ssfs lower school curriculum guide 2012-2013

Sandy Spring Friends SchoolLower SchoolCurriculum Guide

2012-2013 School Year

Table of Contents

General InformationMS Statement of Philosophy ................................... 1MS Faculty and Staff ................................................ 2Community and Spiritual Life.................................... 4Assessment and Reflection ....................................... 4

Pre-Kindergarten Curriculum Overview .............................................. 15Value of Play .......................................................... 15Co-Curricular Overview ............................................ 16

Kindergarten Curriculum Overview .............................................. 15Co-Curricular Overview ............................................ 16

First Grade Curriculum Overview .............................................. 15Co-Curricular Overview ............................................ 16

Second Grade Curriculum Overview .............................................. 15Co-Curricular Overview ............................................ 16

Third Grade Curriculum Overview .............................................. 15Co-Curricular Overview ............................................ 16

Fourth Grade Curriculum Overview .............................................. 15Co-Curricular Overview ............................................ 16Student Leadership .................................................. 16

Fifth Grade Curriculum Overview .............................................. 15Co-Curricular Overview ............................................ 16Student Leadership .................................................. 16

Core curriculum for each grade level includes Lan-guage Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. Co-curricular classes include Art, Library, Music, Physical Education, Spanish, Technology, Wellness, and Life Skills.

1

General InformationGeneral Information

LOWER SCHOOL STATEMENT OF PHILOSOPHY

In keeping with our Quaker belief of that of God in each person, we honor the unique gifts within each child. We focus on each child’s growth academically, physically, socially, emotionally, and spiritually. By emphasizing the individual strengths of our students, we nurture their sense of self-worth to give them the confidence to take risks within a safe and supportive envi-ronment.

We view our students as active participants in their learning. We believe students learn best when they are allowed to experi-ment and when knowledge is discovered and applied through hands-on activities. We strive to stimulate their curiosity and encourage them to ask questions and seek answers. We are convinced that children are most receptive to learning when they have ownership of aspects of that learning. To that end, we are responsive to the interests of our students. We believe in the value of developing their foundation for interdependence by emphasizing cooperation, assertion, responsibility, empathy, and self-control.

We recognize that all children pass through cognitive stages of growth, yet differ in their rates and patterns of growth. We acknowledge that individual factors such as learning styles, interests, and cultural backgrounds contribute to these developmen-tal differences. To accommodate the individual needs of our students, we strive to provide time, appropriate challenge, positive experiences, and acceptance. While we value the products of learning, we place even higher value on the ongoing process of learning and the development of thinking skills. Our hope for our students is that they discover, and continue to rediscover, the joy of learning throughout their lives.

We are dedicated to celebrating diversity, nurturing awareness, and inspiring compassion among our students. Through our emphasis on conflict resolution, community service learning, and environmental stewardship, our students become actively involved in making the world a better place.

2

General Information

ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF

Thomas GibianHead of SchoolB.A. College of Wooster, OHM.B.A. Wharton School, University of PA

David HicksonAssistant Head of School for Academic InnovationB.A. Oberlin College, OHM.Ed. Arcadia University, PA

Brenda Crawley Lower School HeadB.Mus. Manhattanville College, NY M.S. Johns Hopkins University, MD

Lee Selby Lower School Administrative AssistantB.F.A.University of Illinois (Champaign-Urbana)

Pam Gilmer Lower School Administrative Assistant

ADMISSIONS

Suzannah HopkinsDirector of MS AdmissionsB.A. Ithaca College, NYM.A. Johns Hopkins University, MD

LS TEACHING FACULTY

Brenda Benjamin MusicB.S. Morris Brown College, GA M.G.A. University of Maryland

Chanelle BroughtonPre-KindergartenB.A. Winston-Salem State University, NC Katharine Carneal Second GradeB.A. Connecticut College M.Ed. Lesley College, MA

LOWER SCHOOL FACULTY & STAFF, 2012-2013

Johanna Cowie LibraryB.A. New York University M.I.LS. University of Wales at Aberwystwyth

Amy Curtis Second Grade B.A. Wesleyan University, CT M.S.Ed. Bank Street College of Education, NY

Gretchen Dejter Fifth GradeB.A. Westminster College, PA M.Ed. George Mason University, VA

Lisa DriscollKindergarten Swing TeacherB.A. Ashford University, IA

RuthAnne Gregory Fourth GradeB.S. Howard University, Washington, DC M.A.T. Queens College, NC

Amanda Hill Physical EducationB.S. Springfield College, MA M.S. Elmira College, NY

Salli Innes First GradeB.F.A. University of North Carolina (Greensboro)

Lori Ligon Pre-KindergartenB.A. University of Iowa M.Ed. Lesley University, MA

Jenny Lingelbach Third GradeB.A. Haverford College, PA M.A.T. Trinity Washington University, Washington, DC

Bela Meghani First Grade B.S. University of California (Berkeley) Early Childhood Cert. Dundalk Community College, MD

3

General Information

LOWER SCHOOL FACULTY & STAFF, 2012-2013

Mary Anne Peacock KindergartenB.A. Gettysburg College, PA M.ED. Towson University, MD

Steve Powers Physical EducationB.A. University of Maryland

Jennie Rountree Fourth GradeB.A. Louisiana Tech University M.A. Louisiana Tech University

Kate Santorineos ArtB.A. Pierce University, Athens, Greece

Erin Scott Kindergarten, Pre-Primary MusicB.S. University of Maryland M.Ed. University of Maryland

Fred SiskTechnologyB.A. West Chester University, PAM.S. Johns Hopkins University

Jeff Smith Third GradeB.A. California State University at Los Angeles Teaching Credential, Chapman University, CA

Linda Sulkin Fourth Grade Swing TeacherB.S. Longwood College, VA

Elizabeth Thornton LibrarianB.A. Mount Holyoke College, MA M.S.L.S. Catholic University, Washington, DC

Mariela TrianaSpanish, Grades 1-5B.A. Universidad Pedagógica Nacional, Colombia

Kiki Vargas Fifth GradeB.A. Emory University, GA M.Ed. Teachers College Columbia University, NY

Francis Zell Physical EducationB.A. St. Mary’s College, MD

STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES

Tim Croft Lower School CounselorB.A Flagler College, FL M.S.W. Howard University, Washington, DC Licensed Graduate Social Worker in MD

Beverley DiTusa Lower School Learning SpecialistB.Ed. West London Institute of Higher Education

Lynda Reese Reading SpecialistB.Ed. University of London, England M.S.Ed. Johns Hopkins University, MD

Mary K. FryRegistered Nurse and Nurse PractitionerB.S.N. Pennsylvania State UniversityM.S.N. University of Maryland

Gail WillieRegistered NurseB.S.N. University of Maryland

4

General Information

COMMUNITY AND SPIRITUAL LIFE

The Lower School focuses on spiritual growth as part of the development of the whole person. Elements of the curriculum are woven into all daily learning experiences. Based on the essential Quaker belief that there is that of God in each person, every area of learning emphasizes a respect for others and encourages an appreciation of cultural and religious diversity. We stress the Quaker values of service, simplicity, equality, integrity, stewardship of the environment and the peaceful resolution of conflict as part of our continual search for truth. We want our students to develop a deep appreciation of themselves and others and to discover the joy that spiritual awareness can bring to their lives.

Meeting for Worship (MFW) is an integral part of the culture of Quaker schools. Meeting is a time for the community to gather and sit together in silence, listening for the still small voice within. Each month, Lower School classes participate in activities and discussions that introduce and reinforce the Quaker testimonies or SPICES: simplicity, peace, integrity, commu-nity, equality and stewardship. In addition to the SPICES, the themes of “That of God in Everyone”, Service, Perseverance and Courage are also explored.

