TK/Kindergarten

 

Transitional Kindergarten

Our Transitional Kindergarten program at St. Isidore School has been developed to meet the needs of four-year-olds and young five-year-olds. It is where children will begin their learning for the tools and skills they will use for the rest of their lives. By creating a supportive and fun-filled classroom learning environment, our teachers are able to nurture and guide each child's emerging capabilities. The structured program allows for creative play, freedom to choose activities, and ‘hands on’ learning. We work in centers learning literature and math that gives students the abilities to foster their skills and get them ready for Kindergarten. These elements of the program are essential to help guide each child to develop intellectually, socially, emotionally, and spiritually.

Our Transitional Kindergarten Enrichment Program offers students weekly lessons in Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math (STEAM). Students will experiment with different activities and crafts guided by the STEAM curriculum.

Lastly, enrichment is an optional part of the day for Transitional Kindergarten. If your child is an Early Bulldog, they may choose to stay all day in the enrichment room. If your child is a Late Bulldog, they may choose to be dropped off in the morning for enrichment. The enrichment schedule includes lunch, story time, music/movement, STEAM stations, and Free Choice stations. There is one enrichment teacher and an instructional assistant with the students.

***Transitional Kindergarten admittance is dependent upon a child having reached his or her 4th birthday by September 1st. 

Kindergarten

Our Kindergarten program is designed to help develop a happy, well-rounded child: morally, intellectually, socially, and physically. Our Kindergarten curriculum includes Religion, Balanced Literacy Reading Program, Writer’s Workshop, Math Workshop, Science, Social Studies and Handwriting.

Our Religion Program consists of learning to know, love, and serve God through prayers, gospel values, object lessons, and our WE BELIEVE, Sadlier-Publisher textbook. Our focus is on creation. A program entitled SECOND STEP has been instituted to help children with feelings, attitudes and behaviors.

Our reading components include Modeled Reading (Read Aloud), Shared Reading, Guided Reading and Independent Reading. A variety of reading strategies are taught so that our students can internalize and use these strategies independently. Students enjoy literacy centers where they learn a variety of skills in multiple ways. Centers include; ipad/computer center, hands-on/tactile center, game center, and teacher directed center to meet the needs of each student.

Our writing curriculum are taken from the Lucy Calkins Writer’s Workshop that is aligned to the Common Core Standards. Students will be writing Narratives, How-To, and Opinion pieces throughout the year. Our handwriting text is Handwriting Without Tears. This curriculum provides developmentally appropriate, multi-sensory tools and strategies for our students. Students learn to print the alphabet (upper and lowercase letters) and numbers with correct formation and line placement. The Kindergarten students are responsible for recognizing twenty-five High Frequency words and are also responsible for learning to spell twenty-five Sitton Spelling words before entering First Grade.

Math curriculum includes learning about patterns, shapes, measurements, time, money, and graphing. The program includes leveled center-activities where students learn math concepts through the use of manipulatives, collaboration and hands-on math games. Students will learn addition and subtraction to 10 and how to problem solve. Students will learn to count and write numbers and enjoy celebrating “100 days of school.” We also use activities from “Mountain Math” each day as Common Core warm-ups as a supplemental spiral review, preview, and assessment of concepts taught. Number Talks activities help students develop their mental math skills and computation strategies.

***Kindergarten admittance is dependent upon the child having reached his or her 5th birthday by September 1st of the respective academic year.