Primary School (K-2)

Reading, writing, spelling, and arithmetic are the foundation upon which the tower of learning is built and are given the highest priority in K-2. The basic skills, work habits, and attitudes formed in the primary years are of crucial importance.

Phonics and Reading
Phonics is the system of letter-sound association taught to children for the purposes of learning to read and spell.

Phonics is most effective when taught systematically, thoroughly, intensely, and in a logical and time-tested sequence: letter names/recognition; consonant and short vowel sounds; three-letter word formation; long vowels/silent e; consonant blends, consonant teams, and vowel teams; suffixes and prefixes. Common sight-words, which do not fit into any word-family, are introduced after three-letter word formation is mastered.

Our primary resource for phonics instruction is the three-year SRA phonics series, supplemented with some techniques from Discover Intensive Phonics. Inaddition every family is provided with a copy of our Word Mastery Reader, a useful tool empowering parents and teachers to work individually with students in mastering phonics.

Kindergarten students read orally, practicing phonetic words, sight words, and simple sentences.  Using the classic and much-loved 1st grade readers published by Houghton Mifflin in 1985, students develop into confident and fluent readers by the end of kindergarten.

In first grade students continue to develop reading skills with whole books, which captivate and motivate children and are preferred over basal readers. First graders read children's classics such as Little Bear, Caps For Sale, The Story About Ping, Billy and Blaze, and The Courage of Sarah Noble. Second graders read Mr. Popper's Penguins, Little House in the Big Woods, and Stuart Little.  Spelling, penmanship, composition and vocabulary lessons for each book in these grades are provided by our Memoria Press Study Guides, written by our Primary School Director, Mary Lynn Ross.  

A rich language experience, provided both at home and in school, is an important factor in reading success. Students memorize poems and Scripture. Literature for teacher read-aloud includes Fairy Tales, Aesop's Fables, Uncle Remus, Bible Stories, and other children's favorites.

Spelling and Printing
Students develop the visual memory for accurate spelling by a systematic study of phonics, word families, spelling rules, and by a lifetime of seeing, reading, and writing words correctly. It is extremely important to reduce opportunities for children to write or see misspelled words. Young students who are allowed to spell creatively or phonetically have a confused visual memory that is very difficult to overcome.

Copybook is an exercise consisting of copying sayings, maxims, Scripture, and poetry in the student's best handwriting. Copybook is an important step in developing good penmanship, punctuation, and spelling. Habits of good penmanship are instilled early and required at every grade level by every teacher. The discipline of neat and legible handwriting is an aid to spelling and instills the value of accurate, careful work - an important academic skill that carries over into every aspect of learning. Students skilled in Copybook are ready for free composition.

Arithmetic
Number formation, counting, time, calendar, measurement, and money are the skills of K-2, along with mastery of addition and subtraction facts through 5's in Kindergarten, 9's in First Grade, and multiplication facts (1,2,5,10's) in Second Grade. Students learn number sense by skip counting, games, and drills, all of which make math time enjoyable and help students achieve immediate recall of math facts - the primary goal in K-2.

Geography, History, and Science
Students work with globes to learn continents, oceans, and major countries, and read about great Americans in the D'Aulaires' series. Second graders work with maps and begin to learn some U.S. states, rivers, and the Great Lakes. In science, students learn about the planets and seasons and take nature walks in our beautiful Crescent Hill neighborhood to collect leaves, flowers, acorns, bugs, and more! Students read and study about the many interesting creatures in the Plant and Animal Kingdoms in their Nature Readers. The Crescent Hill public library next door is a wonderful resource for children's nonfiction books on all aspects of science, history, and geography.

Christian Studies, Music and Art
In Christian Studies students read or listen to Bible stories and memorize and copy Bible verses and prayers. Our primary music instructor, Mrs. Rhonda Hibdon, visits each classroom twice weekly for lessons in the basic elements of music, including ear training, note reading, and choral performance.  Students draw and color everyday in their composition books where they illustrate copybook verses, poems, and composition lessons.  In art appreciation, students learn about an artist and study an art masterwork every month.

Physical Education
Students have Physical Education twice a week, (once a week for K).  P.E. provides 30 minutes of rigorous exercise as well as opportunities to play childhood games.  Mr. Ashby, our P.E. instructor, works to develop basic motor and motion skills, such as running, skipping, running backwards, flexibility, as well as sportsmanship and team play.   On days when students do not have P.E.,  they have recess in the gym, side yard or our 'Secret Garden' behind St. Mark's Church next door.