Grades 1-5 emphasize a spiral curriculum for Language Arts and Math, with core concepts introduced and revisited as they become increasingly complex. Students develop successful study skills and learn to become more responsible for their learning.
Language Arts aims to cultivate a love of literature, and reading for enjoyment. Concepts include drawing conclusions, inferring, understanding main ideas, and differentiating between fact and opinion. In Grades 1-3, students focus on phonics, sight word reading, and comprehension. Writing includes spelling, grammar, mechanics, and handwriting. By Grades 4-5, writing is more formal, with more in-depth and comprehensive assignments to master written expression. Students continue to work on public speaking, and peer editing begins with students learning the elements of constructive feedback.
Our Math program is grounded in the latest research about how children learn and develop. Designed by the University of Chicago, Everyday Mathematics exposes children to increasingly in-depth concepts based on activities and interactions rather than textbooks. In these early grades, the program focuses on problem solving based on everyday situations, and provides the broad mathematical background needed in today’s world.
Social Studies and History classes include the settlement of California and the founding of our nation. Grade 4 students participate in an overnight field trip, an enriched opportunity to learn outside the classroom during a three-day excursion to the Gold Country.
Observation, communication, estimating, inferring and predicting are skills taught in Science. With a focus on hands-on experiments, students learn about Earth Science, Life Science, Physical Science, the Solar System, and the Human Body.
In Religion, Christian morality and the Sacraments are the main focus. Students become increasingly involved in their parish/school and larger communities through a variety of outreach programs.