1st Grade

Art

Students in first grade will learn about art elements and principles in a way that prepares them for art throughout Lower School. The students will be led in art activities by their homeroom teacher and will be allowed to creatively express themselves while displaying their knowledge of art both in the classroom and application to real-world situations.

Language Arts

Through modeled, shared, small group and one-on-one reading, students develop skills in re-telling, making connections, making predictions, sequencing, and synthesizing. A large variety of book-study units on fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and multicultural books are used to help students learn to read for meaning. Phonemic awareness is emphasized through letter/sound association, hard-consonant sounds, hard and soft-vowel sounds, and digraphs and blends. By using decodable readers, guided reading, independent work, sight-word practice, and comprehension exercises, the children will increase their confidence and reading abilities. Through creative writing projects, students will build spelling, punctuation, and grammar skills. Students practice descriptive, narrative, and expository writing throughout the year. The students will have many opportunities to write creatively and work through the writing process. Writing is integrated into science, social studies, and math.

Mathematics

Our program focuses on concrete, pictorial, and abstract skills, as well as explanation and problem-solving strategies. This allows the students to approach math in a meaningful way and understand mathematical concepts first and then learn and use formulaic expressions. The curriculum introduces and reinforces counting, number bonds, addition and subtraction, numerical patterns, money, time, non-standard measurement, capacity, and beginner multiplication and division. Students are given daily opportunities to apply their skills to word problems and problem-solving activities.

Music

First-graders learn how to express a steady beat in a variety of ways, as well as how to read and write simple rhythm patterns. They learn how to play percussive instruments in a way that accompanies their singing, learn how to sing, create and read simple melodies, learn a variety of common folk songs and other repertoires appropriate to their age, and perform songs from a variety of cultural heritages.

Physical Education

The focus of first-grade physical education is to continue to develop physical and large gross motor skills. Locomotor skills are revisited and refined. Manipulative skills continue to be practiced and refined. Students also learn to piece different skills together to form more difficult sequences. A student’s spatial awareness is enhanced through a variety of movement activities. Game concepts begin to become a focus during instruction and gameplay. Fitness concepts are taught and practiced, targeting cardio-respiratory endurance in a weekly-running program and station workout.

Science

The first-grade science curriculum is taught through inquiry and project-based learning. It provides students with the foundations for observing, communicating, measuring, comparing, describing, classifying, predicting, collecting, and interpreting data. It is built to foster curiosity, inventiveness, persistence, and enthusiasm. Children learn by doing and reflecting upon this active learning.  

Social Studies

The social studies curriculum is project-based and promotes increased awareness of self, the community and our place in the world. Recognizing that community begins in the classroom, children actively learn the meaning of respect, honesty, cooperation, responsibility, and empathy. Social Studies is taught through project-based learning. 

Spanish

The first-grade Spanish curriculum is largely based on oral development as students are introduced to the sounds of Spanish through carefully selected vocabulary thus providing students with opportunities for successful communication in the target language. The program continues to develop an awareness of cultural similarities and differences in the Spanish-speaking world. Students develop and expand this awareness through songs, dialogues, role-playing, skits, and games. The structure of the Spanish program creates a safe and fun environment for students to learn.

Technology

In first grade, we build upon and reinforce all the technology skills learned in kindergarten. Students expand their use of technology through more work with activity centers and stations in their classrooms. Students also have access to STEM materials for basic coding and engineering design.