KINDERGARTEN OVERVIEW In Kindergarten, it is our goal to provide a stimulating, nurturing learning environment where children are encouraged to work toward being independent. They are encouraged to develop self-awareness, interpersonal skills and responsible behaviors, which will enable them to be successful in school and life. LITERACY The students develop literacy skills that enable them to progress in reading, comprehension, and writing. Early in the year, the main focus is on phonological awareness and phonemic instruction. Once these early reading skills have been mastered, the reading instruction is student-centered through small groups using the Collaborative Classroom Curriculum. As a student’s reading fluency develops, they shift their attention to comprehension and making inferences. During this literacy block, the students are working independently on Word Work and Writing, including sight words and rule-based spelling. In Kindergarten, the students are introduced to Writers Workshop. They learn the beginning aspects of writing, including how-to, informational, and fiction writing. MATHEMATICS Levine Academy’s Beck Lower School has adopted the Everyday Math Fourth Edition program. This comprehensive program teaches basic math skills in a real world context, encouraging learners to think conceptually and mathematically. Students are encouraged to reason through problems and engage themselves in a wide variety of math related activities. The curriculum includes diverse concepts such as number sense, introduction to number stories, non-standard units of measure, 3-D shapes, addition, and subtraction. The program itself provides opportunities for differentiation at every level while still teaching within the range of one concept or skill. The Kindergarten thematic units are social studies and science-based, with a variety of topics that interest kindergarten aged children. These units of study range from historical characters to life science. During these units, the students participate in read aloud books, informational technology and hands-on projects to help themdevelop a deeper understanding of the subject. Additionally, kindergarteners visit the lower school science lab twice a week and have instruction with our lower school science teacher. Kindergarten is a year of exponential growth and maturity. While academics is a big focus, it is just as important to teach the students skills that will help them be successful throughout their school careers. Children are encouraged to be the best version of themselves as we learn to problem solve and show compassion in our relationships. STEM The STEM-based science curriculum follows the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) thematic model using bundles to pique the curiosity and interests of each student scientist. We dive into the year by asking questions to anchor discourse in three main natural sciences: life, earth, and physical. While in the science lab students will learn to code and program robots, build new model habitats for animals needing human support, learn better ways to dispose of waste and forces/motion. Students carry out investigations inside the lab, the makerspace, and in our outdoor learning areas. The students attend class twice weekly.
ANN & NATE LEVINE ACADEMY
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