Lower School students gather for Meeting for Worship every Wednesday morning in the Meeting House. We sit in silence for approximately 25 minutes. The Meeting ends when the silence is broken and we shake hands. We leave the Meeting House while singing a parting song. Students learn to appreciate the role of silent worship and reflection also through in-class prac-tice of settling into silence. Teachers guide the students to reflect on thoughts that are shared during Meeting for Worship and reinforce the responsibility of each person to not add to another’s message or repeat it. Students also learn the importance of leaving space for more silence after someone shares their thoughts during Meeting for Worship.

Morning Meeting is a whole group gathering that serves as a transition from home to school, and helps children to feel wel-come and acknowledged. The five components of our Morning Meeting are: observing a moment of silence, greeting one an-other, reading or discussing a morning message, doing a group activity and sharing. These components encourage cooperation, foster inclusion, and improve communication.

Throughout the school, students actively engage in Community Service in a variety of ways. They perform simple jobs in the classroom and on the campus grounds and visit our neighbors at Friends House Retirement Community. Students serve the larger community with outreach service projects and the children of the world through contributions to UNICEF and Ameri-can Friends Service Committee.

Through Peace Education, we help students build constructive, honest relationships by voicing thoughts clearly and respect-fully, listening to others openly and attentively, and resolving conflicts peacefully. We encourage our students to cooperate and show respect and kindness for others, while still honoring their own needs. Students participate in activities to build listening and communication skills and to develop the ability to resolve conflict peacefully and constructively.

5

General Information

ASSESSMENT AND REFLECTION

Several times a year, in the Lower School, teachers spend time with each student to focus an assessment on specific language arts and math skills. In addition, we use portfolios and journals to keep track of the development and growth of our students on a more regular basis. We find the use of portfolios and journals to be child-centered and to aptly show a picture and tell the story of each individual child. We include the representation of three-dimensional projects and hands-on activities with digital photos. The students’ words and explanations of their work are included at every opportunity. Periodically the teacher and student go through the collection of work and, with a process of discussion and sharing, decide which pieces show the most meaning, thought, and expression. These selections are then saved in the student’s portfolio. This process is continued throughout the year. At the end of the year, a student’s growth and development are clear with a “read” through of the portfolio.

6

PRE-KINDERGARTEN CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

The curriculum is a vehicle for stimulating, organizing, and channeling children’s thoughts and ideas to explore their environ-ment. Teachers are the facilitators in a rich and well-defined environment that provides a developmentally appropriate cur-riculum. The curriculum allows for a program of study, skill acquisition, and achievement sequenced in relationship to the children’s cognitive and social-emotional growth. The curriculum recognizes that children are alike in that growth is orderly, structured and predictable. However, it also confirms that children differ in their rates and patterns of growth. Individual learning styles, interests and cultural backgrounds contribute to this variance. Thus, the pre-kindergarten class strives to pro-vide time, positive experiences and acceptance to accommodate the individual needs of students. The program is based on the belief that much learning takes place in indirect and informal ways, through play and experience with manipulative materials, and often without the benefit of paper and pencil. Social and emotional growths are given as much attention as academic or cognitive development. Healthy self-esteem, the development of curiosity and initiative, and increasing the responsibility for managing daily tasks and resolving conflicts are some of the developmental issues focused on throughout the year. The result is an active day where work and play may be indistinguishable. Children are born to be curious, joyful and noisy. When we hear the joyful noises, we know that the classroom is a success. Parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their child’s educa-tion and to participate in many ways throughout the year.

Pre-Kindergarten

7

Our main goals in our LANGUAGE ARTS curriculum are to practice and develop the skills of listening, speaking, and writing and, in so doing, promote the development of positive feelings towards these skills. Listening skills are practiced at Morning Meeting and throughout the day in both group and one-on one communications. We practice taking turns and respecting each other. As so many of the children are eager to speak and share thoughts, we encourage raising hands and holding thoughts while listening to what friends and teachers share. We read stories several times a day. This activity promotes the development of listening skills as do the every day oral stories that are told by both teachers and students. Listening for directions in all projects and activities is rewarded often by verbal acknowledgement and appreciation from teachers and classmates. Our Family Sharing time is also a time when we discuss how important it is to be a good, respectful listener. Speaking skills are also devel-oped during our group Meetings. Children and teachers often share thoughts during this time. We encourage verbal participa-tion from all students.

The dictation and transcription process is a very big part of our class. During the first few weeks of school we offer transcrip-tion opportunities to the children for their many illustrations and projects. This transcription process also provides the children with an appreciation for the printed word and awareness that words hold meaning. As we read the transcription back to the children, they slowly begin to recognize sounds and letters. We support this recognition with a variety of games, poems and songs that promote awareness of rhymes, syllables, and initial and final sounds. By late spring, these activities may include the blending of sounds. As time goes on, the children may feel confident enough to write their own letters or words. By making the connection between sound and letter a comfortable and interesting experience, we promote future beginning writing and reading attempts. Our handwriting program focuses on the development of fundamental prewriting skills using songs, stories, movement and manipulatives to create activities that complement the Pre-kindergarten curriculum. Handwriting instruction at this grade level introduces the children to the foundational literacy skills necessary for writing and reading development.

MATH in the pre-kindergarten classroom is made up of manipulation, play and experimentation. We integrate math experi-ences throughout the day by infusing math concepts into both ongoing daily routines like the calendar and weather graph, as well as into those odd bits of time that occur during every school day such as counting at line up time and creating word prob-lems based on actual classroom situations. Many of our math experiences include free play with math manipulatives. As the children “play” with the materials, the open-ended nature of the experience allows them to learn while laying the groundwork for symbolic understanding. Math topics include patterns, number sense, counting and measurement. The more structured activities are conducted in flexible learning groups and are implemented specifically based on the ability to extend each activity to the developmental levels of all the children.

In pre-kindergarten, children are beginning to be interested in the stories and lives of others. They are becoming much more aware of and curious about others and the world around them. To respond to their development and interests, a major part of the SOCIAL STUDIES curriculum is focused on community, beginning with our own. We compare and celebrate the spe-cific characteristics that make and define each of us including individual interests and abilities, physical appearances, and family cultures. We take time early in the year to develop a sense of awareness and an appreciation for these individual differences through a variety of activities, discussions, and projects.

There are many opportunities throughout the year to come together with other Lower School students. Lower School assem-blies and monthly Lower School Meetings for Worship build awareness that we are one community. By visiting and sharing in other classrooms, the Pre-kindergarten children get to know students in all grade levels. In an effort to focus to on the School community at large, relationships are fostered with the Middle and Upper School divisions. One such example is the Pre-Primary/ Senior buddy program. Together students and their buddies attend all school assemblies, Community Day events, and periodic lunches. Students become familiar with one another thus promoting a sense of community within the School as a whole.

Children are inherently curious and full of wonder about their world. They are constantly observing and exploring their en-vironment. Our SCIENCE program supports this innate curiosity and emphasizes hands-on, process-oriented activities that allow students to explore the living and non-living world. Students are given daily opportunities to observe, explore, identify,

Pre-Kindergarten

8

compare and contrast. They are given time, materials, and resources needed to question, hypothesize, experiment and record their observations. From these explorations and experiments, the students have the opportunity to form their own conclusions. The science curriculum uses the school grounds as a learning site for allowing students to examine how plants and animals live with and affect each other in their natural environment. Classroom habitats allow students daily opportunities to observe and care for animals. Giving students the opportunity to explore and connect with nature stimulates their natural curiosity and their sense of stewardship for the environment.

In keeping with our Quaker values regarding stewardship for the earth, students learn to reduce food waste, create rich reus-able soil, and develop an understanding about the cycle of food as they give back to the earth. Pre-primary students maintain two gardens for the Pre-Primary classrooms. Students help to plant, maintain, harvest, and enjoy vegetables from their raised garden beds throughout the year.

VALUE OF PLAY

Free play opportunities are available throughout the day both outdoors and in. We have two half-hour outdoor times. During the first half-hour, the playground is free of other students; our children are able to experience all that the playground has to offer. We go back outside after lunch and share the playground with the kindergarten classes. This second half-hour is a nice time to socialize and meet other children. The children need this unstructured play and fresh air to relax and move their bod-ies! The extra exercise lends the children the opportunity to develop large motor movements while playing with their friends.

