Lower School

List of 7 items.

• Literacy

  The Reading Workshop is a method which teaches students strategies to improve both their reading and comprehension. The flexible workshop model allows teachers to adapt to meet the needs of each individual student. Reading Workshop helps foster a love of reading and gives students chances to practice reading strategies independently and with guidance. There are six components to Reader’s Workshop: mini-lessons, read-aloud, independent reading and consultation, guided reading, response and reflection, and sharing. 
  
  The Daily 5 is a series of daily literacy tasks which students complete while the teacher works with them either in small groups or one-on-one. This system helps teachers find the most effective and efficient ways to encourage students’ positive reading behavior.
  
  CAFE stands for “Comprehension, Accuracy, Fluency and Expanding Vocabulary,” four components that educational research has shown to be vital to reading. CAFE enables teachers to stay focused on students’ needs and goals, in addition to keeping records that help them plan dedicated individual conferences, manage flexible, small-group instruction and teach whole-class lessons.
  
  The Writing Workshop is a teaching method that gives students opportunities to write in a variety of genres and helps foster a love of writing. The Writing Workshop allows teachers to meet the needs of their students by tailoring their lessons using information gathered throughout the workshop. When teachers use Writing Workshop, they teach using genre studies. Examples include personal narratives, information writing, procedural writing (how-to), etc. For students to write in disparate genres, they must first be immersed in books written in those genres. These texts are known as touchstone or mentor texts. Read alouds are one way to make the authors themselves teachers of genre-specific writing style. Students can emulate the authors, using different styles and literary techniques to craft their own writing.

• Comprehension

  Making Connections helps students increase their comprehension skills. The interactive reading comprehension program develops the essential skills and strategies recommended by the National Reading Panel—and reinforces them by revisiting them throughout the curriculum.

• Spelling and Phonics

  Rebecca Sitton Spelling Program has a set of core words divided by grade level. They provide a foundation for each student to begin or expand spelling exploration, and serve as a springboard for learning hundreds of additional words. The core also includes certain "No Excuse" words, which students are expected to spell correctly in all of their writing.
  
  Explode The Code builds the skills essential for reading success, such as phonological awareness, decoding, vocabulary, comprehension, fluency and spelling.
  
  The fourth and fifth grade use the Vocabulary for Achievement program to build spelling and vocabulary skills. Students will be expected to spell and use each vocabulary word correctly. Students are also required to learn the meanings of many Greek and Latin roots during a weekly root study. The program will also include proper spelling of commonly occurring words, and words from each discipline.

• Math

  Everyday Math is a rigorous curriculum used across all grades (K-5). Developed by the University of Chicago, the curriculm is proven through research to build students’ mathematical knowledge, from the basics to higher-order thinking and critical problem solving. The program uses a problem-solving approach based on everyday situations and allows for frequent practice of basic skills. Lessons are designed to build on previously learned concepts and skills throughout the year instead of treating them as isolated bits of knowledge.

• History and Geography

  The Core Knowledge Sequence is predicated on the realization that what children are able to learn depends on what they already know and, equally important, that what they know is a product of previous experience and teaching. Although current events and technology are constantly changing, there is a body of fundamental knowledge and skills that form the core of a strong preschool-fifth grade curriculum. Explicit identification of what children should learn at each grade level ensures a coherent approach to building knowledge across all grade levels. The children are introduced to basic concepts and ideas about citizenship, cultural differences, wants and needs, location, distance and time.

• Science

  The Full Option Science System (FOSS) provides students with the opportunity to absorb real science in a hands-on way. Students learn about the world around them through observation and experience, and we encourage the students to ask questions, seek answers and to discuss and write about their findings. Our approach combines this hands-on experience with book learning to provide the foundation for an informed curiosity that leads to a deeper understanding of our world.

• Foreign Language

  Spanish is taught in Preschool to fifth grade. In Preschool and Junior Kindergarten, students will be exposed to Spanish in a fun and relaxed atmosphere. Topics will be introduced through songs, questions and “Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling,” or TPRS, which will facilitate immediate comprehension. The students in grades K-5 use the Viva el Española! curriculum and study cultures where Spanish is spoken. Also, students in fifth grade are exposed to French for one trimester during the year. This introduction allows students and families to make an informed decision on which language choice to pursue in Middle School.