Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten
Constructing knowledge through activity
In pre-kindergarten and kindergarten, active play and teacher-led instruction lead to social development  and learning.  Teachers continually assess and support each child to ensure the diverse developmental needs of young children are met.

Reading
Achieving early literacy and oral language skills
Starting in pre-kindergarten and kindergarten, children gain language skills by balancing phonics with literature study.  The first and second grades work in reading groups and hear literature read aloud. Grades three, four and five learn to recognize parts of literature such as main ideas and point of view.  They learn to draw inferences and analyze texts.

Writing and Language Skills
Understanding writing as a process
Writing every day, students master grammar, usage and mechanics.  Working one-on-one with teachers and in small groups, they learn to choose personally meaningful topics and approach writing as a process.  This sequential writing program, which begins in pre-kindergarten, culminates with fifth graders writing research papers, short essays, letters, persuasive paragraphs and personal narratives.

Mathematics
Exploring the mathematical spectrum
The University of Chicago’s Everyday Math program focuses on numbers and operations, patterns and relationships, data and chance, and geometry and spatial sense.  While building skills over the years, we also explore algorithms, patterns, measurements, functions, and sequences.  Students apply this learning to real-life situations.

Social Studies
Learning that connects to the outside world
Social studies takes place in interdisciplinary thematic units such as ecosystems, flight, city of Philadelphia, animals, and transportation.  Visits to related sites, such as the zoo, train station, or public gardens make classroom learning come alive.

World Language
Discovering a doorway to other cultures
Starting in kindergarten, lower school students have Spanish twice a week.  The idea is to emphasize language skill development while providing information about different cultures and peoples.  By third grade, students are working on Spanish grammar, reading and writing.

Library and Information Technology
Developing a love of books
Starting in pre-kindergarten, students visit the library weekly to understand its value, structure and use.  All classrooms have access to multiple computers.  Technology, such as PowerPoint, is integrated into the curriculum wherever appropriate.

Science
Compelling investigations
Student explorations start right in the science room, which features aquariums and small living creatures.  In addition, they develop facility with scientific instruments such as microscopes, balances and beakers.  Virtual images augment exciting live demonstrations.

Art
Playing with color, shape and line
Students discover painting, drawing and sculpture while studying an artist, period or culture.  They learn elements and principles of line, shape, form, color, texture, contrast, pattern, rhythm and space.  Each year, we engage in an in-depth study of a famous artist, such as Jacob Lawrence or Alexander Calder.  Pre-kindergarten through second-grade classes are taught in half-class groups.