Indoor free play is available during center time. When not involved in a structured, small group activity, children are able to play in one of the areas in the room. We see the values in play to be emotional, physical, cognitive, and social. Emotionally, free play acts as a medium for expressing thought and feelings. It provides a risk free environment, which enables children to work through any stresses they may have, decreasing their anxiety while increasing their well-being and self-esteem. These play times, especially dramatic play opportunities, provide the stage for chil-dren to act out issues from the outside world with their peers; issues that confuse and/or upset them or bring them joy. Physically, play opportunities enhance motor

Pre-Kindergarten

9

development, allow for the testing of the limitations of their bodies, and improve self-assurance in physical abilities. Cogni-tively, play allows for abstract and divergent thinking, for the development of language, for creative situations that promote problem solving and concept development, and for the chance to practice perspective taking. Socially, play aides in the decen-tering process that is so relevant at this age. It allows children to practice social patterns while encouraging social interactions and social respect and responsibility. Play then is a large part of the Pre-kindergarten classroom and is valued by both teachers and students.

CO-CURRICULAR OVERVIEW

ART is integrated into the day as an important modality of learning in pre-kindergarten. Art projects and activities are a part of the program in language arts, math, social studies, and science. For example, in science, students are encouraged to use their skills of observation while exploring the natural world around them, then to draw what they see in nature journals. To develop small motor muscle control, children manipulate a wide variety of materials such as clay, beads, buttons, sand, seeds, and yarn into free-form art. In addition, children daily choose among centers for drawing, painting, cutting, and pasting.

The LIBRARY program has the dual goals of fostering a love of book and teaching information skills. The program is planned to blend with the Lower School curricula, supporting both spiritual and academic themes. We share literature in a variety of ways through the use of flannel boards, creative dramatics, storytelling, music, and poetry. We also demonstrate appropriate use of library materials. Students regularly borrow books and are learning to be responsible for their safe return. In PK stu-dents learn to enjoy rhyming texts including nursery rhymes and to participate appropriately during stories. They have oppor-tunities to joyfully explore narrative through all their senses.

Pre-Kindergarten

10

The primary goal of the Lower School MUSIC program is to present music to students in ways that foster a life-long enjoy-ment and appreciation of music. Classes at each grade level meet twice a week, and we listen to selected musical works, sing, dance, play instruments, learn to read music, and experiment with movement and improvisation. Music is also an important part of our monthly Lower School Meeting for Worship, annual class plays and assembly programs.

Our students enjoy playing a variety of ethnic instruments, attending multicultural assemblies, and learning about celebrations and traditions from around the world. By the time children complete our Lower School Music program, they have learned to count measures, play chords with hand chimes, play ostinatos and bourdons on pitched xylophones, read the treble clef, and play the soprano recorder. As pre-kindergarten children learn songs and chants, they are introduced to many musical concepts. They listen for sound and silence, key words and directions in songs, and same/different melody and rhythm patterns. Stu-dents say and sing simple rhymes and songs to practice word enunciation; feel rhythmic pulses, and experiment with the speak-ing, singing, whisper and loud voices. They use stepping, walking, hopping, galloping, clapping to move to the beat; show fast/slow tempos; indicate up/down melodic movement; and interpret emotions expressed in music. Students play a variety of instruments to experiment with sounds, develop body coordination and control, and explore their own originality.

The goals of the Lower School PHYSICAL EDUCATION program derive from the School’s mission to develop “the trained mind, the skilled hand and the healthy body.” We encourage enjoyment of physical pursuits throughout life by helping stu-dents to be successful and comfortable in a variety of active games, dance, and exercise. Quaker values are stressed in play to build sportsmanship and teamwork. Our learning approach is developmental – accepting and challenging individual levels of fitness, skill acquisition, and understanding of strategy. In pre-kindergarten, lessons are designed to optimize the cognitive and physical abilities of children this age. Students partici-pate in a series of activities during every PE class. First students begin with a locomotor/space awareness activity, then move to a manipulative activity (such as throwing), continue with a non-manipulative activity (such as balancing, stretching or jump-ing), and conclude with some type of rhythm activity. Skill themes follow a gradual progression and are reviewed throughout the year after they have been introduced. There is also an ongoing focus on developing appropriate social skills such as cooper-ating, taking turns, and sharing.

The Lower School SPANISH program is an oral/aural program. It has two main objectives: to help students develop a basic vocabulary in the Spanish language and to introduce students to the culture of Spanish-speaking peoples. Students begin to demonstrate an understanding of the Spanish language. Students begin to develop listening and speaking skills. Students hear the words and sounds of the Spanish lan-guage through songs and stories and begin to associate the meaning of learned vocabulary in context. Visual and auditory cuing through pictures and singing strengthen retention of the new vocabulary learned.

We believe that TECHNOLOGY skills are best learned by using them in the context of class-related projects. Our program ensures competency in basic technology skills, and our philosophy emphasizes the mastery of technology skills not only as an end in itself, but also as a tool to support classroom learning. We teach technology skills as a developmental progression, gradually expand-ing the students’ ability to apply them competently in a number of situations and contexts.

Pre-Kindergarten

11

In pre-kindergarten, students become comfortable with the computer and how to operate it. All of our early learning programs reinforce proper pointing and clicking and correct mouse movement. Students become familiar with the basic parts of the keyboard and certain important keys like the space bar and the Enter key. Software is chosen to enhance exploration as well as reinforce skills learned in the classroom, such as letters, numbers, shapes, colors, and symbols. Additionally, iPad technology is integrated into the pre-kindergarten curriculum. Students use teacher-selected iPad applications (“apps”) as learning tools to help them acquire important, developmentally appropriate learning skills in exciting new ways. All apps have been carefully chosen to challenge and address the individualized learning needs and styles of students.

The Lower School WELLNESS curriculum consists of three components: physical health, preventative health and social/emo-tional health. Students learn the benefits of taking care of their body. Lessons on fitness, injury prevention, and nutrition are taught in physical education to help students learn to identify healthy choices and activities. The School nurse teaches preven-tative health education. Lessons that emphasize the importance of germ prevention, sun safety, and hydration are taught at relevant times during the year.

The LIFE SKILLS curriculum focuses on the social and emotional health of students. It nourishes a respectful and caring class-room community using five key themes: making connections, emotional literacy, caring and effective communication, cultural competence and social responsibility, and conflict management and decision-making.

Pre-Kindergarten

12

KINDERGARTEN CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

The kindergarten curriculum is a vehicle for activat-ing, organizing, and channeling children’s impulses to explore their environment. Teachers are the facilita-tors in a rich and well-defined environment that pro-vides a developmentally appropriate curriculum. The curriculum recognizes that children are alike in that growth is orderly, structured and predictable. How-ever, it confirms also that children differ in their rates and patterns of growth. Their learning styles, interests and cultural backgrounds contribute to this variance. Thus, the kindergarten class strives to provide time, positive experiences and acceptance to accommodate the individual needs of students. The program is based on the belief that much learning takes place in indirect and informal ways, through play and experi-ence with manipulative materials, and often without the benefit of paper and pencil. Social and emotional growth is given as much attention as academic or cognitive development. Healthy self-esteem, curiosity and initiative, increasing the responsibility for managing daily tasks and resolving conflicts are developmental issues focused on throughout the year. The result is an active day where work and play may be indistinguishable. Children are born to be curious, joyful and noisy. When we hear the joyful noises, we know that the classroom is a success. Parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their child’s education and to participate in many ways throughout the year.

