Specials

Foreign Language

“Second Grade” Our Foreign Language in the Elementary School program or FLES begins in the second grade. Second grade students are introduced to the “Five C’s” of Foreign Language Education: Communication, Culture, Connections, Comparisons and Communities. Students begin to develop a proficiency in these areas through some of the following Learning Scenarios that are coordinated with and provide support for other key content areas taught in the second grade including Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Art, Music and Health.

• Greetings and Goodbyes
• Numbers
• Colors
• People in the Family
• Parts of the Body and Sports
• Holidays
• The Calendar and Seasons
• Butterflies

“Third Grade” In the third grade, FLES students expand vocabulary using Total Physical Response techniques which involve learning language through movement and gestures. TPR is followed by humorous mini-stories designed to teach whole language using TPRS (Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling) methodology. Mini-stories are arranged around topics such as:

• Food
• Sports
• Travel
• School
• The Future

“Fourth Grade” In the fourth grade, students again focus on extending vocabulary using TPR followed by humorous mini-stories using TPRS methodology. These shorter stories lead up to longer readings which are authentic legends and folk tales from the Spanish-speaking world. Lessons in phonemics are introduced to provide the students the skills to read and write in the target language. Some of the legends to be covered include:

• How Mermaids Were Born ( Venezuela)
• The Legend of Popo and Ixta ( Mexico)

“Fifth Grade”In the fifth grade the FLES program expands to introduce students to other foreign languages in the Speaking of Languages I program. After several lessons on the nature of language, students have lessons on French, German and Latin. In addition to language practice, students study aspects of the culture of the countries where the language is spoken. The course serves as a basis for students to select a language for further study at the Middle School. Included in the program are lessons on:

• Non-verbal communication
• Paris
• Clothing
• French table manners
• At a French restaurant
• German fairy tales
• German cars
• The Amish
• Latin roots of English words

Health & Physical Education

The health and physical education curriculum provides each student with a variety of activities designed to develop a social awareness and self understanding as well as physical skills and knowledge of many lifetime activities and team sports. The Health curriculum includes units in the following areas: Safety, Fire, Tobacco, Nutrition, Bullying, Body Systems, Drugs/Alcohol, and Bike/Wheel Safety.

The physical education curriculum includes the following units: Soccer, Locomotor skills, Physical fitness, Games, Volleyball, Eye-Hand Coordination, Gymnastics, Basketball, Bowling, T-Ball/Softball/Baseball.

Music

Performing, creating, and responding to music are the fundamental music processes in which humans engage. Singing, playing instruments, moving to music and creating music enable children to acquire musical skills and knowledge that can be developed in this unique manner. This curriculum comprises a balanced and sequential program of singing, playing instruments, listening to music, improvising and composing music, and moving to music. Also included are learning experiences designed to develop the ability to read music, use the notation and terminology of music, analyze and describe music, and make informed evaluations concerning music. Further, to participate fully in a diverse global society, children must understand their own historical and cultural heritage and those of others within their community and beyond. The repertoire taught includes music representing diverse genres and styles from various periods and cultures.

At each grade level, music classes focus on rhythm, melody and harmony, form, dynamics, tempo, tone color, style, drama and theater, dance and music history. As students move from grade to grade, the levels of sophistication and understanding increase as students are exposed to and learn increasingly complicated ideas involved in each aspect of music.

Art

The Art curriculum is based on the elements and principles of design. Students are encouraged to become aware of the use of shapes and forms, lines, colors, values, texture, balance, variety, symmetry, and space in works of art and in the world around them.

The curriculum will include an introduction to Art History, aesthetics, criticism, multiculturalism, and production. Through the Art scope and sequence, students will use the elements and principles of design to develop new skills and acquire new knowledge, each year building the learning of previous years.

Art experiences are aligned with the Pennsylvania Academic Standards for the Arts and Humanities that describe what students should know by grades 3, 5, 8, and 12.

All elementary students receive art instruction each week for at least 45 minutes, with the exception of Kindergarten children, who receive art instruction for 30 minutes per week. Differentiated instruction is part of classroom practice in Art and is used to accommodate the various styles of learning and needs of individual students.