Kindergarten Curriculum Overview
This is an outline of the basic academic content each child will be taught during kindergarten. It is not a set of long-term goals, but rather is a brief summary of what is happening in the kindergarten classrooms of the Fort Zumwalt School District.
In addition to Communication Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science and Health, there are curricula for other subjects including Art, Music and Physical Education. Each child also has experience in assemblies, seasonal school-wide functions and playground interactions. Some students may also participate in special education programs and/or counseling programs, to help them develop appropriate skills.
Each teacher approaches the curriculum in a unique way. This capitalizes on the individual strengths and interests of the professional staff. In the final analysis, even though classes use the same materials and the same curricula, the professional staff is what elementary education is all about; learning with enthusiasm and purpose from a skillful,trained, and conscientious teacher.
COMMUNICATION ARTS
MATHEMATICS
1. NUMBER SENSE AND PROPERTIES
SOCIAL STUDIES
SCIENCE-HEALTH
The focus of the kindergarten science curriculum is on developing an awareness of the world in which we live. Through scientific inquiry, concepts will be presented in the life and earth sciences, including the study of animals and plants, the five senses and general health, and the four seasons. These areas will be explored utilizing the hands-on approach and incorporating the scientific process skills and method. Learners will be prompted to generate questions, to investigate, explore the scientific relevance of the content areas, and hypothesize. Activities may include the construction of models and/or the use of manipulative,interactive, and physical materials. In addition, experimentation will be an integral part of science instruction and process skills will be stressed using this method.
MUSIC
The elementary music program will provide students with knowledge of the fundamentals of music and the appreciation for the various realms related to music production and composition.
Kindergarten activities will emphasize:
ART
Art experiences will be drawn from these major areas:
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
A variety of activities address fundamental physical skills such as locomotor, non-locomotor skills, body awareness, balance, beanbag, rope and hoop skills.
Activities to stimulate perceptual motor development are also provided.
In addition to Communication Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science and Health, there are curricula for other subjects including Art, Music and Physical Education. Each child also has experience in assemblies, seasonal school-wide functions and playground interactions. Some students may also participate in special education programs and/or counseling programs, to help them develop appropriate skills.
Each teacher approaches the curriculum in a unique way. This capitalizes on the individual strengths and interests of the professional staff. In the final analysis, even though classes use the same materials and the same curricula, the professional staff is what elementary education is all about; learning with enthusiasm and purpose from a skillful,trained, and conscientious teacher.
COMMUNICATION ARTS
- Concepts About Print: Differentiate between a letter, word and sentence; identify capitalization and punctuation; locate elements of printed materials.
- Apply Phonetic Strategies: Match consonant letters and sounds; identify and name rhyming words; construct word families using phonograms.
- Word Recognition and Meaning: Recognize first and last name; read kindergarten words and eight basic colors.
- Comprehension of text: Recall details; make predictions; sequence a story; compare and contrast stories; distinguish between real and make-believe; use story structure to gain meaning.
- Write for a variety of purposes: Respond to oral and printed text and personal experiences using pictures, letters and/or phonetic spelling; use appropriate letters for single sounds; participate on a variety of cross-curricular writing (charts, lists, letters, journals, story starters, class books/publishing); develop ideas for writing.
- Develop Handwriting Skills: Understand concepts of top, bottom, above, below, around, through, over, under, first and last; follow left-to-right sequence; properly hold crayons and pencils, print capital and lower case letters; print first and last name.
- Develop Listening, Speaking and Viewing Skills: - Identify and use traits of a good listener; follow three step directions; speak in complete sentences to convey meaning; participate in conversation, discussion and language experience stories; respond to literature in a variety of ways; recite personal information; use kindergarten and color words in spoken sentences; use technology to improve communication skill.
MATHEMATICS
1. NUMBER SENSE AND PROPERTIES
- Classify and sort objects.
- One to one correspondence.
- Match sets.
- Count 1 through 100.
- Understand "more than" and "less than" in numbers less than 10.
- Recognize and write numerals 0 through 20.
- Addition facts to 10.
- Subtraction facts to 5.
- Identify penny, nickel, dime, quarter.
- Identify half and whole.
- Identify rectangle, triangle, circle, square, and oval.
- Identify positions.
- Determine heavier, lighter.
- Collect data for graph.
- Read and construct a simple bar graph using concrete objects.
- Compare objects and describe difference.
- Recognize and extend a pattern.
- Solve math stories.
- Recognize a calendar.
- Tell time to the hour.
- Understand use of a clock, thermometer, and ruler.
- Measure with non-standard units.
- Understand technology is used to understand and compute math operations.
- Recognize that many careers require and use math.
SOCIAL STUDIES
- Economics: Identify needs and wants and how people provide for these.
- Geography: Identify and locate land and water on a globe and map; identify various means and purposes of transportation.
- History: Identify national symbols and holidays.
- Political Science: Identify and observe rules at home, school, and community; perform classroom jobs, identify school and community workers; participate in classroom voting.
- Sociology/Anthropology/Psychology: Identify and define family, roles of family members, and family traditions; identify similarities and differences in other people and groups.
- Safety: Identify safety signs; role play safety regarding strangers, riding a bus, and crossing a street.
SCIENCE-HEALTH
The focus of the kindergarten science curriculum is on developing an awareness of the world in which we live. Through scientific inquiry, concepts will be presented in the life and earth sciences, including the study of animals and plants, the five senses and general health, and the four seasons. These areas will be explored utilizing the hands-on approach and incorporating the scientific process skills and method. Learners will be prompted to generate questions, to investigate, explore the scientific relevance of the content areas, and hypothesize. Activities may include the construction of models and/or the use of manipulative,interactive, and physical materials. In addition, experimentation will be an integral part of science instruction and process skills will be stressed using this method.
MUSIC
The elementary music program will provide students with knowledge of the fundamentals of music and the appreciation for the various realms related to music production and composition.
Kindergarten activities will emphasize:
- Pitch
- Rhythm
- Musical notation
- Form
- Timbre
- Listening Skills
- Cultural styles
ART
Art experiences will be drawn from these major areas:
- Drawing
- Painting
- Printmaking
- Ceramics
- Sculpture
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
A variety of activities address fundamental physical skills such as locomotor, non-locomotor skills, body awareness, balance, beanbag, rope and hoop skills.
Activities to stimulate perceptual motor development are also provided.