The main goals in our LANGUAGE ARTS curriculum are to practice and develop the skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing, and, in so doing, promote the development of positive feelings towards these skills. Listening and speaking skills are reinforced throughout the day in group activities and in one on one interaction. During our morning meeting, the children practice taking turns and listening to others who are speaking. As many of the children are eager to speak and share thoughts, we encourage the children to hold their thoughts while listening to what others share. We also encourage the children to ask questions of each other for clarification and to further their understanding. As the children share with the class, they are devel-oping speaking skills as they work to clearly state their thoughts and ideas. They are also learning to respect different points of view. In kindergarten, we read stories throughout the day. This activity promotes the development of listening skills as well as developing their understand about parts of a story including plot, setting, and characters as well as story structure. In addition, listening to stories enables children to make predictions about what will happen next in the story and to recall information after the story has been read.

Our approach to developing reading and writing skills is eclectic, reinforcing the sound/letter relationship by combining pho-nics and whole language in our literature rich environment. The children are encouraged to write on a daily basis. Our class-room contains a writing center that includes a variety of materials for independent and teacher supported work. The children write notes to friends, label their block structures, and write down phone messages or invitations to tea parties in the dramatic play area. Reading skills are developed on an individual basis as we support each child’s developmental level. Children read in small skill based groups, partnered with a classmate, and individually with a teacher. Comprehension is built at all reading levels as children respond to questions about the story content and participate in literacy activities related to the book they are reading. By matching books to each child’s developmental level, the children feel successful as they master the needed skills at their own pace.

Kindergarten

13

The goal of the MATH program is to develop thinking and reasoning skills in a natural developmental progression. Our ap-proach is manipulative-based and encourages cooperative learning, experimentation, and real life exploration. Math activities are integrated throughout the day beginning with our Morning Meeting. In flexible learning groups, materials are introduced and specific skills are taught. Importance is placed on the language of math as students share their work and compare their outcomes.

Children are inherently curious and full of wonder about their world. They are constantly observing and exploring their en-vironment. Our SCIENCE program supports this innate curiosity and emphasizes hands-on, process-oriented activities that allow students to explore the living and non-living world. Students are given daily opportunities to observe, explore, identify, compare and contrast. They are given time, materials, and resources needed to question, hypothesize, experiment and record their observations. From these explorations and experiments, the students have the opportunity to form their own conclusions.

The science curriculum uses the school grounds as a learning site for allowing students to examine how plants and animals live with and affect each other in their natural environment. Classroom habitats allow students daily opportunities to observe and care for animals. Giving students the opportunity to explore and connect with nature stimulates their natural curiosity and their sense of stewardship for the environment.

In keeping with our Quaker values regarding stewardship for the earth, students learn to reduce food waste, create rich reus-able soil, and develop an understanding about the cycle of food as they give back to the earth. Pre-primary students maintain two gardens for the Pre-Primary classrooms. Students help to plant, maintain, harvest, and enjoy vegetables from their raised garden beds throughout the year.

In kindergarten, children have an opportunity to expand their awareness of the world beyond their own. Our SOCIAL STUDIES curriculum is integrated into our daily classroom activities and thematic units. It is supported by field trips, guest speakers from the local community, and our own classroom community of children and families. Kindergartners learn about their classmates’ families, heritage, and traditions with our “ROOTS” Family Sharing and “Our Friend” activi-ties. As children learn about the cultural and religious holiday celebrated by their classmates, they develop an awareness of the diversity in the world. By locating the places of family origin on a world map, they begin to answer their questions of “Where in the world is…?” During our study of the post office, the children learn about community helpers and the process of mail delivery. We then create our own “Wee Mail” post office where we collect and deliver mail throughout the School during a week in February. We further our map study as the children create their own representations of places in their surroundings.

We focus on our school community as part of our so-cial studies curriculum. We have specific activities dur-ing the week, which enable us to become more familiar with other classrooms and students. We have reading buddies with a third grade class and Meeting for Wor-ship and Assembly with the entire Lower School. We also have Senior Buddies who walk with us on Com-munity Day and escort us to All School Assemblies.

Kindergarten

14


In kindergarten, daily ART projects in the classroom are viewed as opportunities for students to express themselves, to use their imaginations, and to extend their learning. These art activities not only enhance classroom themes, but also offer unstructured exploration of a wide variety of media. The students have daily opportunities to draw, paint, sculpt, create collages, cut and paste. Students are encouraged to use both familiar materials such as markers and crayons and new ones such as craypas and wet chalk. Both two and three-dimensional projects are undertaken to give our students aesthetic and sensory experiences. The focus during any art project is on the process used by the child, rather than the finished product. Students are encour-aged to be creative in representing their thoughts and ideas and to take risks, regarding “mistakes” as learning experiences. As a whole class, we take time to reflect on the process. Students share their ideas and learn to give feedback to one another. The Kindergarten classes visit the art barn weekly to become acquainted with the creative space, to talk about art and its role in our world and to further explore paint, color blending, texture, line, patterns, printing, collage and clay.

The LIBRARY program has the dual goals of fostering a love of book and teaching information skills. The program is planned to blend with the Lower School curricula, supporting both spiritual and academic themes. We share literature in a variety of ways through the use of flannel boards, creative dramatics, storytelling, music, and poetry. We also demonstrate appropriate use of library materials. Students regularly borrow books and are learning to be responsible for their safe return. In Kindergar-ten students begin to recognize authors and illustrators and act out stories. They extend their listening skills through various participatory activities such as call and response, anticipation, gesture, predictions, rhyming, and singing.


Kindergarten

15

Our students enjoy playing a variety of ethnic instruments, attending multicultural assemblies, and learning about celebrations and traditions from around the world. By the time children complete our Lower School Music program, they have learned to count measures, play chords with hand chimes, play ostinatos and bourdons on pitched xylophones, read the treble clef, and play the soprano recorder. The kindergarten music program emphasizes learning about music by comparing similarities and contrasts in music. Students explore musical contrasts such as fast/slow, loud/soft, high/low, and ensemble/solo performances. Students develop a varied repertoire of folk, traditional, just-for-fun songs, and song games. Students use their creativity to improvise instrumental accompaniment, vocal sounds, and body movements to interpret characters, emotions, or images in music.

The goals of the Lower School PHYSICAL EDUCATION program derive from the School’s mission to develop “the trained mind, the skilled hand and the healthy body.” We encourage enjoyment of physical pursuits throughout life by helping stu-dents to be successful and comfortable in a variety of active games, dance, and exercise. Quaker values are stressed in play to build sportsmanship and teamwork. Our learning approach is developmental – accepting and challenging individual levels of fitness, skill acquisition, and understanding of strategy.

In kindergarten, they begin with a locomotor/space awareness activity, then more to a manipulative activity (such as throwing), continue with a non-manipulative activity (such as balancing, stretching or jumping), and conclude with some type of rhythm or music activity. Skill themes follow a gradual progression and are reviewed throughout the year after they have been intro-duced. There is also an ongoing focus on developing appropriate social skills such as cooperating, taking turns, and sharing.

The Lower School SPANISH program is an oral/aural program. It has two main objectives: to help students develop a basic vocabulary in the Spanish language and to introduce students to the culture of Spanish-speaking peoples. Students begin to demonstrate an understanding of the Spanish language. Students begin to develop listening and speaking skills. Students hear the words and sounds of the Spanish language through songs and stories and begin to associate the meaning of learned vocabu-lary in context. Visual and auditory cuing through pictures and singing strengthen retention of the new vocabulary learned.

Kindergarten

16

We believe that TECHNOLOGY skills are best learned by using them in the context of class-related projects. Our program ensures competency in basic technology skills, and our philosophy emphasizes the mastery of technology skills not only as an end in itself, but also as a tool to support classroom learning. We teach technology skills as a developmental progression, gradually expanding the students’ ability to apply them competently in a number of situations and contexts. In kindergarten, each student uses technology as a way to explore. Additionally, iPad technology is integrated into the kindergarten curriculum. Students use teacher-selected iPad applications (“apps”) as learning tools to help them acquire important, developmentally ap-propriate learning skills in exciting new ways. All apps have been carefully chosen to challenge and address the individualized learning needs and styles of students.



