Lower School

Success in math begins with a clear understanding of number sense. Kindergarten students begin to develop an intuitive feel for numbers and a common sense approach to applying them. Using hands-on manipulatives, iPads and games, students learn number patterns, comparisons, place value, addition and subtraction, estimation, coin calculations, measurement, and even geometry. They also learn to tell time, create graphs and record data. 

A kindergartner's world revolves around their personal experiences. Our goal is to take those experiences and expound upon them to help students make new connections with the world around them, whether in their own community or abroad. Rich experiences and connections encourage students to think, investigate and explore. It inspires them to research and read, verbally express their knowledge and promotes writing as documentation of their understanding.

Becoming a fluent reader is essential to academic success. Literacy skills are the centerpiece of our curriculum as we dive into reading and writing on the very first day of kindergarten.  Many components are involved in becoming a confident reader: letter recognition, phonics, sight words, decoding and blending. We use Jolly Phonics, a synthetic approach that uses 42 sounds to parallel the 26-letter alphabet. Kindergarten students can become confident, fluent readers who enjoy the world of books.

Our science curriculum allows children to explore the world around them with engaging experiments and activities. Our students use their senses to explore biology, physics and even simple chemistry. Our activities allow children to learn scientific concepts to think critically. Students engage in higher order thinking and utilize and refine their science skills through observations, hypotheses and recordings.

Students learn how language develops through reading, writing and word study. They become more confident spellers of high frequency and core vocabulary words through dictation, repetition and breaking down complex words into syllables.

Young writers learn to compose complete sentences using capital letters, punctuation, subjects and predicates. They learn to add details and personality to their writing, as reflected in their weekly journals. 
 
Students read stories together and in small, fluid groups that match their abilities. This differentiation allows teachers time to observe and work individually with each child. Reading aloud at school and at home promotes fluency, accuracy, comprehension and expression.

Instruction begins with basic addition and subtraction, then applies those skills to higher level concepts including place and monetary values, telling and writing time, weights and measurements, fractions, graphing and geometry.

Hands-on activities compliment pencil-and-paper lessons to keep first graders actively engaged in learning. To master math facts, they move through a progression of "hot pencil" timed tests at their own rate. To learn graphing, they flip coins and track results. To understand three-dimensional shapes, they take the iPads on a scavenger hunt through the school. Rotating through enrichment activities, they deepen their understanding of math strategies and concepts using manipulatives, games and other tools.

The three main areas of science study in grade 1 are plants, weather and matter.
First graders learn how seeds travel, germinate and grow. They observe the growth cycle in the Barstow garden, where they work with middle school mentors to plant and harvest vegetables. Students learn to identify the three primary types of matter: solids, liquids and gases. They conduct experiments and observe and describe what they see. They also learn how weather affects our daily lives and how to collect and measure weather data. 

During twice weekly STEAM classes, they practice coding, compete in games and engage in engineering activities that enhance the classroom curriculum.

First grade students learn what it means to be part of a community: in their school, neighborhood, city and beyond. They develop an understanding of the roles of rule and law in society. 

During a unit on national symbols, students use research tools to write and share reports that include an introduction, expository information and a summary about their chosen symbol. Geography study includes the culture, history and languages of Canada and Mexico.

All students apply those lessons through project based learning and hands-on activities. Students will design a 3D city executing what they have learned about geometry, plan a Thanksgiving dinner, create a marketing plan for an amusement park, utilize their knowledge of area and perimeter to design a tiny home, and structure a business plan for their very own Shark Tank innovation.

Students take on the role of a scientist as they explore forces and interactions, ecosystems, life cycles, and weather and climate. These young scientists employ skills such as observing and asking questions about the world around them to make scientific connections. Within each science unit, students participate in inquiry based learning and STEAM projects. Our STEAM projects follow the Design Thinking Process to help students act as engineers and solve real world problems. In The Design Thinking Process, students ask, plan, make, improve and present. This cyclical process reinforces that idea that science is ever changing and evolving.

Barstow third graders immerse themselves in historical study right in our own backyard. Major topics include historic trails, indigenous tribes of the Kansas City area, immigration, election and government, economics and a research project on individuals that have made a difference in our community or world. This helps shape their evolving understanding of their roles as citizens.

Language arts in grade 4 engages students as they become more confident readers, writers and thinkers. They shift from learning to read, to reading to learn and they do so by choosing authors and genres that ignite their personal interests. They also further refine their personal writer's voice through free form prompts and structured writing exercises. Students learn to critique their own work and the work of their peers. They continue word study and build their vocabularies through reading, writing and spelling.

Fourth grade math focuses on the "how" — how to develop mental math skills, how to unravel the content of a word problem, how to arrive at a correct answer. The strategies are just as important as the solutions. Students benefit from 90 minutes of math instruction every day. This enriched program allows them to complete the equivalent of fourth and fifth grade math curriculum in a single year, focused on fractions, pre-algebra and geometry. Barstow students are so engaged in the math curriculum that two thirds of their grade level participate in a weekly math club. During these morning meetings, students are introduced to regional and state competition.

Grade 4 scientists learn by doing. The science classroom becomes a hands-on lab where students brainstorm, research, design and build their own inventions. They analyze needs in the marketplace, construct prototypes and refine their products based on testing and user input. They also synthesize different scientific principles and combine them to create mazes and roller coaster models.

Through the study of the regions of the United States, grade 4 students learn about the development of our nation. They use maps as primary source documents to help them understand the flow of people and products across America. They study states, capitals and the three branches of government, using iPad-supported learning to keep content fresh, relevant and interactive. Each spring, students delve into the history and government of Missouri. This culminates in a trip to Jefferson City to meet state lawmakers and witness the legislature in action. The experience serves as an introduction to the annual grade 5 trip to Washington, D.C.