystem

📚 5th Grade Book Tasting! 🍽️ Mrs. Shogren’s 5th graders had a blast yesterday with a special "Book Tasting" activity! They sampled different literature genres, explored various books, and discovered new favorites. From mystery to books in a series, biographies to graphic novels, each student had the chance to "taste" different stories and expand their reading horizons. It was a fun and engaging way to spark a love for reading and introduce them to new literary worlds. We can't wait to see which books they choose to dive into next! 📖✨ #ucathunder #ucaelementary

🏡 House Leaders Unite! 🌟 Our student-elected Senior house leaders met for the first time this school year. These student leaders are already hard at work, planning exciting events and activities to unite our school community. We’re thrilled to see their enthusiasm and dedication as they brainstorm ideas, collaborate, and set the tone for an amazing year ahead. With such passionate leaders at the helm, we know this year is going to be one for the books! #ucathunder #ucahousesystem

🧠Growth Mindset Challenge! 🚢 Mrs. Ray’s 3rd grade students took on an exciting challenge to kick off our focus on having a growth mindset. They worked together to help Fred the gummy worm in a tricky rescue mission! The task? Rescue Fred from his capsized boat (a plastic cup), put him into his life preserver (a Lifesaver Gummy), and get him safely back into the boat. The twist? They could only use paper clips to move Fred and the other items—no poking allowed! Through this fun and engaging activity, our students practiced problem-solving, teamwork, and perseverance. It was a great way to start thinking about how a growth mindset can help us tackle challenges, both big and small. #ucathunder

What a fun, full, and blessed day it was! Our school year started with a day filled with reunions, new introductions, lots of learning, and of course, popsicles! It is so good to have everyone back. Let's see how God will move at UCA this year! #ucathunder