Kindergarten

17

FIRST GRADE CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

The first grade curriculum focuses on the development of both academic and social skills. The emphasis on cooperative learn-ing encourages children to share their ideas, to use thinking skills to solve problems and to be effective and active participants in the classroom community. Most importantly, children are encouraged to work together in an atmosphere of acceptance, inclusion and respect.

The primary goal of our LANGUAGE ARTS program is to build confidence in our students as readers and writers, and to expand their joy of language. Our curriculum includes the teaching of basic reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills through a variety of enjoyable and multi-sensory approaches.

The first grade MATHEMATICS program is built on the interaction of a mastery of basic skills and a strong conceptual understanding of applications through problem solving. We integrate mathematics into all subject areas and incorporate the standards set forth by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) into our curriculum. Our goals are to foster an appreciation of and a positive attitude toward mathematics, and to create awareness of mathematics in the immediate and future lives of our students. Through the extensive use of manipulatives, students experience real life explorations and problem solving activities.

SCIENCE explorations in first grade are designed to allow students to explore the living world around them and to foster their environmental awareness. Units of study include the life sciences including teeth, plants and frogs, as well as the physical sciences through an exploration of simple machines. The curriculum honors the significance of tooth loss in the life of a first grader. Increasingly aware of changes in the natural world around them, first graders discover the cyclical nature of plants and the life of frogs. Acting as a second classroom, the campus pond provides students with an opportunity to observe these cycles in action.

The first grade SOCIAL STUDIES curriculum provides an opportunity to discover how different communities meet the basic needs of water, shelter, and food. Starting with their classroom environment and branching out to the town of Sandy Spring, first graders begin to observe similarities and differences in how people work together to build community. To provide a more varied and global perspective of community life, studies then shift to three geographically diverse cultures. Students observe and compare how the same needs are met for the Inuit, Maasai, and Maori people.

First Grade

18

First Grade


The Lower School ART program focuses on exposing the students to a wide range of artistic principles and techniques, en-hanced by illustrations from art history and different cultures. A similar sequence of artistic concepts is presented at each grade level, but the variety of materials and level of complexity and proficiency is increased at each successive level. The particular projects chosen for these studies often reflect integration with themes being focused on in the core classrooms.

First grade students are introduced to the complexity of color and its role in our lives. They develop visual awareness of tex-ture, contour, point of view, and perspective. They are introduced to three-dimensional concepts and balanced design composi-tion. Students create simple prints and repetitive patterns using individually created stamps. They experiment with the pinch and pulled methods of working with clay while also using it as a tablet. The first grade themes of individual, community, and change are integrated into the art program.

The LIBRARY program has the dual goals of fostering a love of books and teaching information skills. The program is planned to blend with the Lower School curricula, supporting both academic and spiritual themes. In first grade, library classes emphasize the pleasure derived from books, both fiction and non-fiction. We demonstrate appropriate use of library materials. Students regularly borrow books and become responsible for their safe return. First graders begin to explore how the library is organized, and use the alphabet to find authors. They learn about the basic parts of the book, story structure and reflect on what they hear.


Our students enjoy playing a variety of ethnic instruments, attending multicultural assemblies, and learning about celebrations and traditions from around the world. By the time children complete our Lower School Music program, they have learned to count measures, play chords with hand chimes, play ostinatos and bourdons on pitched xylophones, read the treble clef, and play the soprano recorder. First graders work with hand bells and play musical games to match selected pitches and intervals. They also learn to identify parts of the staff--lines, spaces, notes, and several notation symbols.


First graders participate in a multilateral program leaning the basic skills of a number of different sports. Through the guise of fun games, each class consists of stretching to warm-up, strength and power training, endurance work, and motor skill devel-opment. We progressively introduce movement concepts, further developing skills previously taught and experimenting with various forms of rhythmical movement.


19

First Grade

We believe that TECHNOLOGY skills are best learned by using them in the context of class-related projects. Our program ensures competency in basic technology skills, and our philosophy emphasizes the mastery of technology skills not only as an end in itself, but also as a tool to support classroom learning.

We teach technology skills as a developmental progression, gradually expanding the students’ ability to apply them competently in a number of situations and contexts. In first grade, students begin to take the steps toward independent technology use. They choose programs, select from menus, and manipulate basic drawing tools. Word processing and publishing are intro-duced; and students will develop their abilities to create original work with the help of technology. Additionally, iPad technol-ogy is integrated into the First Grade curriculum.



20

Second Grade

SECOND GRADE CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

The second grade curriculum focuses on the development of both academic and social skills. We are committed to creating a community where each child feels a sense of belonging and significance within the class. We strive to foster responsive interac-tions through sharing, listening, inclusion, and participation. Opportunities are provided for students to lead, as well as to fol-low others. They learn to appreciate differences among one another, stressing consideration for others through mutual respect. We teach the skills needed to be a responsive member of a classroom and a school community.

The primary goal of our LANGUAGE ARTS program is to build confidence in our students as readers and writers, and to help them develop a life-long love of reading and writing. As second graders continue to develop facility and fluency in reading, they are also developing critical thinking skills and enhancing comprehension. Writing is a communication tool for all cur-ricular areas, including math, science, and social studies. Second graders keep writers’ notebooks for personal expression and to experiment with writing forms, techniques and styles. The handwriting program focuses on the review of basic strokes and letters in manuscript, with cursive handwriting introduced in mid fall.

The second grade MATHEMATICS program is built on the interaction of a mastery of basic skills and a strong conceptual understanding of applications through problem solving. We integrate mathematics into all subject areas and incorporate the standards set forth by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) into our curriculum. Through the extensive use of manipulatives and games, students experience real life explorations and problem solving activities.

In our SOCIAL STUDIES program, second graders immerse themselves in an exploration of American history, with a focus on the 1600s to the present. Comparing and contrasting aspects of “then and now” is enhanced through field trips (e.g. to a one-room schoolhouse, a working grist mill and general store), through reading a rich variety of fiction and non-fiction, and through participating in several hands-on activities that are integrated with the science curriculum, including churning butter, tapping a maple tree, dying and weaving wool, and making corn husk dolls, among others.

Second grade SCIENCE activities center on explorations of materials found in nature and how Early Americans used these natural resources to provide for their families. Our curriculum emphasizes process-oriented activities that allow students to explore the living and non-living world around them. Science topics include: Corn: Its History and Uses; Sheep to Rug: The Wool Process; Life Cycle of the Silkworm; Maple Sugar: Tree to Table.

21

Second Grade


The Lower School ART program focuses on exposing the students to a wide range of artistic principles and techniques, en-hanced by illustrations from art history and different cultures. A similar sequence of artistic concepts is presented at each grade level, but the variety of materials and level of complexity and proficiency is increased at each successive level. The particular projects chosen for these studies often reflect integration with themes being focused on in the core classrooms.

The goals for second grade include an understanding of the color wheel and the role that colors play in our lives. Students strengthen their visual awareness of perspective, shading, contour drawing, point of view, patterning, balance, and compo-sitional integrity. Students are introduced to the history of ceramics as they create using pulled, slab and carved methods of working clay. The art of printing is explored through the designing and printing of monoprints. Integrated thematic activities are inspired by their classroom studies of early American life and modern artists are often used to further inspire their projects.

The LIBRARY program has the dual goals of fostering a love of books and teaching information skills. The program is planned to blend with the Lower School curricula supporting both academic and spiritual themes.

In second grade, library classes continue to emphasize the pleasure derived from books and engage in beginning research with materials in both print and electronic formats. Students regularly borrow books and become responsible for their safe return. Second graders use the library catalog and distinguish between fiction and informational materials. They act out longer stories, enjoy reader’s theatre, make books and engage in other creative opportunities.


Our students enjoy playing a variety of ethnic instruments, attending multicultural assemblies, and learning about celebrations and traditions from around the world. By the time children complete our Lower School Music program, they have learned to count measures, play chords with hand chimes, play ostinatos and bourdons on pitched xylophones, read the treble clef, and play the soprano recorder. Second graders work with hand chimes and explore musical concepts that include: time signatures, steady beat, counting measures, chords, and accidentals.


