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Ideal Curriculum Kindergarten

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The kindergarten curriculum provides children from diverse backgrounds with an activity-based, child-centered learning environment. Teachers provide a rich array of resources and play opportunities, both developmental and academic. Children are encouraged through play to become competent, resourceful learners, who flourish as a result of social interactions with their age mates and teachers. Teachers support and nurture learning in a variety of domains: physical development, emotional and social growth, literacy and English language, the arts, mathematics, science, and social studies.

 

SUBJECT:  ART

THE KINDERGARTEN CHILD WILL:

 

  1. The Kindergarten child, home-oriented in his experiences, comes to school, aware that he is away from home, eager to please and usually interested in playing with other children, but also curious and in need of reassurance from home and school

 

  1. Be able to recognize primary colors and know that all colors come from them.
  2. Be able to identify shapes and be aware of size differences.
  3. Learn to recognize parts of a face and their location.
  4. Learn to fill the page.  Learn about the use of a base or horizon line.
  5. Discuss various ways of showing distance (e.g. aerial view).

 

  1. Enjoy the pleasures of vertical and horizontal drawing and painting:
  2. Learn proper use of brush, paint, water container, and cloth before painting, and clean up after painting.
  3. Learn tempera painting by starting with big shapes of color and then adding details.
  4. Learn watercolor painting by using wet on wet and dry brush techniques.
  5. Use a good composition by filling in the paper and experimenting with shapes and lines.
  6. Experiment with tools, other than a brush in painting (e.g. sponge, sticks, finger, feathers, etc.).

Printing:

  1. Learn that a print is a reverse image of an object, which is usually repeated more than once.
  2. Use oil base clay to make a print.
  3. Demonstrate printing process by use of folding paper in half.
  4. Be introduced to mono-printings and heat transfer method.

 

Fiber Arts:

  1. Be introduced to the process of weaving paper, and the terms loom, warp, weft, and shuttle.
  2. Learn to make simple puppets from paper bags and then more complex mediums, such as: socks, clay, and paper Mache.

 

Stitchery:

  1. Be introduced to the terms stitchery, needlepoint, and embroidery.
  2. Learn to thread needle and make simple stitches ( e.g. running, cross, chain, and French knot).
  3. Use muslin, other fabrics, or plastic mesh in stitchery.

 

Sculpture:

  1. Learn terms sculpture and sculptor.
  2. Learn to look at their creation “in-the-round”.
  3. Learn to use different materials to form a sculpture (e.g. paper, styrofoam, clay, tin, wood, paper Mache, and found objects).
  4. Learn to assemble sculpture by cutting, bending, folding, tearing, piercing, overlapping, and balancing pieces.

 

Collage:

  1. Learn the definition of collage.
  2. Be introduced to various mediums used in collage by artists.
  3. Learn to make a collage using found objects, paper, labels, and natural objects.

 

Pastels:

  1. Learn to apply pastels using the point or side of the chalk to paper.
  2. Learn about artists who use pastels in their work.

 

Jewelry:

  1. Learn to define the term jewelry.
  2. Be introduced to simple jewelry construction using string, beads, pasta, buttons, paper, and natural materials.
  3. Be aware of types of jewelry made in different cultures and times of history

 

ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERACY DEVELOPMENTAL DOMAIN

The study of writing, reading, speaking, and listening at the kindergarten level encourages creative writing and drawing as children begin to interpret written words as meaningful. Children use a variety of fine arts activities to foster their use of language. Children engage in prephonenic and early literacy tasks, which prepares them for reading and writing in the niore structured setting of first grade.

A. The study of writing and reading at the kindergarten level introduces children to the writing process in the context of print.
 

  1. Introduce D'Nealian as a methodology of letter formation.
  2. Write upper and lower case letter of the week by tracing on large chart and paper.
  3. Dictate sentences and write down what children say.
  4. Write first names and model writing by making labels for classroom objects.
  5. Use self-expressive materials; i.e., play dough, finger paints, easel painting.
  6.  Introduce journal writing.

    LEARNING

    B. The study of literacy and the English language at the kindergarten level develops children's ability to use sound and sensory information to learn to read

 

  1. Present phonics sound of specific letters; i.e., M, S, T, D, V, I, A, C, and P.
  2. Use whole language strategies using big books, stories, and the Weekly Reader.
  3. Develop top to bottom progression and left to right progression.
  4. Help children to follow oral directions.
  5. Introduce rhyming words with auditory discrimination activities using songs, stories, poetry, finger plays, books, discussion, and conversation.
  6. Help children to recognize sound and symbol relationships for consonants and short vowels.
  7. Help children to recognize alphabet in and out of sequence
  8. Present a foreign language (Spanish) to encourage cultural awareness.
  9. Encourage housekeeping to foster pretend play.

