Beginners

List of 8 items.

• + Thematic Study: Social & Emotional Development

  The overarching goal of the Beginners program is to help each child feel valued and to understand how to be a positive member of a community. We aim to help children learn to balance individual and community needs. The social and emotional aspect of our program permeates all that we do. Successfully navigating the social and emotional elements of school life paves the way for academic learning. Below are some of the skills that we work on throughout the year.
  
  

  • Respecting self, others, and our environment 
  • Contributing one’s own ideas and integrating those of others in play 
  • Working and playing both independently and collaboratively 
  • Engaging in conflict resolution 
  • Respecting differences 
  • Responding flexibly to transitions and change 
  • Developing self-regulation skills

• + Language Arts

  The Beginners program strives to create a literacy-rich environment, which fosters curiosity and a love of reading and writing. This is done through constant exposure to books and environmental print and opportunities for informal and teacher-directed writing. Language activities are designed to lay the groundwork for developing skills in listening, following directions, reading readiness, communicating with others, and creative thinking. 

  
  

  A set of B- Grade VIII standards provides the framework for our work in language arts. Below are some of the skills we expect Beginners to develop in Language Arts over the course of the year. 
  
  

  • Maintaining focus and listening to others 
  • Contributing during meetings and discussions  
  • Following multi-step oral directions 
  • Developing a love of literature 
  • Recognizing and naming all uppercase letters 
  • Demonstrating letter-sound correspondence for most letters
  • Writing name and recognizing most classmates’ names
  • Identifying and generating rhyming words and alliteration
  • Clapping or counting syllables in words of up to three syllables  
  • Engaging in different kinds of writing, such as labels, letters, and stories
  • Developing an understanding of character, setting, and plot
  • Self-identifying as a story-teller and author
    
    

  One way we incorporate these skills into our program is through our multi-step Build A Story Project. Students generate characters and settings, build them in 3-D with various materials, and author and illustrate their own imaginative stories. Many literacy opportunities arise in our dramatic play area, where students write menus, signs, letters, and lists as part of their play. Students also see connections between literacy and other subject areas as they speak, read, and write about their observations and discoveries.

• + Mathematics

  The goal of our mathematics program in Beginners is to help children construct their own mathematical knowledge. We do this through meaningful learning experiences in which they solve problems, develop mathematical thinking, communicate their thinking in written and oral forms, and explore multiple representations. We encourage children’s interest in mathematics while building their confidence and strengthening their skills. We see mathematics as an integral part of children’s daily learning experiences at school. There is a strong emphasis on helping children see connections between their work in mathematics and real-life situations.  

  
  

  A set of B- Grade VIII standards provides the framework for our work in mathematics. While the mathematics program is standards-driven, it is also flexible enough to be able to respond both to differences in learning styles and variations in the readiness of our students. Below are listed some of the skills and concepts we expect Beginners to develop over the course of the year. 

  
  

  • Counting to 20 and beyond
  • Understanding relationships among numbers
  • Developing number sense and applying it to real-world applications
  • Recognizing and writing numerals 0-10 and applying them to authentic tasks
  • Sorting by single and multiple attributes 
  • Creating categories for sorting
  • Using manipulatives to solve problems
  • Sharing mathematical thinking with others 
  • Demonstrating an awareness of addition and subtraction in everyday life
  • Participating in data collection, representation, and interpretation
  • Creating and interpreting graphs
  • Identifying, creating, and extending patterns
  • Identifying and manipulating shapes
  • Engaging in measurement activities

  
  

  An example of our math curriculum is our Beautiful Stuff Project, in which students gather found materials (e.g., recycling, junk drawer items) from home. Students engage in sorting, categorizing, labeling, counting, describing, and comparing and contrasting activities with these materials. In another piece of curriculum, students create their own class surveys. They generate a question (e.g. Do you like dogs?), ask each of their peers, record their answers, tally them, and create graphs of their results. This project encompasses many skills, including speaking, listening, writing, counting, number writing, data collection, and graph interpretation.

• + Science

  The main thread of the Beginners science curriculum is an investigation of Invisible Forces (wind, magnetism, and gravity). Explorations take place in and outside of the classroom, as well as during periodic visits to the Makerspace. Lessons and activities are designed to teach specific science concepts, as well as leave room for exploration and independent discovery. The hands-on experiences in our curriculum build students’ science-related vocabulary, engage their senses, and develop their persistence. 

  
  

  Outside of this specific curriculum, science is a regular part of every Beginner’s day. Children are encouraged to actively explore and share their ideas about the natural and physical world of our campus. Digging for worms, collecting leaves, and diverting water through puddles on our playground are examples of the ways in which children integrate science into their spontaneous play. Below are some of the skills and concepts we expect Beginners to develop over the course of the year. 

  
  

  • Generating questions 
  • Predicting outcomes 
  • Conducting experiments
  • Solving problems by engaging in the design process
  • Making observations 
  • Representing knowledge through writing, drawing, building, and graphing
  • Using scientific tools (magnifying glasses, eye droppers, balance scales, etc.)

• + Library

  (One 30-minute class per week) 

  
  

  Beginners visit the library in half groups. The librarian shares a variety of stories with a focus on “reading” the illustrations and font together. In addition to making observations about what they notice, students are asked to make predictions and listen for rhythm and rhyme in the text. Books are grouped across weeks by theme, and might include: A,B,C + 1,2,3 books, moon books, stories that are a little bit scary and silly stories. At the end of each class, children choose books and share them with each other or ask a librarian to read to them.

• + Music

  (Two 30-minute classes per week)

  
  

  In Beginners music, students are exposed to a wide variety of musical experiences including singing, dancing, listening, and playing age-appropriate rhythm instruments. Through song, movement, and play, they begin the process of becoming “tuneful, beautiful, and artful” musicians. Students are introduced to the diversity in music by learning songs in different languages and listening to selections from different cultures. 

  
  

  As in the other grades, students gain familiarity with a variety of songs for weekly Lower School assemblies, as well as holidays and special events, including the Gratitude Assembly, the Black History Assembly, May Day, and Closing Day.

• + Movement Education

  (Two 30-minute classes per week)

  
  The Beginners Movement curriculum provides students with developmentally appropriate activities that promote movement competence and understanding, foster healthy habits and social and emotional development, and instill in students a sense of confidence and joy in participating in physical activity. Students explore and practice various locomotor, non-locomotor, and manipulative skills, and are introduced to movement concepts that incorporate spatial awareness, effort, and relationships. Mindfulness exercises, yoga sequences, and dance and fitness activities are common threads throughout the year, as are cooperative group activities that help students build the skills of sharing, compromising, and encouraging others while practicing moving safely in personal and general space.
  

• + School Community

  Beginners become familiar with the SHS campus by walking to department classes, going on curriculum-related campus explorations,  participating in weekly Lower School Assemblies, and making special deliveries. Through our Fifth Grade Partners program and whole-school community gatherings, relationships are established with other students throughout the school. By the end of the year, the children feel very much a part of the whole community.
  
  

  The entire Lower School (B- Grade IV) meets together in the Assembly Hall for a half hour each Friday morning. The music component of assemblies includes community singing, performances by Shady Hill students, and performances by visiting artists. Outside presenters come from the arts, sciences, and humanities and make connections to the wider world. Music at the assembly extends the music curriculum and deepens students’ understanding of music as cultural expression. Classroom sharing is also an important focus of assemblies. The emphasis is on sharing works-in-progress from all areas of the Lower School. Preparation for sharing is part of the learning process, and sharing in front of a larger group in a safe, supportive environment helps children develop confidence in public speaking and effectively presenting their work.