In first grade, students begin working in studios around the art room and learn how to care for the art studio. In addition to learning new techniques and media, students focus on where artists get their ideas and begin thinking about their own lives and what matters to them.  Experiences, memories, passions, and the imagination all take center stage in the students’ work. Studios include drawing, painting, collage, paper sculpture, clay, and printmaking.

First grade is a year of great growth and exploration. Our literacy block is a student-centered, structured time where students receive foundational skills instruction, practice reading comprehension strategies, and have rich literacy experiences that foster their growth. Students are exposed to multiple genres of read-aloud texts and are asked to collaborate with their classmates to answer deep, meaningful comprehension questions. Students learn to think, talk, and share ideas about a text all while becoming skilled listeners and valuing the thinking of others. 

At the heart of our literacy block is our small group time. This time is where we lay the foundation for students growing independence as readers.  During this small group time students receive instruction based on their targeted developmental level. Depending on the student’s unique learning needs, decoding and encoding (spelling) skills, phonemic awareness, high-frequency word recognition, comprehension strategies, and fluency are skills that may be addressed during this time.  

First-grade students utilize the Handwriting Without Tears program. This easy-to-learn curriculum provides students the opportunity to learn correct letter formation.  It emphasizes appropriate letter size, line placement, spacing, and neatness.

As in reading, first grade is a year full of growth for writing. Students begin the year by orally telling their stories and then learning how to transfer their spoken stories to print. Through guided and shared whole-class writing, as well as read-aloud mentor texts, students are provided with scaffolded opportunities to grow their craft as a writer. Students will explore and write various genres including personal narratives, friendly letters, poetry, non-fiction stories, and opinion pieces.

Students continue to cultivate their reading, listening, discussion, and story retelling skills. They study the components of fiction (character, setting, plot, style, etc.) and of non-fiction (contents, index, etc.). In first grade, students begin learning how to locate resources using the call number system. As a result, they learn how to identify and access materials in every major section of the library. In partnership with the Technology Department, research techniques are also introduced.

Everyday Mathematics is a spiraling math curriculum that provides first graders with early exposure to concepts that they will encounter and build upon in later grades. Students are encouraged to use the basic skills they are taught in a variety of situations; this allows higher order and critical thinking skills to develop as they explore strategies for problem solving. Using a variety of manipulatives, SMART Board activities, and working in small groups, students have the opportunity to share their creative and strategic thinking while feeling safe to take risks among their peers.

Concepts explored include: counting, relationship of numbers, measurement, time, money, exploring data, geometry, patterns, and basic addition and subtraction. These concepts are practiced throughout the year allowing students to gradually master these skills. Teachers incorporate fun, hands-on activities such as building straw geometric shapes, building base-10 block structures, collecting and analyzing data on student-made surveys, as well as a variety of games that are played on a daily basis.
 

In first grade music, the development of the singing voice continues. The use of solfege games and the playing of Orff and classroom percussion instruments serve to increase the students' awareness and understanding of simple melodic and rhythmic patterns found in varied songs and listening selections. Emphasis is placed on helping each student experience the confidence and enjoyment of producing music vocally and instrumentally. Timbre, dynamics, and other basic musical concepts are studied in more depth. Movement is used to reinforce the concept of musical form. Over the course of the school year students learn to read, write, and create rhythms using quarter notes, eighth notes, and quarter rests. Students perform at a Spring Concert at Arts Jam, a schoolwide celebration of the arts.

First grade PE classes experience a vast exposure to sports of all kinds, designed to improve coordination, flexibility and strength with an age appropriate emphasis. In first grade, the primary goal is for students to begin to master basic locomotor and  non‐locomotor skills and concepts. Spatial  awareness will continue to develop. By the end of first grade, students should be able to demonstrate mature form when performing a variety of basic manipulative skills such as kicking, throwing, striking and dribbling.  Students are given the opportunity to participate in activities such as cooperative games, target throwing games, soccer, gymnastics/tumbling, scooters, tee ball, track and field, basketball, running/jogging, tennis, and marshmallow ball throughout the year. In first grade the students are introduced to The Cannon Health and Performance (CHAMP) Test. The assessment includes a variety of health-related physical fitness tests that assess aerobic capacity: muscular strength, muscular endurance, speed, power and flexibility. Scores from these assessments are compared to our overall class averages to determine students’ overall physical fitness and suggest areas for improvement when appropriate. Our goal as a Lower School Physical Education Department is for all students to be equipped with appropriate knowledge of varying sports and to develop a lifelong love for fitness.

The Lower School years are ones of rapid growth and development. Each new birthday brings tremendous change. Typical challenges and characteristics of children, by age and developmental stage, can be found on the School Counseling webpage along with recommended resources.

First graders begin to develop their scientific skills by sorting, classifying, measuring and developing an understanding of the natural world. Curiosity is fostered by examining Earth and its natural resources, exploring sound and light waves, and observing plants and animals as they grow and develop. First grade is a packed, fun-filled, hands-on year of science exploration!

First grade focuses on "my community" using the Social Studies Alive! curriculum. Students are active participants, experiencing social studies through innovative teaching practices that include role-playing, creative simulations, dynamic group projects, and writing activities. Some of the topics include: What is a community? What is geography? How do people use the environment? Who provides services in a community? How can I be a good shopper? How can one person make a difference in a community? What does a good citizen do?

The program is a marriage of the Communicative Language Approach (CLT) and the Foreign Language in the Elementary School (FLES) approach. Both approaches encourage self-expression and communication.  Furthermore, the FLES approach emphasizes cross-curricular content and tasks at grade level.

First-grade students review all basic Kindergarten material. They expand vocabulary for units on foods, animals, and toys.  They learn new units on clothes, furniture, and their set of Q&As about personal information, all of which require sentence building.  They continue their culture journey in South America learning about five countries, three main habitats, animals, and salient geographical features. 
 

During the first grade year, students experience coding, robotics, and computational thinking through the use of developmentally appropriate resources, both “plugged” and “unplugged.” They participate in a variety of hands-on challenges to develop soft skills, critical thinking, and collaboration, all while having fun!

Students become confident in using technology to reinforce, enrich, and enjoy integrated learning. This includes a variety of digital resources and creative work. They also use quality learning software appropriate to their developmental level in the areas of literacy and reading, and in math and problem solving.