 

C. The study of extended literacy at the kindergarten level encourages accelerated learning for children who are ready to read and can locate words by sight.

  1.  Identify letter-sound matches and practice them routinely.
  2. Teach proper formation of upper and lower case letters.
  3. Discuss and practice periods, question marks, and exclamations using all types of literature, including Big Books.
  4. Model how to copy sentence strings.
  5. Establish reading buddies so that cooperative learning can help children develop close relationships with older students.
  6. Model and demonstrate writing as part of the language experience.
  7.  Read poetry to children.
  8. Read aloud to children daily.
  9. Teach simple and compound words, initial consonant, final consonant, medial vowel sound.
  10.  Present simple encoding skills through inventive spelling and linking language to printed page.
  11. Encourage self-expression and creativity through journal writing.
  12. Prepare shared reading experiences to help children understand a useful relationship between printed word and what happens in life.
  13. Select word patterns in shared reading experiences.
  14. Examine and use letters K, 0, F, W, G, Q, and U in print and in dramatic play.


D. The study of oral communication at the kindergarten level enables children to become effective speakers and to learn to tell what they know.
 

  1. Give children opportunities to talk in group times.
  2.  Engage children in conversational forms of instruction including discussion, negotiation, and questioning.
  3. Speaking skills - learn to use an attractive speaking voice - show and tell, early school assembly, class meetings, and performances.
  4. Assign children to talk about ethnic and racial heritage's.
  5. Encourage oral speaking skills to cultivate positive feelings about ethnic and racial heritage's.
  6. Converse with children to review and analyze facts they have discovered on their own, and use those reasonable facts to draw conclusions.


E. The study of literature-based whole language at the kindergarten level introduces children to the process of selecting reading materials and prepares them for further phonics and word usage.

1. Discuss and read about author style by reading books written by different authors.
2. Dictate language experience stories using description of pictures.
3. Create group stories using cooperative learning.
4. Discuss and teach word families by blending letters into words and sounding them out.
5. Expand children's knowledge of the letters 13, L, R, X, E, J, Y, and Z.

F. The study of the visual arts and oral communication at the kindergarten level
involves children in the presentation of an original play, which prepares children to be actors and to enjoy performing in front of others.

I.  Development of communication skills - listening and attentiveness and help children express actions and feelings to others.
2. Build children's confidence in themselves as writers and readers.
3. Teach organizational skills and knowing when to speak.
4. Promote creativity and imagination by making costume through representational character.
5. Develop children's confidence in speaking in front of others.
6. Produce a musical play in which children sing in front of an audience.

II. MATHEMATICS AND COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENTAL DOMAIN

The mathematics domain at the kindergarten level prepares children to learn patterns, relationships, and functions. It involves problem solving and developing a sense of numbers. Children are encouraged to think about numbers as a system by which the world organizes information.

A. The study of number recognition and patterns at the kindergarten level:

1. Use a calendar to count days of week and month.
2. Count days in school.
3. Identify and write numbers 1-20.
4. Practice one-to-one correspondence.
5. Introduce place value by ones and tens, counting, and identifying numbers.
6. Count to 100.
7. Use ordinal numbers such as 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.
8. Skip counting by 2's, 5's, and lO's.
9. Count backwards.
10. Count even and odd numbers.
11. Review patterns in nature.
12. Review patterns in letter recognition.
13. Review geometric patterns and sort attribute blocks.
14. Use block numbers for formal practice by color, size, and shape.

B. The study of the development of basic operations at the kindergarten level:

1. Review addition - plus, equal, and take away.
2. Learn to subtract - math language.
3. Introduce traditional problem format.
4. Learn the value of a penny, nickel, and dime by using real money in the grocery store set up in the classroom.

C. The study of problem solving at the kindergarten level:

1. Write simple problems and choose ways to solve each problem.
2. Expand strategies for problem solving: count, make a drawing, guess and check, role play, look for patterns, use manipulatives such as blocks, rods,
     uniuix cubes, play money, pattern blocks, etc.
3. Introduce traditional problem format (number sentences).
4. Reintroduce computers for addition, subtraction, and pattern recognition.
5. Introduce calculator keys and functions.
6. Use appropriate math vocabulary.