In second grade, students participate in a multilateral program by learning the basic skills of a number of different sports. Through the guise of fun games, each class consists of stretching to warm-up, strength and power training, endurance work, and motor skill development. We progressively introduce movement concepts, further developing skills previously taught and experimenting with various forms of rhythmical movement. The Lower School SPANISH program is an oral/aural program. It has two main objectives: to help students develop a basic vocabulary in the Spanish language and to introduce students to the culture of Spanish-speaking peoples. Students begin to demonstrate an understanding of the Spanish language. Students begin to develop listening and speaking skills. Students hear the words and sounds of the Spanish language through songs and stories and begin to associate the meaning of learned vocabu-lary in context. Visual and auditory cuing through pictures and singing strengthen retention of the new vocabulary learned.

22

Second Grade

We believe that TECHNOLOGY skills are best learned by using them in the context of class-related projects. Our program ensures competency in basic technology skills, and our philosophy emphasizes the mastery of technology skills not only as an end in itself, but also as a tool to support classroom learning.

We teach technology skills as a developmental progression, gradually expanding the students’ ability to apply them competently in a number of situations and contexts. In second grade, students continue to use the basic features of the word processor and graphing and charting tools. Students participate in the electronic documentation of their Maple Syrup and Silkworm projects, recording voice-overs, video, still images, and writing captions. Additionally, iPad technology is integrated into the Second Grade curriculum.



23

Third Grade

THIRD GRADE CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

In the third grade curriculum, a variety of techniques and materi-als are used throughout all areas of instruction to accommodate the various learning styles and needs. Students participate in inde-pendent, whole class, and cooperative group activities. There are many opportunities for interaction between the two third grade classrooms to foster academic and social growth. Increasing in-dependence is a focus in third grade. Students complete research projects and become responsible for developing and maintaining organizational skills and using consistent study habits. The chil-dren look forward to the traditional third grade milestones such as multiplication, division, and more cursive writing.

The LANGUAGE ARTS curriculum consists of Reading and Writing Workshop and Word Study. Children read and discuss literature to build fluency, develop critical thinking skills, and enhance comprehension. Writing is used as a communication tool in all curricular areas, including math, science, and social stud-ies. Students are encouraged to follow the writing process, which includes pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing. In order to help children become automatic, independent spell-ers, we guide them to develop a variety of strategies for spelling. The primary goal of this program is to produce “forever spellers” who “learn to spell for writing”. The handwriting program focuses on the continued review of basic strokes and letters in both manuscript and cursive. Correct letter and number formation are practiced with a focus on legibility, spacing and writing fluency.

Our goal for the third grade MATHEMATICS program is for our students to become competent in basic skills and to view math as fun, exciting, and relevant to their lives. We take every opportunity to integrate math throughout our curriculum. Students explain their thinking with both drawings and written words. In third grade we study measurement, geometry, pat-terns, numeration, data, operations and calculations. Knowing basic math facts is a tool that third grade students need in order to do the problem solving of mathematics. We expect all students to leave the third grade with a solid foundation in arithmetic computation of basic addition and subtraction facts and a working knowledge of multiplication and division facts. We use games and drills to help students achieve this goal.

Our SCIENCE program emphasizes hands-on, process-oriented activities that allow students to explore the living and non-living world. They are given time, materials, and resources needed to question and experiment. In this inquiry based setting, they reflect on and record their explorations and experiences and have the opportunity to form their own conclusions. The third grade science program incorporates physical, earth and life sciences. Science studies throughout the year include: flight, bridges, rocks and minerals, the human skeleton and organs, and the Chesapeake Bay. The School grounds provide a natural laboratory for further environmental studies and investigations such as the movement and life of the creek.

In third grade, the SOCIAL STUDIES theme is the “State of Maryland.” Students learn about the geography, history, com-munity, and economics of Maryland as well as learn about many of the people who played important roles in Maryland’s history. As part of their study, students expand their knowledge of maps and timelines, are asked to think like historians, and deepen their understanding of the importance of primary sources as they study things people made or wrote long ago. With field trips and hands on activities, students come to appreciate what life was like during certain historical periods.

24

Third Grade


The Lower School ART program focuses on exposing the students to a wide range of artistic principles and techniques, en-hanced by illustrations from art history and different cultures. A similar sequence of artistic concepts is presented at each grade level, but the variety of materials and level of complexity and proficiency is increased at each successive level. Third graders continue to explore the color wheel theories focusing on shades, hues, complimentary colors, and the role of color in history. They expand their capabilities with composition, perspective, contour drawing, still life, texture collage, and balance. Thematic art projects are inspired by their study of Maryland, the Chesapeake Bay, bridges, and mammals.

The LIBRARY program has the dual goals of fostering a love of books and teaching information skills. As the older students begin to seek more materials and information of interest to them, they learn to use and understand the organization of the clas-sification system and the automated library catalog. The library program supports classroom research with practical instruction in how to find, collect, and evaluate information. Third graders use the parts of the book in more depth, learning about tables of contents and indexes, for instance.


Our students enjoy playing a variety of ethnic instruments, attending multicultural assemblies, and learning about celebrations and traditions from around the world. By the time children complete our Lower School Music program, they have learned to count measures, play chords with hand chimes, play ostinatos and bourdons on pitched xylophones, read the treble clef, and play the soprano recorder. Third grade music techniques and activities are drawn from a variety of music methodologies including Kodaly, Orff, and Dalcroze. We prac-tice rhythm patterns and movement exercises to help develop a sense of steady beat, duration, and rhythm internalization.

The goals of the Lower School PHYSICAL EDU-CATION program derive from the School’s mis-sion to develop “the trained mind, the skilled hand and the healthy body.” We encourage enjoyment of physical pursuits throughout life by helping students to be successful and comfortable in a va-riety of active games, dance, and exercise. Quaker values are stressed in play to build sportsmanship and teamwork. Our learning approach is develop-mental – accepting and challenging individual lev-els of fitness, skill acquisition, and understanding of strategy. Third grade students review and refine the basic sport skills and begin to apply these skills in team situation. Each class consists of flexibility, strength and power training, endurance work, mo-tor skill development, and a lead-up sports game. In a developmental progression, we continue to emphasize movement concepts and the fundamen-tal skills of games and sports.

25

Third Grade


We believe that TECHNOLOGY skills are best learned by using them in the context of class-related projects. Our program en-sures competency in basic technology skills. In third grade students begin to work more extensively with word processing and are introduced to the use of Excel spreadsheets and presentation software. They are introduced to the LOGO programming language and use it in conjunction with the Investigations math materials. Students are introduced to the use of the Internet as a research tool. Additionally, iPad technology is integrated into the 3rd Grade curriculum. Students use Chromebook (“cloud” based) computers to store and share their work at school and at home.



26

Fourth Grade

FOURTH GRADE CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

The fourth grade theme is “Voyage of Discovery.” United States history comes alive as student study and research people, places, and events throughout the Westward Expansion and 20th Century.

In our LANGUAGE ARTS program, daily literature read aloud by the teacher to the class provides an avenue for discussion and vocabulary building. Stu-dents are required to read daily at home. This may be the assigned reading linked to our classroom studies. Periodically students are asked to respond to the books they have read in their reading response logs. They also have times to discuss their reading with classmates. Students also read a variety of genres that are integrated with the theme. Students keep a reading response log in which they respond to questions after each chapter or selection. Students use graphic organizers to support their thinking and writing in all areas of the curricu-lum. They help make the invisible process of thinking become “visible.” Graphic organizers make abstract information more concrete and improve retention of information. A writing workshop time is regularly provided. Writing workshop consists of a process approach. Proofreading and revision are important steps in the process. Writing workshop begins with a mini-lesson such as the use of detail, good leads, commas, homonyms, etc. Skills are taught at individual writing conferences and/or in the large group. Often a time for sharing is provided at the end of our writing period. The handwriting program focuses on the mastery of basic strokes and letters in cursive. Letter and number formation are practiced with a focus on writing fluency.

