It has always been a part of God's plan for parents to be ultimately responsible for the education and development of their children (Deuteronomy 6:6-9; Eph. 6:4).  Christian education, therefore, includes the students, the parents and the entire Christian community.  This is true regardless of the specific type of school children attend.  The school is not ultimately responsible for educating our children--parents must accept their responsibility in seeing that this vital job is done properly. 

 

      Trace Academy’s education program is to serve as an extension of the home by assisting parents with the moral and spiritual training of children as they are mastering academic skills and concepts.  The education staff provides leadership in establishing learning experiences to help each student become a maturing Christian, as well as a responsible and productive member of society.

 

      Several factors that are unique to Trace are:

 

            Shortened class day: Students are on campus from 8:20 to 12:30 (grades 6-8 have extended hours to 1:00 p.m. daily.). Trace Academy recognizes that academic instruction is only part of a child's total learning.  The short school day encourages family interaction, while still allowing time for involvement in extra-curricular activities.

 

            Small class size: The guideline is that classes are kept to a 12 student maximum (25 in Middle School).  This allows for more individual attention as well as allowing for varied learning activities to take place that would be difficult in a larger setting.

 

      Christian foundation: Giving our children a Biblical worldview is seen as a priority.  All true wisdom and knowledge come from God.  Therefore, all subjects are taught from the viewpoint that God created this knowledge.  In addition, prayer and devotion times are part of the schedule.

 

      Parent Participation: Our staff is made up of parents from the families served.  Educators in both the public and private sectors are concerned by the low participation of parents in the education process of children.  Studies consistently show that parental involvement is the key to effective learning.

 

 

TRACE Academy exists to provide an academic and developmental foundation for our children in the context of a biblical worldview. Our unique curriculum style and effective classroom structure are designed to encourage students in their knowing Christ, Who is Truth and Grace, and in making Him known.

Faith -- We encourage our children, as well as all who are involved in our school, to develop a personal faith in Christ, modeling that faith by looking to see where God is at work and joining Him in His ways and will.

Truth -- We pursue truth, believing that it can be found, challenged and embraced by our children in a loving and exciting environment. The bottom line--God is truth, all truth is in Him, of Him and from Him, and our challenge is to know the totality of who He is and what He has created.

Love of Learning -- All who are involved in the school, children and adults alike, are encouraged to develop a love of learning. Teaching to the different learning styles and many field trips, along with our integral, thematic units, result in both academic excellence and an increased love of learning.

Biblical Worldview -- Our worldview is based on biblical truth. We promote the inerrant Word of God as our benchmark and grid for all values.

Family -- Families working together to provide high quality community-involved Christian education.

Parental Involvement -- We affirm that parents are ultimately responsible for the education of their children. Parents will play the most significant adult roles in our children's education as teachers, administrators, etc.

Outreach -- We believe that God brings blessing to those who minister beyond themselves and that He has called us to a role in the Great Commission. We are outreach oriented and encourage and expect all who are involved in our school to be committed to Christ's work to redeem a lost world.

• Teaching to the high-middle achiever.
• Excellent standardized test scores.
• Small class size.
• Keeping the family as the center of activities.
• A shortened class day.
• Closely following the same calendar as Orange County schools
• School uniforms to help promote unity.
• Seven hours of parental involvement per week.

1.      We believe the Bible to be the inspired, the only infallible, authoritative and inerrant Word of God (II Timothy 3:15, II Peter 1:21).

2.      We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Col. 1:16-19).

3.      We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, His virgin birth, His sinless life, His miracles, His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, His bodily resurrection, His ascension and His personal return in power and glory (Hebr. 1, I Peter 2:24, Acts 5:10, Acts 1:10).

4.      We believe salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ alone, whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins (Eph. 2:8-9, Titus 3:5-6, John 3:14-17).

5.      We believe that all believers should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Savior and Lord.

6.      We believe it is our obligation as believers to witness by life and word to the truths of the Gospel and proclaim these to all mankind (Acts 1:8).

7.      We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and lost; they that are saved, unto the resurrection of life, and they that are lost unto the resurrection of damnation (John 5:26-29).

 The following objectives outline Trace Academy’s educational approach.  All parents and personnel of Trace Academy accept these objectives in the belief that excellence in Christian education at Trace Academy requires:

• A commitment by the community of parents to “do what it takes” to provide for the needs of the school.
• An individual parental and corporate school dependence on the Lord for every aspect of the development and implementation of the school.
• Respect for each child through identification of the student’s distinctive capacities and needs, and development of her or his intellectual, physical, and spiritual capabilities.
• The presence of competent teachers who, as mentors and instructors, share with each other a common commitment to the students and the school and demonstrate their call to serve the Lord in the training of their students.
• Parents who are responsible for their children’s community of learning and are willing to assume a high level of involvement in their children’s education.
• A community that values interaction among students of different learning levels and of different racial and socioeconomic backgrounds, with respect and appreciation for such variety.
• An integrated integral curriculum in which the full range of subject is presented, not isolated bits of information, but in a way that reflects the wholeness of the created order, thus preparing the child to live an integrated Christian life.
• A classical teaching approach that involves:
• the complementary methods of didactic instruction (lectures and responses) for acquiring organized knowledge
• coaching (exercises and supervised practice) for developing intellectual skills
• interactive questioning (active participation in discussion) for enlarging the understanding of ideals and values and
• hands-on learning experiences for gaining the concrete understanding necessary to progress to abstract reasoning
• An environment of friendship, order, and creativity that encourages each child’s unique ability to achieve, to think, to express ideas, and to love learning.
• The development of character qualities according to the fruit of the Spirit, such as truthfulness, self-control, unselfishness, diligence, attentiveness and discernment.
• A curriculum that encourages and supports the family structure and a positive relationship between parent and child.
• Providing an atmosphere that encourages the student to develop a personal relationship with Christ, to own their own faith, grow in a love relationship with the Lord and how to know Him and share His love with others.
• To provide an atmosphere that could be described as a “wildlife refuge” and not a “hot house”.  By this we mean exposing the children at age appropriate levels to concepts that are not necessarily Christian with the desire to train the students to evaluate these through the lens of the Word and character of God in order to discern God’s truth and communicate it with others.