D. The study of geometry at the kindergarten level:

1. Use manipulatives to create geometric patterns.
2. Recognize basic shapes (circle, square, rectangle, and triangle).
3. Use geometry in art (paper cutting and folding) and create designs.
4. Describe visual-spatial relationships that children experience in the world.

E. The study of measurement at the kindergarten level:

1. Compare objects of different sizes.
2. Measure ingredients used in cooking.
3. Order events in daily schedule.
4. Sequence days, weeks, and events using a calendar.
5. Introduce ruler and yardstick.
6. Read a calendar.
7. Tell time on a clock to the hour.
8. Graph data such as weather, birthdays, etc.

III. SCIENCE DEVELOPMENTAL DOMAIN

The study of science at the kindergarten level develops children's curiosity and "need to know." Children participate in cooperative sharing of ideas, brainstorming, and discussion groups. Children select topics of interest as a way to do research. They suggest alternative possibilities, propose solutions, and study results.

A. The study of the autumn season and seasonal changes at the kindergarten level examines, with children, scientific knowledge by retrieving present knowledge and thoughts, new concepts, and scientific ideas.

1. Study apples and other fall types of food; prepare food and clean up.
2. Research Thanksgiving and early American colonies and colonists' way of life.
3. Present information about American Indians and Pilgrims, and the types and sites of homes and clothing.
4. Relate Ground Hog Day to elements of weather, time of year, animal and plant life, and events that happen around us.
5. Examine cultivars and species of trees.
6. Compare and contrast evergreen and deciduous trees.
7. Record observations over extended period of time.
8. Inform children that plants and trees require water, nutrients, and light to grow.
9. In winter, water is frozen and trees lose their leaves.

B. The study of physics and natural science at the kindergarten level allows children to perform experiments that allow for self-discovery and group research.

1. Show children how to conduct simple estimating, diagramming, mapping, and recording tasks.
2. Model and demonstrate construction of bridges, tunnels, levers, pulleys, wheels, barrels, and other objects related to physics for comparing color,
    shape, size, weight, and measurement.
3. Review and arrange classroom equipment that possesses physical properties, such as gravity.

C. The study of health and healthy foods at the kindergarten level develops children's appreciation for their own bodies and health. Children are introduced to professionals who provide health services and information about nutrition, dental care, and healthy eating habits.

1. Teach the importance of teeth and the need to care for them. Rehearse proper care of teeth.
2. Talk with children about the need to eat and the value of good nutrition.
3. Develop use of senses for scientific observations.
4. Reintroduce body functions related to the five senses. Compare sweet, sour, rough, and smooth.
5. Encourage children to appreciate and value life.
6. Introduce workers of a hospital so children develop an awareness of people who work in health care fields.
7. Develop children's interest in medical and dental care.
8. Introduce children to doctors, nurses, dentists, and health care professionals.

D. The study of color and light at the kindergarten level provides children with information about shadows and awareness of the property of light and color.

1. Explain the properties of light; it travels in a straight line until it hits an object.
2. Instruct children that the sun is the source of natural light.
3. Present facts about colors, illumination, magnification, and the importance of light.

E. The study of rocks at the kindergarten level recognizes that children need to know
about earth sciences and how the earth was formed.

1. Explain rocks are different sizes and shapes.
2. Explain rocks are made of smaller things, have observable properties, and can be grouped by physical properties.

F. The study of hibernating animals, migration, 211(1 environment awareness at the kindergarten level develops an ecological perspective for children and allows children to explore the meaning of adaptation.)

1. Explain animals hibernate as an adaptation to survive winter.
2. Discuss with children why animals hibernate because there is no food to eat.
3. Discuss animal adaptation to seasonal change.
4. Discuss with children that animals migrate because of lack of food.

G. The study of floaters and sinkers at the kindergarten level presents children with information about volume, weight, measurement, and the importance of water in the ecology of the earth.

1. Discuss one way to group objects is to determine if they will float or sink.
2. Develop children's understanding that things have mass and take up space.
3. Experiment with objects that float, sink, or react to water in various ways.

H. The study of the earth and its solar system at the kindergarten level helps children recognize their place in the universe and understand the relationship between space and earth.

1. Explain we live on a planet called earth, and that it is part of a system, which includes a sun, planets, asteroids, and meteorites.
2. Describe and define stars in the galaxy.
3. Investigate atmospheric conditions and weather, in creative and artistic ways.

IV. SOCIAL STUDIES AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENTAL DOMAIN

The study of social studies at the kindergarten level orients children to the school experience. Children are encouraged to become full participants in whole group activities, as well as individual situations. They develop skills in socialization, cooperative learning, and the classroom as a "home away from home."