In fourth grade MATHEMATICS, our goal is for our students to become competent in basic skills and to view math as fun, exciting, and relevant to their lives. Students work in a variety of groupings – as a whole class, individually, in pairs, and in small groups. Students are asked to consider their own reasoning and the reasoning of their classmates. Knowing basic math facts is a tool that fourth grade students need in order to do the problem solving of mathematics. We expect all students to leave the fourth grade fluent in arithmetic computation of basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division facts. We use games, flash cards, and drills to help students achieve this goal.

In Fourth Grade SCIENCE, students are encouraged to use scientific inquiry skills to gather, analyze, and present data. They are given time, materials and resources needed to ask questions, form hypothesis, conduct experiments and investigations, re-cord observations, and draw conclusions. The School grounds provide a natural laboratory as students examine the ecosystems and plant life of our pond and rain garden. They explore and study soil formation habitats, animals that depend on soil, plants that grow in soil, land use, soil conservation and US river systems. Students explore contributions of famous inventors and scientists, the changes in industry and the advancements of technology that occurred throughout the 20th Century.

In SOCIAL STUDIES, fourth graders experience a living history of the United States. Students spend the year investigating the traditions and cultures of Americans throughout the Western Movement and 20th Century. Retracing the steps of his-tory, students develop a basic understanding and chronology of key events. Students explore the interdependence of people and products and how basic principles of supply and demand affect the economy. Students identify the roots of representative government and the importance of effective leadership in a democratic society. After reading and discussing topics in the Time for Kids weekly news magazine, fourth graders compare and and contrast current events to historical events.

27

Fourth Grade


The Lower School ART program exposes students to a wide range of artistic principles and techniques, enhanced by illustra-tions from art history and different cultures. A similar sequence of artistic concepts is presented at each grade level, but the variety of materials and level of complexity and proficiency is increased at each successive level. In fourth grade, carving, printing, ceramic designs and painting projects enrich the classroom studies of American history and artists over the decades. Students are exposed to the power of color in advertising, complex color theory, the vanishing point, compositional balance, illusionary art and landscape design.

The LIBRARY program has the dual goals of fostering a love of books and teaching information skills. As the older students begin to seek more materials and information of interest to them, they learn to use and understand the organization of the clas-sification system and the automated library catalog. The library program supports classroom research with practical instruction in how to find, collect, and evaluate information. Fourth graders further their research skills with the introduction of Boolean and other search techniques. The concepts of plagiarism and copyright are introduced and discussed. Media literacy skills such as understanding point of view, authorship and how to evaluate information are actively considered as information is gathered for projects and pleasure.


Our students enjoy playing a variety of ethnic instruments, attending multicultural assemblies, and learning about celebrations and traditions from around the world. By the time children complete our Lower School Music program, they have learned to count measures, play chords with hand chimes, play ostinatos and bourdons on pitched xylophones, read the treble clef, and play the soprano recorder. Playing the recorder is the highlight in the fourth grade music curriculum. The soprano recorder becomes the primary tool for students to practice musical elements such as, steady beat, duration, and harmony. In the fourth and fifth grades, students also have the option to enroll in our Instrumental Music Ensemble. Students meet once a week after school and participate in group lessons as they learn to play their instrument of choice, flute, clarinet, alto saxophone, trumpet or snare drum.

The goals of the Lower School PHYSICAL EDUCATION program derive from the School’s mission to develop “the trained mind, the skilled hand and the healthy body.” We encourage enjoyment of physical pursuits throughout life by helping stu-dents to be successful and comfortable in a variety of active games, dance, and exercise. Quaker values are stressed in play to build sportsmanship and teamwork. Our learning approach is developmental – accepting and challenging individual levels of fitness, skill acquisition, and understanding of strategy. Fourth grade students review and refine the basic sport skills and begin to apply these skills in team situation. Each class consists of flexibility, strength and power training, endurance work, motor skill development, and a lead-up sports game.

One of the natural outgrowths of being part of a pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade school located on a 140-acre campus is participation in developmentally appropriate OUTDOOR EDUCATION activities. For younger students this program takes the form of exploration of our woods, pond, and stream and study of the plants and animals that share this natural set-ting with us. Fourth graders begin a camping program that continues through the Middle School grades and on into the Upper School. In May, all fourth graders participate in an overnight adventure at the wooded campsite on our campus. Students sleep in school tents, eat food cooked at the campsite, and hike and explore our school’s natural habitat.

The Lower School SPANISH program is an oral/aural program. It has two main objectives: to help students develop a basic vocabulary in the Spanish language and to introduce students to the culture of Spanish-speaking peoples. Students begin to demonstrate an understanding of the Spanish language. Students begin to develop listening and speaking skills. Students hear

28

Fourth Grade

the words and sounds of the Spanish language through songs and stories and begin to associate the meaning of learned vocabu-lary in context. Visual and auditory cuing through pictures and singing strengthen retention of the new vocabulary learned.

We believe that TECHNOLOGY skills are best learned by using them in the context of class-related projects. Our program ensures competency in basic technology skills, and our philosophy emphasizes the mastery of technology skills not only as an end in itself, but also as a tool to support classroom learning. During the first eight weeks of school, fourth grade students progress at their own pace through a complete touch-typing program. They are expected to achieve a score of 95% accuracy at 20-25 words per minute using our Type 2 Learn software. The more advanced features of word processing, especially those expected in academic presentations, are emphasized. As students become more independent in their use of the Internet, we be-gin to stress ethical and responsible use of electronic reference tools to conduct research. Drawing on topics of classroom study, students make use of spreadsheets, databases, and multimedia presentation software in individual and small group projects as they experiment with more effective and creative ways to display their research. Students extend their learning in graphics tech-nology, use of multimedia, and web page creation. Additionally, iPad technology is integrated into the 3rd Grade curriculum. Students use Chromebook (“cloud” based) computers to store and share their work at school and at home.



STUDENT LEADERSHIP

It takes a SPARK to light a FLAME that can be carried as a TORCH. At Sandy Spring Friends School, the Upper School has TORCH and the Middle School has FLAME. These groups of students nominated and selected by peers to serve as the stu-dent leaders of those divisions of the School. SPARK is the name of the Lower School student leaders. It is comprised of two students from each fourth, and fifth grade class. These students provide leadership to the student body of the Lower School and represent the Lower School at all-school events. The class meetings held to nominate and select these grade representatives follow Quaker decision-making practices including understanding how a group reaches consensus.

29

FIFTH GRADE CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

The fifth grade theme is “Making Connections with Ancient Civilizations.” Academic subjects as well as the arts are integrated around this unifying theme as students study the ancient Mayan, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman civilizations. Learning how to research and ask critical questions are important goals as students develop their information gathering and organizational skills. Students will discuss and discover the elements of a civilization. Using this knowledge each will invent a civilization and research an ancient civilization not studied by the class as a whole.

As reading is fundamental in all areas of the curriculum, we further develop the students’ LANGUAGE ARTS skills as they read for different purposes. We teach helpful pre-reading strategies such as predicting and familiarizing themselves with new vocabulary. We hold group discussions to teach specific reading skills and make connections to increase students’ understand-ing. Guided reading of theme-related books selected for whole group reading is balanced with sharing and comparing of student-selected books from specific literary genres. In writing, we focus on the six phases of the writing process for content and correctness. Through an emphasis on vocabulary development, we encourage a richer, more descriptive use of words in their writing. The fifth grade handwriting program focuses on the maintenance of manuscript and cursive handwriting skills. Students may choose to do the majority of their classroom assignments and homework in manuscript or cursive writing, choos-ing the form that is more legible and comfortable for that student. Practicing listening and speaking skills across the curriculum allows them to see the distinctions in how the content or purpose affects presentations. Students practice taking notes. They also learn public speaking strategies for engaging and maintaining an audience’s attention.

