Curriculum UPK-4

Students at these levels should experience a balance of literature and informational texts in the context of instruction designed to create opportunities for children to engage with a variety of topics and texts, and have discussions about texts that support language development and knowledge building. Creating this learning environment can take a variety of formats, including read-alouds, shared readings, paired readings, learning activities that incorporate literacy materials, talking, writing and other literacy activities.  We refer to these instructional events as ‘reading or literacy experiences’ because the focus is on using texts, printed and visual, to develop readers’ concepts of how meaning is conveyed through reading and writing, and in turn their ability to make meaning of increasingly complex text. Much of this work is done through talk-reading and reading-writing connections.

UPK- Grade 1  Writers:
In UPK,  students are exposed to and prompted to produce a range of text types as they dictate, draw to convey meaning, and make early attempts at producing letters, words, and letter strings.  These text types include: narratives, pieces of expository writing, and informational texts.

Grade 2-4 Writers:
As students in 2nd - 4th grade develop their writing skills, they will use a variety of strategies to plan, revise, and strengthen their writing.  Students will work independently and collaboratively with adults and peers to produce texts, and to learn about and develop their oral language--written language and reading--writing connections. Students should write for multiple purposes and learn about various tools (print and digital) to produce, share, and publish writing. In all writing tasks, students will learn to use and to adjust language to best communicate ideas, content, and message to readers.  Students’ academic language skills, including written language, co-develop with content and world knowledge and through opportunities to read, write, and discuss with peers. As part of their writing development, students should continue to learn about how technology and digital tools for writing can increase learning and communication.

The Churchville-Chili Central School District has a strong history of excellence in the arts and believes that an arts education plays an integral role in providing a complete and holistic educational experience.

All of the UPK-4 Fine Arts curriculum is guided by the NYS Learning Standards.

Music classes in UPK-4 have students explore a variety of music skills while participating in many different classroom activities. 

Art classes in UPK-4 introduce a variety of concepts to students and start to build skills in a variety of media. Students will study organic and geometric shapes, line, texture, color and 3-D media.

The focus in Pre-Kindergarten is on:
·         Representing and comparing whole numbers to ten, writing numbers to five, and using concrete materials to represent numbers.
·         Identifying and describing basic shapes and patterns.

The focus in Kindergarten is on: 
·         Representing and comparing whole numbers, including written numerals, initially with sets of objects.  
·         Describing their physical world using geometric ideas (Shape orientation and spatial relations) and appropriate vocabulary.

The focus in Grade 1 is on: 
·         Understanding addition, subtraction, and strategies within 20. 
·         Understanding whole number relationships and place value, including grouping by tens and ones. 
·         Understanding measurement as iterating length units. 
·         Composing and decomposing geometric shapes and reasoning about attributes of shapes. 

The focus in Grade 2 is on: 
·         Understanding place value within 1000. 
·         Building fluency with addition and subtraction to 20. 
·         Using standard units of measure. 
·         Describing and analyzing shapes. 

The focus in Grade 3 is on: 
·         Understanding of multiplication and division strategies within 100. 
·         Understanding of fractions, especially unit fractions. 
·         Understanding the structure of rectangular arrays and of area. 
·         Describing and analyzing two-dimensional shapes. 

The focus in Grade 4 is on: 
·         Understanding and building fluency with multi-digit multiplication, and building understanding of dividing to find quotients with multi-digit dividends. 
·         Understanding of fraction equivalence, addition and subtraction of fractions with common denominators, and multiplication of fractions by whole numbers. 
·         Understanding that geometric figures can be analyzed and classified based on their properties. 

Our elementary science program emphasizes a hands-on approach to learning. The implementation of the New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards (NYSP12SLS), an adaptation of the Next Generation Science Standards, will be taught through the three dimensions of science learning: disciplinary core ideas; science and engineering practices; and cross-cutting concepts, where students can build a cohesive understanding of science overtime. Students in Preschool through fourth grade will engage in the four domains of science including Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science, and Engineering Design. 

Students are naturally curious and learn best when they are actively engaged in the discovery process. Throughout their elementary science career, students will often work with their peers to interact as closely as possible with the natural world to construct explanations about the world around them. Through this active exploration they will learn how to think critically and solve problems through creating models, observing, discussing, and writing.    

In UPK-4th grade, students will learn:

UPK: Physical Science, including matter in the forms of solids and liquids, energy as pushes and pulls, and how sound is made through vibrations; Life Science, including plant and animal needs, external systems, and inherited traits; Earth and Space Science, including patterns of the sun, moon, and stars, weather changes, and the effects of sunlight. 

