Kindergarten Experience

Using a workshop model, teachers build classroom communities of readers and writers who love books and see purpose in their reading and writing. Classrooms are full of high-quality literature, and students explore a variety of genres, topics, and audiences in both reading and writing. Explicit, systematic instruction also focuses on phonological awareness, word recognition, phonics and decoding, spelling, and grammar. In both disciplines, teachers model the skills and strategies that skilled readers and writers use. Language arts instruction is highly differentiated with students working in small groups, partnerships, and 1:1 with teachers.

Units of Study in Writing

• Launching Writing Workshop
• Show and Tell Writing
• Writing for Readers
• Writing to Teach Others
• All About Books: Nonfiction Writing

Units of Study in Reading

• We Are Readers
• Super Powers: Reading with Print Strategies
• Bigger Books, Bigger Reading Muscles
• Becoming Avid Readers

Country Day’s math program is designed to build fluent mathematicians, skilled and perseverant problem solvers, and creative thinkers. The Developing Roots curriculum is designed to build a foundation for our Math in Focus program through child-centered, hands-on experiences. The core focus in math in the Lower School is building a deep understanding of number sense, operations, and computation. Our students learn not just how to solve rote problems, but how to think mathematically and tackle real-world, rigorous mathematical problems.

Skills and Concepts

• Counting to 100 by 1s, 5s and 10s
• Composing and decomposing numbers 1–10
• Reading and writing 2-digit numbers
• Identifying, describing, sorting, and classifying 2- and 3- dimensional shapes
• Representing and solving addition and subtraction stories (within 10)
• Classifying objects based on attributes
• Measuring and comparing length and weight

The Lower School social studies program focuses on the study of people in relation to their past, present, and future, their environment, and their society. Our curriculum encourages curiosity and helps students develop an understanding of a rapidly changing world. Students become aware of their personal and cultural identities, and they acquire the skills and knowledge needed to actively participate in their classroom, school, community, and world.

Units of Study

• Unit 1: Civic Ideals and Rules
• Unit 2: Getting to Know “Me” and “Us”
• Unit 3: Maps and Globes
• Unit 4: Wants and Needs

Lower School science focuses on engaging in investigation and discovery through the scientific method in Country Day’s state-of-the-art science lab. An integrated STEM program brings together engineering and inquisitive minds to design innovative, sustainable solutions to real world problems.

In kindergarten, students continue to hone their observation skills and learn to make predictions. They explore the physical, life, and earth sciences, specifically magnetism, life cycles, and environmental stewardship.

The physical education curriculum focuses on the physical, mental, and social emotional growth of our students. Our PE program provides every Lower School student with a daily opportunity to move, play and learn. The curriculum focuses on developing and maintaining a physically active and healthy lifestyle in addition to developing gross motor, body control, and spatial awareness skills. Fundamental athletic skills are introduced, while students develop problem-solving strategies and sportsmanship through an environment of cooperative learning.

Our goals in Lower School are to expose students to language and culture, instill a love for the language, develop an appreciation for the larger world, and build cultural competencies. Students are exposed to French and Spanish in JK through first grade. In second grade, students choose one target language with the goal of developing a Novice Low proficiency level (based on ACTFL Standards) by the end of fourth grade.

All kindergarten students are exposed to the language and culture of both French and Spanish. They practice basic words, respond to simple commands in both languages, and explore the cultures of people who speak French and Spanish around the world.

Students are introduced to iPads in the classroom through centers to build age-appropriate technology skills that support learning.

Through the library curriculum, we strive to instill the joy and value of reading, provide access to diverse information and ideas, and equip students with the skills and knowledge necessary to access, evaluate, and apply new learning in both personal and academic pursuits. Students receive whole-class, small-group, and one-on-one instruction and practice their skills through authentic activities and research.

In kindergarten, students learn about book care, the parts of a book, how to browse books, about authors, illustrators, and characters, the difference between fiction and non-fiction, how to sequence a story, and how to question when reading. Children also explore award-winning books, and learn to listen, share their thinking, and engage in dramatic play.

Art
Kindergarten artists explore the fundamental elements of art: line, shape, pattern and color. Design concepts of emphasis, contrast, and balance give students visual structures to express ideas.  A variety of techniques such as painting, drawing, collage and sculpture enable students to build creative confidence and experience the joy of hands-on materials.

Drama
Kindergarten students explore using their bodies, voices, emotions, and imaginations through the lens of children’s literature and storytelling. Our Kindergarteners also perform a play we created titled K is for Kindness which features songs about the power of friendship, kindness, and impacting the world for good. 

Music
Kindergarten students explore music by practicing steady beat, repeating rhythm patterns, singing solfege patterns, composing rhythms, playing unpitched percussion and Orff instruments, learning music theory, and singing songs.