1st Grade Curriculum

• continuation of SK curriculum
• introduction to observational drawing -- simple still life and figure
• emphasis upon overlapping and size relationships within compositional space
• color mixing with emphasis on hot and cool colors
• woodworking -- emphasizing size and space relationships, introduction to new tools
• pottery -- continued imaginative approach to manipulating clay; introduction of theme-based projects; introduction to pinch, coil, and slab methods of hand-building with emphasis on pinch method for construction; emphasis on making secure clay connections
• decorating with glazes

• spelling -- patterns, sounds, letters, and meanings
• complete sentences, simple punctuation, capitalization
• handwriting skills
• dramatization
• creative writing -- following a language pattern
• author studies
• reading in the content area
• story mapping -- application of knowledge to writing
• summaries -- using “magic sequence words”
• iPad activities

• enjoy visiting authors and illustrators
• reinforce classroom language arts benchmarks, e.g., decoding of new words, predicting a story’s outcome, describing a story’s narrative elements, etc.
• continue to develop a sense of reading for pleasure, but also begin to develop the notion of reading for a purpose
• instruction on how a library is organized -- Dewey classification system and how to read an online card catalog entry

(all math concepts taught with manipulatives)

• primary mathematics
• computation -- addition and subtraction facts
• place value through 1,000
• joining, separating, and comparing sets
• double- and triple-digit addition and subtraction with and without regrouping
• logic, reasoning and problem-solving
• introduction to simple fractions
• multiplication and division -- beginning concepts
• estimation
• making and interpreting graphs
• measurement -- unit concept
• time -- concept of hour, half-hour, quarter-hour, five-minute increments
• iPad activities -- various apps for facts practice, money

• expand on the musical concepts taught in JK and SK
• celebrate the music of America as well as the state of Massachusetts through rhythmic chanting, melodic call and response, music notation and phrasing
• introduce the difference between beat and rhythm, simple forms in music, and singing two-part harmony
• celebrate the songs and dances of children around the world as students prepare for their class assembly
• explore songs and music about trees, butterflies and dinosaurs correlating with the science curriculum
• participation in various assemblies: Thanksgiving/Grandfriends’ and Revels (with 4th grade buddies), Holiday and Fine Arts Night (with SK and 2nd grade)
• share songs with residents at assisted living facilities

• large and small motor coordination -- tasks, games
• movement exploration -- rhythms, creative musical expression
• introduction to low organizational team games with emphasis on teamwork, sportsmanship and cooperation
• lead-up games with emphasis on primary ball skills

• phonics -- recognize in reading and writing regular consonants and short and long vowels, some digraphs and blends, contractions, compound words, and homophones
• continuing development of vocabulary, structural analysis and comprehension
• sharing literature through poetry, trade books, novels, read-alouds, and anthologies
• promoting enjoyment of reading and literature
• within writing, moving from inventive to approximate spelling
• applying prefixes, suffixes and plurals
• answering comprehension questions in complete sentences
• recognizing and using language patterns in reading and writing
• writing narratives with story map elements -- setting, characters, problem, goal, episodes, resolution -- after analyzing in literature
• story time with Head of School
• iPad activities

• life science -- trees of the Meadowbrook environment
• lifecycle of a butterfly
• earth science -- early earth and paleontology
• physical science -- properties of water and other liquids
• friction, flight
• units on measurement and symmetry
• iPad activities

• reinforce awareness and understanding of the children’s membership in many communities: school, city/town,state, country, and continent
• overview of the seven continents
• knowledge of geographical locations
• exploring for meaning, different holidays celebrated in the U.S.
• sharing personal talents and qualities
• reading strategies for gathering information from non-fiction books
• Open Circle social-emotional learning program
• study of the state of Massachusetts
• All Working at Racial Equity (AWARE) curriculum
• iPad activities -- culturegrams, research on specific countries

• emphasis on listening and speaking proficiency using a natural approach to language learning
• learning through songs, stories, role-playing, games and movement
• topics include physical characteristics, numbers to 100, days of the week, weather, health and well-being, a fairy tale, and parts of the body
• cross-curricular ties include art and music as well as themes of apples, dinosaurs, rainforests around the world, and children around the Spanish-speaking world

• academic technology skills
  • open, close, save, export, and print files on tablets and computers
  • use software to create more advanced animation
  • use presentation and drawing software to share learning with others
  • use online resources for basic research
  • learn shortcut keys (copy, paste, print, quit)
• programming/robotics
  • basic BeeBot programming/coding skills
  • advanced robotics programming and storytelling
• engineering/CAD skills
  • building and constructing
  • elementary engineering unit
  • computer-aided design (CAD) - 3D design and printing
• digital citizenship
  • what is the Internet?
  • digital safety: Avoiding Ads
  • digital footprint: Follow the Digi Trail
  • safe searching: Inventors & Inventions