Kindergarten: Matter, including solids and liquids; Forces and interactions, including the effects of pushes and pulls; Interdependent relationships, including plant and animal needs and behaviors, and human impact on the environment; Weather and climate, including weather patterns, forms of severe weather, and the effects of sunlight; Engineering and design, including asking questions, making observations, and gathering information to solve a problem, developing models, and analyzing data.

First Grade: Waves, including sound through vibrations, and the effects of light; Life Science, including how plant and animal adaptations, behaviors of parents and their offspring, and inherited traits; Space Systems, including sky patterns and seasons;Engineering and design, including asking questions, making observations, and gathering information to solve a problem, developing models, and analyzing data..  

Second Grade: Matter, including investigating properties of matter, and melting and freezing; Ecosystems including, plant needs, animal and plant interdependence, and habitats; Earth’s systems that include timescales of fast and slow moving events, use of evidence and ideas of natural events that shape the earth, including erosion and weathering; Engineering and design, including asking questions, making observations, and gathering information to solve a problem, developing models, and analyzing data.

Third Grade: Forces and interactions, including balanced and unbalanced forces, motions of an object, and electric or magnetic interactions; Ecosystems, including animal groups, fossils, habitats, and environmental changes; Life science, including life cycles, inherited traits, environmental impact, and adaptations; Weather and climate, weather patterns, world climate, the impact of weather, and the water cycle; Engineering design, including identifying criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, and cost, compare possible solutions, and plan and carry out tests with controlled variables.

Fourth Grade:  Energy, including forms of energy, the transfer or conversion of energy, and the effects of renewable and nonrenewable energy; Waves, including patterns in amplitude and wavelength and the transfer of information through waves; Life Science, including eye structure and function, plant and animal internal and external structures, and how animals receive and process information; Earth systems, including rock formation and layers, fossils, effects of weathering and erosion, patterns of earth features, and the impact of earth processes; Engineering design, including identifying criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, and cost, compare possible solutions, and plan and carry out tests with controlled variables.

In following the NYS standards the UPK-4 Physical Education and Health curriculum is centered around the goal that all students become lifelong learners who strive to incorporate the values of health, wellness, and an active lifestyle in their everyday life. 

Our UPK-4 Physical Education curriculum is focused on teaching and learning: health related components of physical fitness; skillful and safe movement; promoting teamwork and sportsmanship; encourage mental, social and physical wellness of the individual student.

Our UPK-4 Health curriculum builds skills in learning empathy, emotion management, personal safety and hygiene, healthy food choices and human growth and development.  In addition our program provides current knowledge, fosters skill development and helps students develop positive attitudes towards making healthy choices. 

UPK through grade 4 social studies program integrates the five New York State social studies learning standards at each grade level.

In UPK the focus is on children’s natural interest in learning about themselves and other people, what they do, what languages they speak, and their roles and responsibilities.  

In Kindergarten, students study “Self and Others.” Students will learn about similarities and differences between children, families, and communities and about holidays, symbols and traditions that unite us as Americans. Students learn about respect for others, and rights and responsibilities of individuals. 

In first grade, students study, “My Family and Other Families, Now and Long Ago”. Students examine families and develop an awareness of cultural diversity within the American culture. Responsible citizenship is introduced, as well as the role of authority in making rules and laws. The students will increase their geography skills through the use of maps and directions. Family history provides the basis for examining sources of information and organizing that information. Economic terminology and principles are introduced in the context of family resources, as well as in making economic decisions.

In second grade, students study “My Community and Other Communities”. Students study their local community and learn about characteristics that define urban, suburban, and rural communities. Democratic principles and participation in government are introduced. 

In third grade, students study “Communities around the World.” Students learn about communities around the globe and about global citizenship. 

In fourth grade, students focus on New York State and local communities and their change over time, incorporating the study of geography, history, economics, and government.

The elementary core curriculum also provides many opportunities for students to apply, extend, and refine their understanding of these concepts.

Elementary Report Card Examples

K-4 Report Card Information Guide

Kindergarten Curriculum Guide

1st Grade Curriculum Guide

2nd Grade Curriculum Guide

3rd Grade Curriculum Guide

4th Grade Curriculum Guide

Kid-Friendly language for Performance level

Teach your child to write

Kindergarten Blank Handwriting Paper

1st Grade Blank Handwriting Paper

2nd & 3rd Grade Blank Handwriting Paper

4th Grade Blank Handwriting Paper