Pre-Kindergarten (4's) Curriculum Information:The Four Year Old Pre-Kindergarten curriculum is set up to help prepare students for Kindergarten. Each week there is a topic or theme about which the students learn. Incorporated into each topic are activities and lessons in the following subject areas: Jesus Time, Physical Education, Language Arts, Math, Project Time – Arts and Crafts, and Circle Time – Science, Social Studies, and Music.
JESUS TIME
The CPH Voyages curriculum is used for Jesus Time. Students listen daily to stories from the Bible, sing songs in praise to God and take part in prayers. They come to know Jesus as their friend who died on the cross to take away their sins and rose again so they can go to heaven. They know God as their Creator who will always love them. Students are taught to show God’s love to others throughout the day.
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
Children daily take part in activities that promote large and small muscle development.
Large muscle activities take place in the gym as well as on the playground. Running, jumping, throwing, catching, walking, hopping, galloping, marching, balancing, and skipping are some of the skills worked on throughout the school year. Children will use balls, Frisbees, bean bags, hula hoops, scooters, ribbon sticks, parachute, and other equipment for games and free play time.
Small muscle activities include working with manipulatives, play dough, crayons, paint brushes, markers, puzzles, scissors and other items.
LANGUAGE ARTS
Students are provided with experiences with oral and written language.
Oral language experiences are provided throughout the school day. The teachers engage the children in conversations about real experiences, current events, and projects we are doing in the classroom. Children are given opportunities to talk with other children and to speak to the whole group. Children are offered time to take turns speaking and learn to listen to others and ask questions. Children are also asked to follow directions and learn to follow a series of directions in order.
Various experiences are given in the area of written language. Children are read to on a daily basis using books, charts, magazines, etc. Books are available in the classroom library for individual reading time. Children will participate in fingerplays, rhymes, and songs. Children are given opportunities to recognize words that have meaning to them: their own names, their friends’ names, words in the classroom and other common words. The children are introduced to letter names and encouraged to practice these both at school and home.
MATH
Math concepts are taught to the students through the daily routine, at calendar time and with the Saxon Math Curriculum. The students participate in hands on activities that involve number concepts, counting skills, patterning, sorting, numeral recognition and spatial concepts.
PROJECT TIME – ARTS & CRAFTS
Students will have the opportunity to work with a variety of items to create art and craft projects. The use of crayons, markers, paints, tissue paper, scissors, construction paper, sequins, craft foam, glue, etc. are used by the students. Through project time the students are encouraged to learn to follow directions, to improve their small muscle skills, and to explore and use their imagination to create their own wonderful and unique projects.
CIRCLE TIME – SCIENCE, SOCIAL STUDIES & MUSIC
Circle time is time that is used for a variety of learning areas. Science activities include learning about the world God has created – learning about plants, animals, weather, health, and other topics are worked on. Social studies activities involve students learning about themselves, their friends, families, our country, and holidays. Students are encouraged to have a healthy sense of self and to have positive self-esteem. Music is incorporated into circle time as well as throughout the entire school day. Children are given opportunities to sing, play, listen, and move to music. Songs that relate to the topic or time of year are learned. Circle time allows for many different activities to practice skills learned during the school day.
The Pre-Kindergarten curriculum is incorporating components of the SMART/Boostup program and elements of Ready Bodies, Learning Minds.
