Shallowford Presbyterian Preschool’s kindergarten curriculum will cover the Georgia Performance Standards and much more.  To help us meet these goals, we will utilize the following resources:

Language Arts:
Each student will be assessed using the Developmental Reading System (DRA) at the beginning, middle, and end of the year. This will allow parents and teachers to have a clear picture of each student’s strengths and instructional needs. Not only is this an exceptional tool for us at SPP, but it is also information that many public and private schools use. This will help ease the transition from SPP to elementary school. The students will also be instructed using the Literacy Collaborative model. Our literacy block will be filled with whole group lessons, small group instruction, and engaging literacy centers. We will also employ Step Up to Writing methods to create a strong base for expository and narrative writing. Handwriting Without Tears builds confidence in young writers to form letters and numbers in a fun and engaging way.

Math:
Every day, our classroom will work with Math Their Way. This is a hands-on approach that allows students to engage in math lessons in a meaningful way. Mini-lessons are often followed with centers that are fun and challenging.  The students will interact with objects from their environment, math manipulatives, their teachers, and one another while they gain a strong foundation in the principles of mathematics. We will also use the Every Day Counts calendar strategy. This method introduces new elements every month and combines daily repetition of basic elements with problem solving opportunities. While this will initially be led by the teachers, students will eventually become the leaders of this part of our day

Science and Social Studies:
Our kindergarten students will engage in lessons driven by the Georgia Performance Standards and more. Science and Social studies concepts will be integrated into language arts, math, centers, and our class meetings. We will explore:

Science:

• The day and night sky
• Rocks and soils
• Using our five senses to observe physical attributes
• Composition of materials
• Motion
• Living and nonliving materials
• Plants and animals
• Parents and offspring

• Ask questions
• Use numbers to quantify
• Use tools to measure and view
• Look at parts of things
• Describe and compare materials in the world around us
• Observe and record our environment

• Discuss and celebrate national holidays
• Identify important American symbols and their meaning
• Learn to accurately retell historical events
• Explore American culture in a diverse community
• Learn about his or her home, city, county, state, nation and continent
• Participate in a classroom environment that values good citizenship
• Discuss positive character traits
• Understand the services that people in their neighborhood provide
• Gain an understanding of goods and services and how money is exchanged for goods and services
• Discuss making choices based on limited availability of goods and services