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First Grade Bible
In the First Grade Bible course, the students are introduced to stories and characters in the Old Testament such as Creation, Adam and Eve, original sin, Noah, the Tower of Babel, Abraham, Isaac, Joseph and Jacob. Students study lessons that teach about historical events written in the New Testament concerning the life of Jesus, focusing on His birth, early life, ministry and teachings on prayer and forgiveness. Salvation and grace are taught throughout the year and emphasized during the Easter season.

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First Grade Language Arts
In the First Grade language arts program, reading and spelling instruction, based on Saxon Phonics, continues. The students become independent readers and spellers equipped with decoding skills, spelling rules and tools to help them decode, read and spell words. For reading practice and comprehension, first graders read in phonetic readers and basal readers during a small ability grouped instruction time. Home readers are used for extra practice. All students are exposed to various writing situations where they learn basic grammar and punctuation rules using the Shurley Grammar program and Collins Writing and Thinking program. At the end of the year, students are able to write a short paragraph using correct punctuation, capitalization and content.

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First Grade Math
The envision Math program is the foundation of the Kindergarten Mathematics curriculum. This program is used along with many other supplemental materials and activities to create a balanced curriculum. The philosophy of envision Math is based on scientific research on how children learn mathematics as well as on classroom-based evidence that validates proven reliability. Students use manipulative and visual learning to facilitate their learning of concepts such as sorting and classifying, fractions and ordinals, addition and subtraction, geometry and measurement.

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First Grade Science
First Grade science includes observation, classification, research, prediction and practical application. The fall unit begins with a study of safety rules and safety hazards. In the life science units, students define the basic characteristics of animal classifications and during the ocean unit identify a variety of ocean creatures and their characteristics. Students are able to identify the proportions of land and water on the earth and the natural sources of water (streams, lakes, rivers). In the spring, the students study plant life and its benefits. First graders study the water cycle, and the effects of lightning, tornadoes, and flash floods on the environment. In physical science, the students explore the three states of matter.

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First Grade Social Studies
The social studies course in First Grade is a unique developmental program. It develops the knowledge of God and encourages Christian character and growth while covering basic social studies concepts. The history units focus on the exploration and the first settlements in America. Map skills are formally introduced and the students learn the seven continents and the major oceans. In the civics and government unit, first graders study the local government and community services. In economics, the students study needs versus wants, goods versus services and producers versus consumers. Field trips are designed to enrich the instruction.

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First Grade Spanish
The First Grade Spanish course continues to focus on Spanish in its spoken form, with an emphasis on developing listening and speaking skills. Additionally, reading and writing skills are introduced via exposure to Spanish vowel and consonant sounds. First Graders hear and produce simple Spanish words and sentences in a guided format, and through stories, songs, games, computer games and activities. Vocabulary includes courtesy words, colors, numbers 1-50, seasons/calendar/holidays/time, and some animals, foods/drinks, classroom and household objects, family members, clothing, transportation and places in the community. First Graders demonstrate listening and (early) reading comprehension non-verbally and verbally. They learn about the origin of the Spanish language and some elements of the Hispanic culture with an emphasis on Mexico and Spain. They memorize 2 Bible verses and pray for missionaries serving in a Spanish-speaking country, while gaining an understanding of God’s love for all people.

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First Grade Art
The art program in First Grade reinforces concepts and elements of design introduced in Kindergarten. In addition to basic skills, students are encouraged to express their own ideas through original artworks with several unique varieties of media, such as mosaic, watercolor and mixed media. In addition to the study of art history, they also become more familiar with art techniques and terminology.

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First Grade Music
The first grade music students expand their understanding of the elements of music through experiences singing, listening, playing instruments, folk dances and technology. Student experiences focus on the time element of music by listening to a variety of music as well as walking the beat and rhythm, clapping, playing on instruments, technology, speaking and singing as well as reading standard and non-standard rhythm notation. Pitch is experienced by ear-training, listening, singing, using hand signs for the Pentatonic scale, playing pitched instruments as well as beginning to read non-standard and standard notation. The First Grade class presents a musical performance for a special Easter chapel. Students learn to prepare songs and spoken parts for performance as well as evaluate their performance.

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First Grade PE
The purpose of physical education is to guide children to be physically active for a lifetime. It is our goal to enable students through physical education to perform basic skills in individual and team sports, motor skills, rhythms and fitness activities. Opportunity is provided to accomplish this goal through activities appropriately designed for the student’s developmental level. Believing that God wants us to respect authority and maintain self control in all areas of our life, physical education provides the perfect setting for learning self discipline through competition while learning to respect the rules of the game and the officials.

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First Grade Technology
In the 1st Grade technology course, students learn the names and functions of the important components of a computer system, proper use of computer equipment, manipulation of the mouse, procedures for starting and closing programs and how to save and print files. Students also learn skills such as keyboarding, graphics, word processing and multimedia presentations. In addition to learning specific skills, first grade students use computers to reinforce and enrich the subjects they are learning in their home rooms, including Bible, reading, mathematics, science and social studies.

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