In sixth grade, the Wellness and Life Skills program contains two core elements. The first element is to teach developmentally appropriate health education. The second element is to provide students with the opportunity to develop critical thinking and problem solving skills, so they can then make choices that promote wellness. At this level, students continue…

We have two main goals in Library: to help students become successful seekers, users and integrators of information from many sources, and to promote reading as a lifelong skill and pleasure. Skills to seek, evaluate and synthesize information are implemented across the grades at developmentally appropriate levels. Students are encouraged to seek out their areas…

In this course, students in sixth grade meet once per week to develop personalized strategies for study strategies and organization. Assessment preparation and active reading skills are explored and taught explicitly alongside quizzes, tests and readings. As students complete their inquiry projects and capstone experiences, systems of organization including paper and digital organization and time…

At this level, sport-specific skills are reinforced and refined through the use of small group and partner work, lead-up games and repetitive drills in modified and regulation game play. We emphasize positional and tactical play while still focusing on developing individual skills. The primary focus is on developing skills, tactics and confidence to promote a…

Students continue to develop solid fundamentals of the hand coordination and dexterity they begin in the ensemble during fifth grade. They learn new rhythms and how to dissect and sub-divide these rhythms. Students are introduced to melodic percussion: orchestra bells, marimba, xylophone, chimes and timpani. Each student is introduced to a broader range of instruments…

This course teaches students more complex rhythms, note reading and a wider range of techniques to guide them in the orchestra experience as students continue from fifth grade to sixth grade. Additional time is spent helping students develop a more mature sound through right arm bowing techniques and left-hand intonation work. The course begins to…

The goal at this level is to enhance some of the skills introduced in fifth grade and develop them more fully in each student. Students continue to work on the basic elements of sight-singing, music theory and complex part-singing throughout the year. Students finish all the basic intervocalic relationships and start to explore modes. In…

This year-long ensemble class expands upon and develops the skills acquired in fifth grade. Students begin studies in tone development, technical facility, rhythm and musicality. These skills allow the band to begin studying meaningful and age-appropriate band repertoire. At the conclusion of the course, students are capable of playing major scales through four sharps and…

In this year-long course, students are challenged to explore the use of art as a vehicle for communication. Various media are used in familiar and new ways to solve project assignments. With an expanding understanding of two-dimensional and three-dimensional design concepts, students analyze how their intentional choices influence the content and effect of their artwork.…