The fifth grade MATH program has a direct connection to the students’ thematic study as they explore the ancient number systems of the Maya, Egyptians, and Romans. Students use GO Math! by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt as the primary text. The goal is to teach them how to learn from a textbook so that they will be prepared to make effective use of the textbooks used throughout the Middle School curriculum. Fifth grade math objectives include: recognizing place value through billions and thousandths; computing mixed numbers, fractions, decimals and percentages; solving ratio and percen-tile problems; picturing more complex polygons; calculating weight/mass and volume/capacity; introducing algebraic concepts such as equations, variables, integers, order of operations, and graphing coordinates; analyzing science data and predicting outcomes; and considering probability.

Fifth grade SCIENCE aims to integrate content and discovery thereby encouraging understanding and further inquiry; students need to have a framework of understanding before exploration so that their ex-perience is rich and meaningful. The units of study target life, earth, and physical sciences, and support thematic connections to social studies, language arts, and mathematics, the brain and learning styles, eco-systems/biomes, an introduction of matter, science/engineering of ancient Egypt, constellations, forms of energy, and electricity. A school-wide Celebra-tion of Science allows students to explore topics of interest and carry a question through rigorous questioning and the scientific method, individually or within small groups.

Fifth Grade

30

Fifth graders collectively spend their year, in SOCIAL STUDIES, investigating the ancient civilizations of the Maya, Egyp-tians, Greeks, and Romans. Beginning with an understanding of the elements that constitute a “civilization,” students each invent their own civilization. This interdisciplinary theme develops an appreciation for the meaning of “ancient” through connections not only to the other academic subjects and also to physical education and the arts, as students study the Olympic Games, Greek drama, and classical architecture. Additionally, students learn about the concept of preservation as they study the work of archeologists and the information that ruins can yield about civilizations. By the end of the year, students share their findings from their individual research of another ancient civilization with their classmates.


The Lower School ART program exposes students to a wide range of artistic principles and techniques, enhanced by illustra-tions from art history and different cultures. A similar sequence of artistic concepts is presented at each grade level, but the variety of materials and level of complexity and proficiency is increased at each successive level. Fifth grade art advances color theory with a study of triads, tetrads, and tints. In drawing and painting, students explore contour, abstract, distance, and two-point perspective. They do water colors with resist and manipulated color techniques. Ceramics offers an opportunity for our students to try sculptural carving and advanced slab, coil, and pulled techniques. Fifth graders also take on the challenge of advanced glazing goals, such as resist, scraffito, slip, and latex application. In art class, fifth graders further explore their inter-disciplinary theme of ancient civilizations by creating Mayan masks, Egyptian and Greek ceramics, and Roman bust sculptures. The LIBRARY program has the dual goals of fostering a love of books and teaching information skills. As the older students begin to seek more materials and information of interest to them, they learn to use and understand the organization of the classification system and the automated library catalog. The library program supports classroom research with practical instruc-tion in how to find, collect, and evaluate information. Fifth graders consolidate their library fluencies and research skills as the program supports their research assignments. They explore advanced search strategies and learn to expand and narrow their searches to increase success. Media literacy skills such as understanding point of view, authorship and how to evaluate infor-mation continue to be taught to increase critical thinking. Students share their reading preferences with peers, articulating reasons for liking a book and sharing thoughtful reviews in a variety of media.


Our students enjoy playing a variety of ethnic instruments, attending multicultural assemblies, and learning about celebrations and traditions from around the world. By the time children complete our Lower School Music program, they have learned to count measures, play chords with hand chimes, play ostinatos and bourdons on pitched xylophones, read the treble clef, and play the soprano recorder. The soprano recorder is the featured instrument in the fifth grade music curriculum. With increased mastery of sight reading, familiarity with a variety of pitched and percussion instruments, students are encouraged to blend their talents and perform more involved pieces. Fifth graders explore syncopated rhythm patterns and especially have fun expressing syncopation through movement. Finally, we construct a music time line from the Classical to Modern periods and sample various genres and musicians. In the fourth and fifth grades, students also have the option to enroll in our Instrumental Music Ensemble. Students meet once a week after school and participate in group lessons as they learn to play their instrument of choice, flute, clarinet, alto saxophone, trumpet or snare drum.

The goals of the Lower School PHYSICAL EDUCATION program derive from the School’s mission to develop “the trained mind, the skilled hand and the healthy body.” We encourage enjoyment of physical pursuits throughout life by helping stu-dents to be successful and comfortable in a variety of active games, dance, and exercise. Quaker values are stressed in play to build sportsmanship and teamwork. Our learning approach is developmental – accepting and challenging individual levels of fitness, skill acquisition, and understanding of strategy. As fifth graders further practice sport specific skills and apply them in

Fifth Grade

31

game-like situations, there is a greater emphasis on the basic rules and positions of a variety of different sports. Participating in fitness activities and understanding concepts, such as cardiovascular endurance and muscular strength, are goals throughout the year.

One of the natural outgrowths of being part of a pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade school located on a 140-acre campus is participation in developmentally appropriate OUTDOOR EDUCATION activities. For younger students this program takes the form of exploration of our woods, pond, and stream and study of the plants and animals that share this natural set-ting with us. Building upon their fourth grade camping experience, fifth graders add another level of independence as they par-ticipate in a student-teacher overnight that focuses on communication and cooperation at a challenge-by-choice ropes course where several high elements are explored. Students share the special comradely of the campfire circle, Meeting for Worship, time for writing and reflection, and the sharing of community chores.

The Lower School SPANISH program is an oral/aural program. It has two main objectives: to help students develop a basic vocabulary in the Spanish language and to introduce students to the culture of Spanish-speaking peoples. Students begin to demonstrate an understanding of the Spanish language. Students begin to develop listening and speaking skills. Students hear the words and sounds of the Spanish language through songs and stories and begin to associate the meaning of learned vocabu-lary in context. Visual and auditory cuing through pictures and singing strengthen retention of the new vocabulary learned. Fifth graders share their knowledge of ancient cultures by writing and sharing their knowledge in Spanish and English.

We believe that TECHNOLOGY skills are best learned by using them in the context of class-related projects. Our program en-sures competency in basic technology skills, and our philosophy emphasizes the mastery of technology skills not only as an end in itself, but also as a tool to support classroom learning. Additionally, iPad technology is integrated throughout the fifth grade curriculum. Students use teacher-selected iPad applica-tions (“apps”) as learning tools to research collaborate and acquire important, developmentally appropriate learning skills in exciting new ways. All apps have been carefully chosen to challenge and address the individualized learn-ing needs and styles of students. Students also utilize Chromebook (“cloud” based) computers for storing and sharing their work both at school and at home.

The Lower School WELLNESS curriculum consists of three components: physical health, preventative health and social/emotional health. Students learn the benefits of taking care of their body. Lessons on fitness, injury prevention, and nutrition are taught in physical educa-tion to help students learn to identify healthy choices and activities. The School nurse teaches preventative health education. Lessons that emphasize the importance of germ prevention, sun safety, and hydration are taught at relevant times during the year.

The LIFE SKILLS curriculum focuses on the social and emotional health of students. It nourishes a respectful and caring classroom community using five key themes: making connections, emotional literacy, caring and ef-fective communication, cultural competence and social responsibility, and conflict management and decision-making.

Fifth Grade

32

STUDENT LEADERSHIP

It takes a SPARK to light a FLAME that can be carried as a TORCH. At Sandy Spring Friends School, the Upper School has TORCH and the Middle School has FLAME. These groups of students nominated and selected by peers to serve as the stu-dent leaders of those divisions of the School. SPARK is the name of the Lower School student leaders. It is comprised of two students from each fourth, and fifth grade class. These students provide leadership to the student body of the Lower School and represent the Lower School at all-school events. The class meetings held to nominate and select these grade representatives follow Quaker decision-making practices including understanding how a group reaches consensus.

Fifth Grade

ssfs lower school curriculum guide 2012-2013

Documents

curricular overview

grade curriculum overview

cocurricular classes

core curriculum

grade level

patterns of growth

childs growth

student leadership