A. Investigate the classroom at the kindergarten level in order to make children secure at school.

1. Become familiar with the classroom including cubbies, bins, games, puzzles, and tables.
2. Focus on children's feelings in the school situation by offering them encouragement, security, and social interaction.

B. Tour school grounds at the kindergarten level in order to make children comfortable.

1. Meet the Head of School, secretaries, and special teachers, and design a supportive environment that includes centers and areas for specific
    curriculum purposes.
2. Become familiar with where the gym, music and art classes, and the playground are located.
3. Make schoolbook of the children, including their pictures and their families.

C. The study of school rules at the kindergarten level encourages specific behaviors, such as sitting, listening, completing tasks, and being kind to others.

1. Help children to restrain unsociable impulses.
2. Teach children socially acceptable ways of getting what they want.
3. Divert and redirect children when they are inappropriate in their behavior.
4. Give children a place to "cool off'."

D. The study of "All About Me" at the kindergarten level develops children's social competence and sense of self among individual children.

1. Create a "Book" and include family, likes, and dislikes.
2. Introduce journal writing.
3. Conduct Grandparent's Day.
5. Develop strategies for building healthy relationships among children so that they can function successfully as part of a group.

E. The study of a colonial village at the kindergarten level develops children's appreciation for different times in U. S. history.

1. Discuss and show how colonies functioned as social, religious, and economic groups.
2. Demonstrate how early settlers had to rely on cooperation, partnerships and relationships, importance of families, and ideas of ethics, morals, and
    social responsibility.
3. Simulate a village scene in the classroom. .

F. The study of the community and its workers at the kindergarten level develops children's understanding of roles and jobs beyond their neighborhoods.

1. Interpret different and similar cars (Police! Fire! Emergency vehicles) and three kinds of police officers (safety patrol, traffic, amid detectives).
2. Invite safety and traffic police officers to visit and show cruisers, equipment, and uniforms.
3. Describe shapes associated with clothes, equipment, vehicles, etc.
4. Define fire engines and fire fighters and show two kinds of engines: hook and ladder and pumper.
5. Identify numbers and symbols, such as 9-1-1 (emergency), "Stop, drop, and roll."
6. Describe fireman's duties and the equipment they wear as part of a field trip to a fire station.
7. Instruct children in bus procedures and other transportation and safety matters, in preparation for future field trips.
8. Show children the mechanical and surface parts of a school bus and take a short ride around the area of the school.

G. The study of special days at the kindergarten level helps children feel satisfied and fulfilled.

1. Identify Martin Luther King so children become aware of similarities, differences, and his accomplishments.
2. Introduce Ground Hog Day and the elements of the weather, time of year, animal and plant life, and the events that happen around us.
3. Arrange for Valentine's Day and help children understand about caring for others and showing feelings.
4. Study Hanukkah, Kwanza, amid Christmas, etc. Keep traditions alive in children's minds; encourage sharing of different foods, customs, and ethnic
    traditions.
5. Prepare a "Q" and "U" wedding; review alphabet letters in addition to "Q" and "U" and introduce social skills involved in a wedding.

H. The study of economics at the kindergarten level encourages children to think about scarcity, exchange of money, local leaders, and the role of people in the government and in politics.

1. Show children that all people have wants, but that people cannot have everything they want.
2. Introduce scarcity as a condition of not being able to have all of the goods and services that you want.
3. Bring in guests who are community leaders.
4. Recognize exchange as the trading of goods or services for other goods and services that you want.
5. Discriminate in the classroom between property that is individually owned and property that belongs to a group of people, which they freely share.

 

  • PHYSICAL EDUCATION
  •   
  • I.   Social Skills
  • Team Games - examples:  Kick ball, bee hive, etc.
  •  
  • II.  Locomotor Skills
  • Movement
  • Examples:  old man river, fishy-fishy, etc.
  •  
  • III.  Manipulative Skills
  •  Reception and Propulsion Games
  •        Examples:  Yarn ball toss groups of five, go-bots on the loose, etc.
  •  
  • IV.  Axial
  •  Fitness Activities and Games
  •  Examples:  Squat thrust, frisky pony kicks, etc.
  •  
  • V.  Exploratory Rhythmics and Shapes
  • Dance and Creative Movement - examples:  Streamer dances and movements, shapes and letters
  •  
  • VI  Tumbling
  • Basic Gymnastics
  • Examples:  no handed somersaults, cartwheels
Ask Dr. Susan

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