First Grade
First Grade is a special year as girls begin to be immersed in academics. Academic curricula are presented through activities and games to engage young learners. Girls develop a sense of self through discussions, role-playing, writing, and presenting to their peers. During the year, girls read aloud to the class, put on plays, and participate in a poetry slam. Fieldtrips include monthly visits to Butler campus, the Schoolbelles factory, the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, and Hale Farm and Village.
Language Arts
First Graders read daily with an adult in a small group or one-on-one. The girls work on decoding and comprehension skills as they develop fluency. Reading skills develop at different rates, therefore reading groups are flexible and allow for girls to progress at a comfortable speed. While teachers meet with individuals and groups, girls are actively engaged in learning centers. These centers include reading, writing, math, word study, computers, and art. In addition, the Wilson Fundations program is employed to develop word attack skills. Girls work on sounds and words daily through word making, sentence structure, and spelling activities. Through the Fundations program, First Graders are guided to incorporate more sounds in their spelling of words and are introduced to over 100 “trick words”. The girls are also encouraged to use spelling dictionaries and environmental print to help them when writing. Girls write each day about their experiences, on assigned topics, or creatively. Through publishing their own books, girls are introduced to revising and editing their writing.
Math
The core of the First Grade math program is the Everyday Math curriculum. A goal is for First Graders to see themselves as curious, confident, practicing mathematicians. Mathematical problems are linked to the girls’ everyday lives, and girls are encouraged to use of a variety of mathematical resources and manipulatives in problem solving. Girls engage in individual and collaborative investigations to construct their own mathematical knowledge. In addition to the Everyday Math program, girls’ spatial and visual skills are strengthened through daily math puzzles and exercises. While discussing shapes, girls use attribute blocks to further investigate geometric properties. Math skills and concepts are regularly integrated into other areas of the curriculum.
Theme/Social Studies
First Grade girls are beginning to wonder about the world around them and their place within it. They begin the year with an exploration of themselves and their families, and then move into studies of Laurel School and the larger community. Girls take on community roles as they immerse themselves in role-playing activities, build a model community based on their understandings, and organize a Primary-wide election. Emphasis is placed on the idea that all members of a community can be leaders by participating and contributing their ideas. In the second half of the year, First Graders move out of the immediate community and begin to develop an understanding of their state, country, and the world around them. They create businesses to study economic concepts, work with maps to develop spatial skills, and learn about symbols that represent communities and people. While studying the world around them, the girls learn about two different countries – India and Australia – with an emphasis on those countries’ animals and artifacts. Girls apply their previous understandings when comparing families and communities around the world. The year culminates with a study of schools in the past, such as the one-room schoolhouse and Laurel’s history. They leave First Grade with greater knowledge of their place in the world and greater determination to better their world.
The Essential Question that First Graders will investigate is: How do communities foster interdependence?
Essential Understandings that girls will work towards are:
- Individuals have roles to play in a community.
- Individuals help one another by participating in the community.
- Individuals can make choices to make the community better.
- All members of the community are leaders by participating and contributing ideas.
