Upper Level

This large, dynamic program organizes students in myriad ways. Each student is assigned to a home base where they begin and end their days. From there, they are gathered in groupings depending on subject. As a result, children interact with a wide variety of peers/adults over the course of each week, satisfying their intense drive for social connection.

Practical Life

Community meetings:

• Conflict resolution
• Respect for self, peers, and environment

Grace and courtesy:

• Manners
• Classroom protocol
• Care of indoor and outdoor environments
• Centering Strategies

Time management:

• Planning skills and work organization

Language Arts

Reading Skills

• Close reading refining the use of reading comprehension strategies.
• Reading for information – fiction, non-fiction
• Critical consideration of perspective and bias in text/media
• Extensive use of varied text formats and genres

Literary elements:

• Genre
• Plot
• Conflict/resolution
• Climax
• Character analysis
• Setting

Handwriting:

• Routine use of proper cursive

Advanced grammar and sentence analysis:

• Parts of speech
• Subject/Predicate
• Direct/Indirect object
• Adjectival modifiers
• Adverbial modifiers
• Basic Sentence diagramming

Word study/Mechanics:

• Capitalization
• Punctuation
• Prefix/Suffix
• Homonyms
• Vocabulary development
• Spelling

Writing

• Multi-step process for composition
• Prewriting activities, rough draft, revision, editing, final draft
• Note taking in various formats

Compositions

• Types of sentences
• Paragraph form
• Creative writing
• Expository writing
• Descriptive
• Narrative
• Persuasive
• Five paragraph essay
• Poetry
• Research paper 

Math

• Math fact memorization
• Concrete to abstract in all operations

Fractions:

• Comparison, ordering, rounding
• Operations
• Mixed, proper/improper
• Reducing/Simplifying

Decimals:

• Comparisons, ordering and rounding
• Operations
• Percentages
• Converting between fractions, decimals and percents
• Practical applications in single and multi-step problem solving
• Ratio/Proportion including Interest: principal, rate, time, scale drawings, sales,tips
• Constructing squares and cubes of binomials and trinomials
• Calculating square and cube roots
• Beginning statistics: data gathering, graphing, and analysis

Number theory:

• Divisibility rules
• Factors/Multiples
• Primes/Composite Numbers
• Factor Trees and Prime Factorization
• Estimation
• Basic mathematical laws

Probability

• Fair/unfair
• Dependent/independent
• Pascal’s Triangle

Pre-algebra:

• Symbols and order of operations
• Operations with signed  numbers
• Solving for a variable in mutli-step equations
• Other Bases

Geometry

• Advanced study of nomenclature
• Geometric shapes: characteristics, measurements, and drawing
• Compass constructions: copy a line/angle, bisect line/angle
• Concepts:
• Properties:
• Congruence, similarity, equivalence, 
• Symmetry
• Derivation of area, volume formulas
• Calculation: perimeter, area, volume
• Theorem of Pythagoras
• Measurement: length, weight, capacity in  metric and customary

Life Science:

• Tree of Life
•  Classification of Five Kingdoms
• Structure/Function of internal and external parts and systems
• Ecology/Food Chains and Webs
• Cell theory
• Biological cycles: Water, Nitrogen, Carbon-Oxygen

Human body:

• Structure and Function of each system
• Genetics
• Puberty
• Health and nutrition

Earth science

• Plate Tectonics
• Formation of Volcanoes and Mountains
• Work of Water in creating land/water forms
• Caves/Ground water
• Rivers
• Oceanography
• The Rock Cycle
• Identifying rocks and minerals

Chemical science:

• Atomic Structure
• Study of the Periodic Table
• Compounds and Mixtures
• Solutions
• States of Matter
• Types of Chemical Bonds
• Acids and Bases
• Experiments and scientific method

• Fundamental needs of humans
• Creation of the universe
• Evolution of life and early humans
• Study of early Hominids

Ancient Civilizations:

• Mesopotamia and Egypt
• Greece and Rome
• Meosamerica – Aztec and Maya
• Indus Valley
• China
• Incas of South America
• Pre-Columbian Native Americans
• European history –  Middle Ages, Renaissance, Age of Explorers 
• Colonization

Geography

• Physical / Political geography
• Continents
• Countries
• Basic mapping skills
• Advanced land and water forms
• Biomes of the world
• Impact of geography on development of people
• Natural resources/energy sources
• Economic geography
• Types of Governments

Anti-Bias

• define racism, sexism, ableism, classism. 
• refine their understanding of stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination.
• uncover instances of whitewashing and the perpetuation of myths in texts, visual materials and current events.
• further refine their understanding of the gender spectrum.
• uncover social expectations of gender and the consequent limitations for some individuals depending on how they identify.