Elementary School Curriculum Highlights Chapel School’s elementary pedagogical approach places the student at the center of learning. In every classroom, students work collaboratively, researching, sharing, comparing, and analyzing information as they build foundational academic and social skills. Students are encouraged to form their own conclusions, and teachers facilitate students’ abilities to make personal connections to their learning. Classes are designed to develop students’ sense of responsibility for their own learning, promote the sharing of ideas, and the development of critical thinking skills. Students in the elementary school are encouraged to practice self-assessment and set and monitor their individual learning goals. These goals link to the learning objectives and are specific in meeting each child’s needs. Students’ daily schedules vary to accommodate core content and specialists classes. Throughout the week students will participate in literacy, math, social studies, science, music, arts, physical education, and religion classes. The curriculum in elementary school provides our learners with the opportunity to develop academically in both English and Portuguese as well as to develop socialemotional skills. Technology is also considered core curriculum and is systematically integrated into daily instruction. Chapel School is committed to providing a rich learning environment as well as differentiated support for our students. Only by looking at each child as unique, can we ensure that individual learning paces are respected and that all children are given opportunities to truly consolidate understandings about the world around them.
Being A Writer Establishing a strong foundation of literacy in our Elementary students is a key goal of the curricula. By the end of the 6th Grade, Chapel’s Elementary School students achieve academic fluency in both English and in Portuguese. To achieve these results, the Elementary School has approached literacy in a manner that applies best practices to learning to read and write in both languages. The Being a Writer Program aims to transform writing instruction by helping to create collaborative classrooms, in which students develop both academically and socially as they build their knowledge of and appreciation for the craft of writing. The elements of this process are daily writing – from model texts, sharing ideas between the group, and Author’s Chair, when students have the opportunity to share their published texts. Additionally, Elementary students engage in small group instruction for Guided Reading too. Students interact with texts in their ZPD (zone of proximal development) with the support of their classroom and/or reading/writing support teacher. The adoption of common practices and strategies in both English and in Portuguese speaks to our Mission and Vision in that we serve an international student body; one that will need strong literacy skills in more than one language.
Everyday Math Everyday Mathematics, adopted in Pre I through 6th grade, is a spiraling curriculum and enables students to build conceptual understanding, computational fluency, and real world problem solving
ES REMOTE LEARNING HANDBOOK 2020-2021
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