Preparing children for academic success and beyond
In our Private Kindergarten classrooms at Caminito Spanish Immersion Private Preschool & Montessori, we place a strong emphasis on developing specific reading, writing, and math skills. To achieve this, we have formulated a daily schedule that creates a balance between teacher-directed and child-initiated activities.
| Area | Goals and Objectives |
|---|---|
| Reading | In preschool, students will learn alphabet letters and sounds, how to blend, and how to read one and two-vowel words. Our kindergartners will find real joy as they continue to develop their reading skills and learn to overcome the many exceptions in the English language. |
| Math | As our kindergartners learn to measure and compute, we introduce additional math concepts, such as money, time, place value, odd and even numbers, story problems, and probability. We teach math in the proper sequence, working from fundamental to complex concepts and reviewing former concepts while teaching new ones for greater retention and mastery. |
| Composition | Our students will practice handwriting skills. They will learn how to compose their original sentences and stories and use correct capitalization and punctuation. When they are writing for creativity, our objective is to enable students to communicate their ideas. Students learn spelling naturally through repeated exposure to it in daily dictation practice and phonics drills. |
| Science | We teach concepts about our world: the Earth and the planets orbit the Sun, the energy we need comes from the Sun, and minerals (materials for plant and animal growth) come from the Earth. We also teach how scientists classify animals to understand them better and their relations with each other. Students are introduced to and use the scientific method in projects and experiments. |
| Life Skills | Kindergarten students learn that geography is the study of our world. We start with what they know and can directly perceive—their classroom and the environment around them—and then build outward. Maps and globes help expand their understanding of the world beyond their homes to neighborhoods, cities, counties, states, countries, continents, and the planets! They also gain insight into the customs and celebrations of our country. |
| Art & Music | In teacher-directed art activities, students will learn to see and reproduce basic shapes and forms, enabling them to draw and paint. Art is integrated into other subjects as students illustrate science, reading, and writing lessons. They will discover that they are artists! |
| Physical Education | Children love playing outside. We use PE time to help children develop their physical abilities and the skills they need to play structured games. Whether children are walking the balance beam, learning a square dance, or catching and throwing a ball, they are challenging themselves physically and reaping the benefits. |
| Logic | In logic, we teach students to focus on observable facts, identify their essential similarities, and resolve—not tolerate—contradictions. We do this by teaching students to categorize objects and to identify patterns and sequences—including what would be next in a sequence. Challenger kindergartners explore logic concepts such as point of view, word associations, similarities, and opposites. Students will sing, “Give me a problem; I’ll figure it out” in our song “The Challenger Way.” This song articulates our students’ attitudes and confidence in their thinking skills when facing challenges. |