Lower School Curriculum
Language Arts
The Language Arts program at Columbia Independent School is developed to meet the instructional needs of each child. A literature-centered approach is strengthened by skill and vocabulary. The Language Arts program provides opportunities for the development of all aspects of communication: thinking, listening, speaking, reading and writing.
Mathematics
Manipulative materials are used to build a concrete and sensory impression of number and quantity in kindergarten. The first grade classes continue use of manipulatives to develop mathematical concepts and computational skills after number concepts are in place. Second and third grades move from a rich use of manipulatives to abstraction in addition and subtraction, while furthering use of manipulatives with multiplication, division and fractions and geometry. Grades four and five continue building their mathematical skills by solving problems while incorporating calculators, pre-algebraic formulas and models.
Science
The Science curriculum is an experiential, hands-on approach to learning science. Emphasis is placed on the development of science process skills which are introduced at appropriate levels. The curriculum covers a broad range of topics while stimulating and encouraging children to ask questions and find answers using the scientific method.
Social Studies
The Social Studies curriculum includes the study of history, political and physical geography, economics, cultures, social and political systems, and civic understanding and character development. Students develop skills and acquire information for productive problem solving, as well as for assessing issues and making careful decisions. The subject matter includes the study of political, economic, cultural, and environmental aspects of societies in the past and the present. Our goals are to equip students with the knowledge and understanding of the past necessary for making decisions in the present and planning for the future; to enable them to understand and participate effectively in the world around them.
Foreign Language
The Foreign Language program emphasizes communication and culture, which are taught primarily through the aural/oral method. In kindergarten, our students begin the process of learning a second language through listening, imitation and repetition. This parallels first-language acquisition in which listening and speaking precede reading and writing. The latter skills are introduced and developed gradually as students progress through the grades. The program also teaches grammar at appropriate levels and includes, at every level, cultural and historical topics related to the language being studied.
Art
The Art program emphasizes activities in which the child expresses individuality, creativity, and originality. Each child develops skills and respect for his/her work and the work of others. The program challenges and educates the child through activities in two and three dimensional areas based on the elements of art---line, color texture, form, value, and space. The curriculum includes hands-on activities, art appreciation, and art that relates to the classroom curriculum, especially using the study of continents and cultures.
Music
The Music program supports and furthers the educational goals of the school in various ways. Creating, listening to, and performing music result in a student who is musically aware. The curriculum includes hands-on activities, group singing, and music appreciation. Children have the opportunity to listen to great composers and perform before an audience in school programs.
Physical Education
The guidelines for kindergarten through fifth grade Physical Education program consist of seven areas of instruction: body and spatial awareness; developmental games; fundamental movement; personal fitness; rhythm and dance; balancing and tumbling; and sports and lifetime activities. Physical fitness testing occurs in grades K-5.
Library
The library is a resource center for the CIS Lower School community. Students and staff interact to develop a love of reading, an excitement about research, and the skills necessary for finding, evaluating and synthesizing information.
Technology
Computers are located in classrooms and support curricular instruction in a developmentally appropriate manner. As our children grow, technology has an increasing presence in their education through online research, communication and publishing projects. The Upper School computer lab is used by the Lower School for keyboarding and research activities.
Practical Life
The Practical Life curriculum provides authentic tasks that allow children to gain the skills needed to become lifelong learners and capable thinkers with good independent and cooperative working abilities. In the classroom, on the playground and at lunch, the child has the opportunity to participate in caring for the environment, animals and self. These activities provide an important link for the child between home and the outside world by stressing responsibility and character development.
