New equipment upgrades impact weekly chapel, the Christmas concert, Grade 3-5 opera, high school drama production and more.
Pink Shirt Day chapel - February 22, 2023
Your donations of $129,112 to Nanaimo Christian School's extracurricular fund last year have allowed the school to purchase much-needed stage equipment and a new 24-passenger bus, set to arrive in March.
The funds have allowed several upgrades to stage equipment, which is having a big impact in students' lives during weekly chapel and during the Christmas concert. This spring you'll also see the new equipment in the Grade 3-5 opera, high school drama production and more. We are especially grateful to the Dansons Group for their generous gift toward the stage equipment.
Here's how the new stage equipment is making a difference:
CHAPEL -- Students and teachers get to use an intuitive, and student friendly sound set up each week during our chapels. By using portable speakers and wireless mics we are able to be more flexible in how we set up our spaces and engage with each other. More voices can be heard by the entire group. The new equipment saves teachers a ton of time each week for chapel, and is helping us serve a larger group of kids. As well when we are gathering as a large group in the gym we are able to utilize a more simple, yet powerful, sound set up for music, events, and learning.
HIGH SCHOOL THEATRE PRODUCTION -- With the upcoming high school theatre production in June, both teachers and students are excited about the new upgrades that will make productions look and feel more professional. We are currently working to choose a new large venue projector, large projector screen, theatre lighting and all of the equipment to make it work. The new sound board, light board, and coming projector are all robust enough to run high quality productions, but simple enough for students to learn and run on their own. Students love being the ones in charge of the lights and sound and are always so proud of what they learn and are able to do! They are learning the technical skills that, for some of them, will translate into future passion areas and fields of study.
GRADE 3-5 OPERA -- This annual performance in May is completely student-run. Grade 5s will be learning how to make their production come alive with the new equipment by connecting microphones, speakers and computers to the new soundboard. They will also be connecting lights to the new light controller and planning on how/when they are used. At the beginning of this process there are lots of nerves and excitement to take on something so big for them. As they gain confidence and skills they transform into mini professionals that end up being so proud of what they've accomplished. Knowing that the equipment is ours and being able to utilize it through the year -- not just when we can afford to rent it -- creates such a rich learning environment full of potential.
CHRISTMAS CONCERT -- At the Christmas concert in December we used the new feedback speaker and the students on stage could hear themselves singing. We were able to have a play that had natural-sounding dialogue because we had so many microphones, not just one or two.
CLUBS -- Now that we have these extra mics and speakers, we can plan extra clubs (such as drama club) because everything is ready to go and available. Because it is our own equipment, we can also use it for rehearsals and, especially for the younger students, that is SO HELPFUL!
"Having the new stage equipment and being able to utilize it through the year -- not just when we can afford to rent it -- creates such a rich learning environment, full of potential. It's only because of the generosity of our donors through last year's fundraiser that we are able to make it happen. Thank you!" -- David Hossini, Middle School Assistant Principal