The annual C.F. Richards Christian School Fall Festival was held on October 27^th, 2024 and was enjoyed by preschool, elementary and middle school students, family and friends! It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, a perfect mid-autumn day to carry on a C.F. Richards Christian School annual tradition.  More than a hundred-fifty people from Staunton and the surrounding community gathered inside and outside the school gymnasium at 414 Sterling Street in Staunton to have an afternoon of fun and fellowship!  Outside the gym the children played on the playground and jumped in the Bounce House!

    Delicious food and games run by school staff and volunteers lined the walls of the gym. Families feasted on haystacks (aka taco salad), pizza, and ice cream while parents and children honed their skills playing fun games like pop-a-balloon, bean-bag-throw, ping-pong-in-the-cup and the fishing pool. At the main stage area there was a cakewalk where children and adults were working hard to win some scrumptious desserts. There were also old-fashioned guessing games where competitors tried to guess how many pieces of candy were in a jar, using their skills in mathematics and analytics in the process!

    “Old-fashioned” is not a bad thing these days.  In fact, part of a well-rounded Christian education should include good old-fashioned play. According to online data, play in a Christian setting facilitates a child’s spiritual development, nurturing their consciousness of God’s world. It allows them to explore and develop both their physical and creative gifts from the Creator, fostering an insightful connection to something greater than themselves.

    Playtime at C.F. Richards Christian School serves as a platform for children and youth to express and regulate their emotions, practice empathy, and develop social skills such as cooperation, sharing, and turn-taking. The ties that young children and youth make at C.F. Richards with a nurturing school staff dedicated to teaching the love and grace of Jesus is worth the investment!

    C.F. Richards Christian School offers a play-based preschool program for 3 to 5-year-old children in the Staunton, Waynesboro, and Augusta County area. (There are also a few spaces left in our 2024-2025 K-8 classes! Although they are not “play-based,” there is daily recess for all and teachers who love to weave fun into learning.) Students can enroll at any time during the school year which runs from mid-August through the end of May. Families with children in Fishersville, Staunton, Stuarts Draft, Waynesboro and other areas of Augusta County, who are interested in Christian-based preschool (or K-8 program) may contact the school office at 540-886-4984.