Elementary

The primary goal of language arts instruction in our elementary program is to inspire students to read for pleasure, learn new information, share their thoughts and feelings, and speak confidently and dynamically. To meet those goals, we follow the Daily 5 format for our literacy block. This is a program that focuses on intentional instruction with extended periods of practice to increase reading and writing achievement. This program gives the students choices within parameters where the teachers monitor student growth and progress. Students choose from five components each day: Read to Self, Work on Writing, Word Work, Read to Someone and Listening to Reading.

A strong understanding of social studies and history is the foundation of well-informed, civic-minded citizens. Our 1–5 scope and sequence begins with exploring relationships that students have within their immediate circle of family, friends, teachers, and neighbors. Then students learn the basics of geography, economics, and citizenship in the context of expanding their view to include the local community. Learning broadens from there to an awareness of local and global communities, the exploration of different cultures, and public service roles. Finally, students begin to learn about American history, from the first migration to the 20th Century.

Just as children explore concentrically larger circles of community in social studies, the science curriculum teaches them to understand and appreciate the physical world around them. Students take part in engaging, hands-on investigation focused on life science (plants and animals), physical science, and earth science. We always retain an emphasis on engineering, and helping each child to applying these scientific topics through experimentation and creation.

Our math instruction and curriculum are carefully designed to allow students to connect with, build upon, and refine their mathematical understandings. Students use metacognitive strategies when they engage in solving mathematics problems not only to understand specific concepts, but also the process by which they learned them. Six content strands are at the core of instruction in all grade levels: number and numeration, operations and computation, data and chance, measurement and reference frames, geometry, patterns, and functions, and algebra.