St. Michael's Country Day School

The lower school curriculum fosters creativity and cooperation, and provides numerous opportunities for learning through direct experiences, while taking students from the threshold of reading, writing, and making sense of numbers through the accomplishments of becoming a competent reader, keeping a journal, and mastering basic math concepts. It is a time for exploring new continents, learning new languages, and exploring the world through classroom technologies.

Through thematic, inter-disciplinary projects, as well as traditional subject areas, each student develops into a resourceful, respectful, and responsible learner, who is encouraged to draw connections between the numerous concepts that they learn. For example, students in the fourth grade use the theme of Africa to provide a meaningful context that connects all other aspects of the curriculum. Their math classes may address the metric system, while social studies teaches the geography, and art includes the creation of African prints.

In first grade, children learn to become students. Through guided reading and phonics, they work to improve their vocabulary and begin to study basic grammar. The social studies curriculum focuses on understanding the world around them. Our students begin by examining themselves, and then branch out to their families, school, cultures, and then the world. They also start to gain a better sense of civic engagement through community service and recycling efforts.

To learn more about what happens in the first grade, you can also visit their website.

When they move into second grade, children enter a new stage in their learning. The climb up the stairs to the second floor and the getting of their own desks are just two of the signs that second grade is a new phase in their journey through the lower school.

In second grade, children continue to learn the skills which will help them develop a successful foundation for their continuing education. These skills include taking responsibility, working independently, and being accountable for their learning and actions. Throughout the year, they explore how the physical world has changed over time through an integrated curriculum that moves from rocks, fossils and volcanoes to the formation of islands and a study of the ocean. Some of the projects associated with these themes have included researching and writing a book about a dinosaur and making a travel brochure about an island.

Check out the second grade website for more information about what is going on in the classroom.

In third grade, students start off with a study of Rhode Island. To gain valuable reading and geography skills, the students travel through the history researching their state and then embark on a walking tour of Newport. From there, the focus expands to a study of the United States. In addition to learning the various regions of the country, each student researches an individual state and then shares their projects with the rest of the class. During the winter, students add science to their thematic studies as they move on to birds and their traits. Through the example of birds, students learn about habitats, food cycles, and descriptive writing. At the end of the school year, third graders research Asia and focus on China, all culminating with a Chinese feast.

Each of these projects occurs not only in the classroom, but also in conjunction with art, technology, and library classes. Take the bird project as an example. In library, students used books and atlases to research the various traits of birds. They then completed scientific diagrams of their birds in art class, and conducted virtual observations in the computer lab.

For more information about the third grade, check out their website.

In fourth grade, our students are exposed to various genres of trade books such as historical, science, non-fiction and realistic fiction. Students are engaged in reading through literature circles and diving deeply into books through discussion and written pieces. During our math unit, fourth graders are mastering their multiplication facts, and learning to multiply and divide multi-digit numbers. They are also introduced to fractions, decimals, and percents, and work on dissecting word problems.

Our major theme, and focus, in the fourth grade is the study of Africa. We cover this subject across all areas, but mainly devote our year for the students to learn the history of Africa. We do this by having our students become "experts" in their own chosen country and animal. From the Triangle Trade and the history of slavery across Americas, to the Underground Railroad, students learn not only about other cultures, but also about the traits that make great leaders. To culminate the year, each student conducts an oral presentation about a famous African American.

Throughout the process, and the year, students carry the information gathered in class to most of their specials classes and extend on their knowledge through African folktale plays, music, and art projects. They also complete many elements of their final projects in the computer lab, leveraging the available technologies to further develop their work.

For more information, please visit the fourth grade website.